Medical Proof of the miraculous

7/27/2019 Medical Proof of the miraculous

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MEDICAL PROOF OFTHE MIRACULOUS


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MEDICAL PROOF OFTHE MIRACULOUSA Clinical Study

byE. Le BecHonorary Surgeon to St. Joseph^s Hospital^ Parts

President of the Bureau des Constatations^ Lourdes

Translated from the French by Dom. H. E. IZARD, O.S.B.,L.R.C.S., M.R.C.P., with an Introduction byERNEST E. WARE, M.D., M.R.C.S.

Senior Surgeon^ Hospital of S S. John and Elizabeth^ London

MCMXXII

Harding & More LtdThe Ambrosden Press


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IntroductionALREADY translated into several Europeanlanguages, Dr. E. Le Bee's Preuves Medicalsdu Miracle is now presented for the perusalof those who desire the work in English.Although all may not assent to certain of thebiological and pathological statements made bythe author, his work offers precise scientificevidence of some marvellous cures which haveoccurred at Lourdes and elsewhere, together withclinical histories of the patients concerned.

It must be remembered that if in some instancesclinical details are sparse, records as keptinhospitalsdo not obtain in ordinary practice, from whichmany of these cases are culled.The paramount importance of the Time Factor \is well elucidated. Its brevity must be acknow- \ledged by all those who practise medicine and Isurgery as something unknown in ordinary workingexperience. The case of De Rudder, which occurred manyyears ago, is valuable in that it affords post mortem ^

evidence of the existence of a fracture and itscure, and for this reason it is singular in theseries. In conditions of such chronicity, it willbe acknowledged that surgical consultations areoften few and far between ; consequently theevidence of the existence of the fracture imme-diately before the cure is given by witnesses whohold no surgical qualification, but to whomcredence can nevertheless be given.

In certain cases which are studied the authorgives adequate reasons for the absence of


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vi INTRODUCTIONimmediate medical evidence, but in all casesscientific testimony is proximate, and the imme-diate evidence is given bv observant v^itnessesYf\iO had every reason to be truthful.

Ernest E. Ware, M.D.(Lond.)

The translator desires to thank the Rev. DomEthelbert Arnold, of St. Augustine's Abbey,Ramsgate, and Dr. George Cox, K.S.G., of theMedical Bureau of Lourdes, for much help andassistance in the preparation of the MSS. Hehas also to acknowledge the great kindness ofE. F. S. and M. M. S., v^hose generosity madepossible a long stay at Lourdes, where a consider-able part of this translation was made.


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Author's Pre fa ceSCEPTICISM with regard to supernatural

cures is the normal state of mind of mostmedical men. Some declare that then-are not given serious medical proof ; others thatthe observations are biassed, that the accountsof the symptoms of the illness are distorted, andthat the natural processes of the cure in questionare concealed. Neither can the criticisms ofCatholic doctors be neglected. Their contentionis that in some instances, v^hen the alleged courseof events has been so diametrically opposed topathological lav^s, the cases have not been studiedwith sufficient scientific exactitude.

It is to reply to these grave objections thatthis study has^ beei3-IlB-dertaken.

I have not desired to report upon and examinea large number of cases ; those dealt with arelimited to typical examples, and whoever examinesthese with scientific care will be forced to admitthe positive intervention of the supernatural. Idecided that it would be more profitable to choosetypes of illness affecting different anatomicalsystems, in order to show that the repair of theorganic lesion has been effected in a mannerabsolutely contrary to the course of events whichwe encounter in medical practice.From the study of supernatural cures it willbe seen that the principal sign of the intervention

of a force superior"to nature consists in the rapidityof instantaneousness of the cure. We are there-fore entitled to appeal to the absence of a factornormally present, namely, the time factor.

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viii AUTHOR'S PREFACETime is an absolute necessity for the progress ofphysiological processes, and where it is lacking,when anatomical structures are evolved without

^ it, the progress of events cannot be natural.The pathological cases that I have chosen tostudy are eleven in number :

Varicose veins,A suppurating fracture of the leg,A non-suppurative fracture of the thigh,Pott's disease.An ulcer of the leg.Lupus,Club feet,A case of peritoneal tuberculosis with intes-

tinal fistulae,A case of six intestinal perforations.Two cases of recurring cancer, one of theface, another of the tongue.Pulmonary tuberculosis with cavitation.

