Joseph's Testimony of Healing at Lourdes

On Friday the 22nd of March 2002, which was the Friday just before Palm Sunday, and our last full day in France, we gathered at the grotto in Lourdes to have Mass about 9:00 am. Monsignor Stephen Frost and Bishop Gabino Zavala concelebrated the Mass, and a religious monk served. A lady from our group did the readings.

After the Mass, we went to the baths to take our dip. To me, going down there to take a dip was just like being in Paris. You know, the first time in Paris, you go up the Eiffel Tower, or at least go and look at it. Taking a bath at Lourdes was kind of like that for me. I kind of believed like Bernadette: the water was not for me. It was nice. It was good and cold to drink. There were little faucets along the wall at the side of the mountain where you could press a button and the water came out. You could drink it and wash with it. It was real cold.

Well, they took us down to the bath. The men in our group were lined up by the guy that ran the particular part of the baths where we were. He lined up all the men in our group, followed by Monsignor Frost, then the bishop, and me last. I don't know why, but that was the way he did it. There was a rack there with instructions in just about every language in the world. They gave us instructions printed in English on what to do and how to do it.

So when it came my turn” I went and took my clothes off. I stood with a little towel around me in water that was just touching my toes and the bottom of my feet. The water was real cold. I got chilled, and was just shivering. I could hear through the curtain as the assistants told everybody else, “You pray your prayer.” They listened and helped the bathers with their prayer.

When it was my turn, the assistant said, “You pray in silence, Your Excellency.” So I think he had me mixed up with Someone else in the group. Anyway, I followed the instructions and prayed in silence. And then they helped me down the steps into this ice-cold water, about forty-two degrees, or something like that. Then from my toes to my waist-I was standing in water up to my waist-I got real warm. The chills went away. Then we had another prayer. I think it was the Our Father. And then they lay me down backwards into the water. All but your face and your head goes under. Then they brought me up and they gave me a pitcher of water and said, “Pour it over your head. They don't submerge you completely, so you have to wash your head. And then they gave me a glass of water to drink, and I drank two or three of them. Then we prayed again and they helped me up out of the water. And when I came out of the water, I was dry. I didn't need a towel to dry off with. I put my clothes on, thanked the guys, and went out and joined the rest of the guys who were still waiting on the women to come over from the women's side.

Monsignor Frost had broken his glasses in half, right down the middle. If you have no glasses, its kind of hard to see, and he definitely couldn't do any reading or anything. So the bishop, Monsignor, and I went back to the hotel, which was about a block and a half or so from the grotto. We found out where the eye clinic was so the bishop and Monsignor went to the eye clinic to get the glasses. Monsignor gave me instructions on some vestments that he was interested in. I rushed back over to the vestment shop, which was right outside the gate of the grotto in Lourdes.

I was trying to talk to the saleslady who only spoke French. I don't speak very much French, so we were having a terrible time with communication. She was showing me all kinds of vestments. One of the ladies in our group from the Los Angeles area came by and said, “Joseph, where's your cane?” I had hung it on my belt behind me, but I had to hunt for it because I didn't remember where it was. When she said that, the thought came immediately to my mind of the ten lepers that Jesus had healed. The lady said, “You've been healed. Are you going to give thanks?” She was my conscience. And so I took the cane in one hand and handed her the papers and said, “Monsignor is looking for these vestments.” I think that's how the order ended up on her credit card.

Anyway, I took off. There are some long steps that go up about sixty to eighty feet. They wind up to the main chapel at the grotto. I ran all the way up those steps to the top and wasn't even winded. So I went in and I gave praise and thanks. After a while-I don't remember how much time was involved-I went back down to the baths. All the offices and all the doors everywhere were locked. There was nobody there. I had to laugh. It was like nobody was home, and I wanted to tell somebody, but no one was home.

Finally I found one of the assistants who had helped me in the baths, and I told him. I thought he understood English because he understood what I was talking about. We went out and knelt down in front of the grotto and hung my cane on the rope. After he finished praying, be handed me the cane and said, “Go,” I put the cane back up on the rope, but he said, “No” and pointed to the crutch that was hanging above the grotto on an iron. That was the only symbol to show that someone who was crippled had been healed that was allowed to be left there, There used to be hundreds of canes, crutches, braces, and other things, but eventually there were too many of them so now there is just one,

I left and went back to the hotel. When I arrived at the hotel, Monsignor had the red vestment. He wanted to show it to me, but I said, “I have something better to show you.” He said, “There's nothing better than this vestment.” And I said, “Oh,” and I led him to my room. When we got there, I jumped up on the bed. Then I jumped on the floor. And I jumped back and forth. And he said, “Oh no! All right!” I don't remember his exact words, but he was very excited. He got the bishop and the bishop watched me. He said. “So, you can jump on the bed.” Later we had some private talks about what had happened and the Church's stand on these kinds of things.

I put the cane in my suitcase and brought it back. When we got back here, I gave it to Monsignor and he put it up in the chapel. I haven't needed it since. My equilibrium was off and it's fine now. My right knee was giving me a lot of trouble and it doesn't anymore. My left knee does still give me a little bit of trouble.

At Lourdes, I experienced the healing of a lower extremity and my equilibrium. My tremors still come and go. My case has been reported to the authorities. Since it was not a complete and total healing of my physical problems, it may not be considered as an official miracle at Lourdes. Nevertheless, miracles are still happening at Lourdes, and I hope this testimony will strengthen the faith of those who read it.