The following is my method of procedure :First I describe the case, then demonstrate itsauthenticity, either by medical evidence whenthat is possible, or by absolutely trustworthywitnesses. Then each case is discussed in theusual medical form, to show the absence of thetime factor, and the material impossibility of anatural cell production to produce the anatomicalrepair of the lesions. Perhaps some doctors willconsider that I insist too much on the absence ofthe time factorbut that is the whole crux andcharacteristic of the supernatural cure. Medicalscience teaches us that the normal formation of


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AUTHOR'S PREFACE ixcells and tissues takes a certain amount of time,and that a tissue is never formed instantaneously.

If, then, one can prove in certain definite cases,the instantaneous formation of cells and recon-struction of tissues, it is impossible to see here anormal evolution of cellular life, and it is thisprecisely which constitutes the supernatural fact.

i have prefaced the clinical description of thecures by a study which I have called the Physiologyof the Supernatural in Medicine. Taking as a basisthe clinical facts, demonstrating a reconstructionof the tissues, I endeavour to determine the" how " of the supernatural cure. In certaincases it is possible to admit an evolution ofanatomical elements already existing ; a specialevolution taking place with extreme rapidity,but not demanding the production of elementsnot already existing, nor the suppression ofexisting morbid elements. But in other instancesthe re-constitution of the tissues cannot beexplained save by means of matter (mineralsalts not existing in sufficient amount in the body)formed by a supernatural force. Again, in others,the suppression of morbid elements of whichthere remain no trace in the body of the curedperson, by supernatural^gency must be admitted.I appreciate the fact that a large number ofmedical men reject almost instinctively evidencegiven by those not versed in medical matters ;but is it right to do this because the witness isdevoid of medical knowledge ? I have strivento show in certain of the cases studied that theevidence of persons totally unacquainted with


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X AUTHOR'S PREFACEmedical science presents, nevertheless, all theguarantees of certitude exacted by healthycriticism.

It is necessary also to reply to the objectionwhich attributes the cures to intermediary agents.It has been easy to prove that the vâter of thepiscina at Lourdes can do nothing, in a very largenumber of the cases, in the case of definite organiclesions ; neither can suggestion be invoked, be-cause, foUowîng the vîse counsel of Benedict XIV,nervous maladies are systematically put on oneside. Finally, the famous objection of unknov^nnatural forces leads to the destruction of Natureby herself, which is an impossibility.

This work makes no pretence to introduce anymedical innovations. All that I have said is tobe found in the classical treatises on pathologyand physiology. What is new and has not yetbeen put forward is the application of ordinarymedical and scientific criticism to the study ofthese supernatural cures. An endeavour hasbeen made to establish a scientific parallelbetween the progress of the supernatural and theprogress of the same phenomena in the naturalcure.

I have essayed to show clearly the radical differ-ence which exists between these two processes.This difference is inexplicable without the inter-vention of a supernatural force.Nowadays, manifestations of this supernaturalforce are seen at Lourdes with striking frequencyin the piscina, during the processions, or atthe moment of the passing of the Sacred Host


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AUTHOR'S PREFACE liproducing these instantaneous cures of diversemaladies. In the cures this mysterious forcesometimes uses the existing living tissues ; inother cases there appear elements not existing inthe body immediately before the cure ; or, again^the disappearance of morbid existing matter, as inthe case of cancer, is completely effected. In thislast instance, the phenomenon appears to be theinverse of creation.


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CONTENTSINTRODUCTION, BY ERNEST E. WARE,M.D. (LoND.), M.R.C.S. . . pp. v-viAUTHOR'S PREFACE . . pp. vii-xi

Part OneCHAPTER IMEDICAL MEN AND MIRACLES

Curiosity of medical men about LourdesSupernatural cures not in harmony with scientificand medical laws .... pp. 1-7

CHAPTER IIPHYSIOLOGY OF THE SUPERNATURALJustification of the word PhysiologyTheo-

logical classification of miraclesCellular unityConditions furnishing proofs of the supernaturalElimination of nervous phenomenaSpecial( clinical phenomena of supernatural cures : sudden

:' pain, absence of convalescencePathologicalphysiology of the supernatural cure in cases offracturePott's diseaseCancerVaricose veinsFormation of wound cicatrixAction of thecentral nervous system . . pp. 8-48CHAPTER IIITHE TIME FACTOR

Absence of time factor in cure of fracturesTuberculosisUlcersCancerVaricose veins.

PP- 49-57


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CONTENTS xiiiCHAPTER IF

EVIDENCEProof of reality of lesionValue of non-medical

witnessesProof of their veracity . pp. 58-62CHAPTER V

ACTION OF INTERMEDIARY AGENTSChemical and physical properties of LourdeswaterRadio- activitySuggestionFaith heal-

ingJansenist false miracle, case of DemoiselleCoirinAbsence of infection at Lourdespp. 63-81

CHAPTER VIUNKNOWN NATURAL FORCESValue of hypothetic forces-Worth of objectionas to a renewed limb . . . pp. 82-94

CHAPTER VIIOBJECTIONS AND OPPONENTS

Mentality of opponentsCertificates refusedand falsifiedReasons for opposition of scientistsFalse assertions of HaeckelClinical argumentagainst extreme transformismFalse assertionsof LeducOpponents' mode of discussionDe-mand for an experimental miracle . pp. 95-105


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xiv CONTENTSCHAPTER FillCONCLUSIONS

Supernatural cures necessitating the presenceof matter not pre-existing in the subjectSuper-natural cures not involving new matterSuper-natural cures v^ith suppression of existing morbidmaterial ..... pp. 106-112Part TwoMEDICAL OBSERVATIONS

I. Varicose veins . . . p. 113II. Suppurative fracture of the leg . p. 119

III. Non-suppurative fracture of thethigh . . . . p. 131

IV. Vertebral tuberculosis and hipdisease . . . p. 140V. Ulcer . . . . P- 146VI. Lupus . . . . . p. 151

VII. Clubfeet . . . . p. 160VIII. Tuberculous peritonitis, v^ith in-testinal perforation . . p. 165IX. Intestinal perforations with fistulae p. 175X. Recurrent cancer of the cheek . p. 180XI. Recurrent cancer of the tongue p. 186

XII. Pulmonary tuberculosis . . p. 190


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List of IllustrationsI. Caries of vertebrae, Pott's

disease . . . facing p. 30II. Legs of De Rudder dur-

ing life . . between p. 122III. Leg Bones of De Rudder and p. 123IV. I Femur of MargueriteV. J Verzier . . between pp. 136-7VI. Thorax of Gabrielle

Durand . . . facing p. 144VII. ] Lumbar region, MarieVIII. J Borel . . . p. 176IX. 1 Cancer of the tongue,X. J Catharine Lapeyre . p. 186


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MEDICAL PROOF OFTHE MIRACULOUSPart One

CHAPTER IMEDICAL MEN AND MIRACLESALTHOUGH there is an extensive litera-ture concerning supernatural cures, theworks which deal with the subject from a

purely medical standpoint are few in number.One of the most important is the paper byProfessor Duret.^ The facts are presented undera clinical aspect, accompanied by physiologicalconsiderations, and imbued with the philosophicalstandpoint. Those who have this paper in theirpossession will see that I have borrowed usefullyfrom it.Naturally, I am also inspired by the numerousworks on the great cures of Lourdes of myconfrre Dr. Boissarie. I have also consultedwith advantage the work of my friend Dr. deGrandmaison,* which views the cures from theclinical standpoint.Our confrre Fr. Deschamps has devoted an

1 Duret : Les Gurisons des Lourdes, sur le passage du St,Sacrement. Report of the Eucharistie Congress, London, 1908.

* Dr. de Grandmaison de Bruno : Vingt Gurisons Lourdes^discutes mdicalement. Paris, Beauchesne, 1912. Englishtranslation : Twenty Cures at Lourdes. London, Sands.

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:^,2:MEpmAI.F'l00F OF MIRACULOUSimportant volume to the cure of Pierre De Rudder,where he studies this miracle, both from thehistorical and scientific standpoint. ^ I mentionlikewise a small but careful study of ProfessorLavrand of Lille.* Dr. J. Bon published in 191a well-documented thesis entitled. Quelquesgurisons de Lourdes,

For myself, I have desired to take a point ofview differing somewhat from these writers.Passing rapidly in review the physical intermediaryagents, I have searched carefully into the clinicalproofs obtained outside the natural processesknown to medicine.

It will, of course, be understood that the natureof my surgical studies hinders me from examiningthese supernatural cures from the elevated stand-point of theology. I keep to my own province,

y' the study of the cures solely from the medicalpoint of view. My intention is to study not onlythe supernatural cures at Lourdes, but those alsothat occur elsewhere, although the first offer usa field of study which is extraordinarily rich.

^/ Some of the supernatural cures which we see in{ such an astonishing abundance at Lourdes take\ place in the piscina (and I shall study presentlyi what can be said of the intermediary action\ of the water), while others occur during theI procession, or at the moment of passing, of the{ Sacred Host. In this case there is no inter-

^ Deschamps: Le Cas de Pierre De Rudder. Bruxelles, Librairede l'Action Catholique. Paris, Lecoffre, Gabalda, 191 3.

2 Dr. liavrand : La Suggestion et les gurisons de Lourdes ;Question Scientifiques. Paris, Bloud, 1903.


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MEDICAL MEN AND MIRACLES 3mediary between the sufferer and the Holy-Eucharist. Instantaneous cures may be witnessedof pulmonary tuberculosis, Pott's disease, ab-dominal tubercle, ulcers, cancer, etc. These aredefinite lesions of an organic structure on whichsuggestion has no effect, i ""^ Curiosity in the Medical World,That these supernatural cures excite constantcuriosity in the medical world is evidenced by thegrowing numbers of medical menwho visit Lourdesfrom all parts of the world. This curiosity is

for the most part friendly. Undoubtedly itshows a transformation slowly working in thescientific world. It has ceased to be the fashionto ridicule the existence of facts of a non-materialorder and to cover with sarcasm those who studythem. Indeed, there is now a definite reactionagainst the dogmatic materialism of the pastgeneration.We see medical men notoriously sceptical,who yet wish to study what occurs in certainunusual phenomena where they are presented with

evidence of something outside and beyond matter.They ask themselves if there is not here definiteproof of the action of the immaterial on thematerial, or, if one prefers expressing it so, ofspirit on matter, or of soul on body ? Formerlythe materialists were supported by the factsdrawn from nervous disorders.As the result of clinical experiments on hysteria,they concluded reasonably enough that suggestionis powerful in these cases, and they endeavoured


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4 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSto equate to these nervous phenomena all othercures obtained in apparent contradiction to thelaws of medicine. This is evidently a mistake,but at the same time an avovi^al of belief in anintermediate agent, v^hich does not fall imme-diately under the evidence of the senses.

This change of attitude is the result of observa-tions made by a large number of medical men,v^ho find evidence in their practice of curesobtained manifestly outside the forces of nature.Is this different state of mind produced by thediffusion of the knov^ledge of these cures, v^hich arecertainly more numerous at Lourdes in our timesthan in times past ? Or is it caused by realizingthat suggestion is insufficient to explain the cureof organic lesions ? It certainly is an involuntaryavowal of that general inability to explain matterswhich drew from Brunetiere that forcible expres-sion *' the bankruptcy of science."

It is easy for a believer to find the answer.Be that as it may, however, no one can denythe growing number of medical men who go toLourdes wishing to examine the facts and tojudge for themselves.Not long ago, under the influence of Charcot,all that happened at the Grotto was treated withderisionan easy way of avoiding the seriousexamination of facts that were rather embarrassing.Eventually this manner of proceeding was re-con-sidered ; many deemed it wiser to endeavour tosolve the problem on the spot, rather than todecide it offhand at a distance. Hence, medicalmen from all parts of the world are numbered


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MEDICAL MEN AND MIRACLES samong the visitors to Lourdes ; they includeadherents of all creeds and believers in none. Allare adnaitted at the Bureau des Constatations.The late Dr. Boissarie permitted them to examinethe patients as they wished, and no one can denythat many have stated that the cures could notbe explained by the employment of any naturalintermediary agent*Supernatural Cures Opposed to Physiological Latus,

I can well understand that a miracle findsimplacable adversaries in the scientific world.In the preface of the work of Fr. Deschamps,* Isaid that the miracle, which the Church proclaims,is certainly a most disconcerting occurrence andabsolutely contrary to biological laws.When it is scientifically demonstrated, andscientific demonstration makes some cases certain,the miracle shows the powerlessness of our treat-ment and the restricted value of what thephysiologists have codified under the name ofthe unchangeable law of nature.Medical men, learned physiologists, and acuteobservers, have devoted long years to the studyof nature ; by their work science has made won-derful progress. They observed that vital phe-nomenaprocesses of nutrition, cellular evolution,etc., proceeded always in a like manner; theyconcluded quite naturally that this order couldnot be changed, and to their conclusions theygave the name of laws.We have the habit of respecting these laws,

1 A. Deschamps : Le Cas de Pierre De Rudder. Supra.


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6 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSbecause we can do nothing against them. Butwhy should we affirm that that which is impossibleto the doctor, is also impossible to that PrimalCause which believers call God ?

Anatomists state that the growth of the bonyskeleton ceases in man at the age of twenty-five.It is also generally admitted that animals growfor a quarter of their time* of existence. Butwhy this time-limit ? We know nothing aboutit. If the Creator had adopted this limit oftwenty-five years for man, why should it beimpossible for Him to vary this period ? Isit because we doctors have formulated thisanatomical law and are powerless to vary thislimit ?What could hinder God from proceeding inanother manner ?

In pathology we are accustomed to state thatfor the renewal of anatomical elements theremust be a certain space of time, always the same

^-'6 in the same physiological conditions. Our thera-peutic intervention does nothing else than putthe tissues in the best condition so that cellularevolution may proceed without trouble, followingits normal course.But why should it be impossible that thiscellular evolution should not take place in adifferent manner which passes our comprehension?I understand perfectly well that when it happensit must be disconcerting for medical men. Again,I find it quite reasonable that there should be aninclination to reject the miraculous, and to exactrigorous proofs to demonstrate it. When we


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MEDICAL MEN AND MIRACLES 7submit these proofs our request is siraply thatthey shall be examined and discussed. It isVastonishing to see cultivated intellects rejecting ythe miraculous for the sole reason that it is/contrary to admitted law.

Dr. Julian Marcuse {Berliner Tagblatt, Oct. 13,1902) gives us an example of this. He says :" The case of Pierre De Rudder cannot be true 'because it would be an affront offered to all thelaws of biology and pathology." The expression*' affront" is strong, but it is justified, for a miracledoes go counter to biological laws, since it doesnot conform to those formulated by humanscience. For some scientists this fact is one to bemuch regretted.


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CHAPTER IIPHYSIOLOGY OF THE SUPERNATURALJustification of the word Physiology,THE expression the " Physiology of thesupernatural" may seem unjustifiable; it

is, however, justified in the sense in which Iuse it, for my purpose is to examine the variousmodifications of the vital phenomena which occurin the cures that I have investigated.The study of the vital phenomena of diseaseis called pathological physiology, consequentlythe use of this word is justified when I apply itto these cures, which exceed the force of nature.What I am endeavouring to do is to study notthis mysterious force in itselfthat belongs totheologybut the effects of its intervention inthese supernatural cures.

It seems to me that the best plan will be brieflyto summarize the vital phenomena which physi-ology studies in the normal and the pathologicalstates, and demonstrate how these same phe-nomena have a different sequence of procedure inthe supernatural cure.As a medical man I should not dream of makingthis study of supernatural facts, except for thereason that they consist of cures which arecapable of clinical observation, in which thedifferences between normal vital phenomena andthose due to supernatural intervention can beobserved. .Theological Classification of Miracles.Theologians divide miracles into three classes :

-B--"


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PHTSIOLOGT OF SUPERNATURAL 9(I) above nature, (II) contrary to nature, ai^d,.(Ill) "exceeding nature. A miracle of the firstclass is one which, quite surpasses the forces ofnature : for example, the restoration to life of adead person. A miracle of the second class isone in which the effect produced is contrary towhat should have occurred according to naturallaw : for example, the Three Children unhurt anduntouched by fire in the furnace. The thirdclass comprises those occurrences which onlysurpass the forces of nature relatively, and asregards their mode of operation : to this classbelong nearly all the supernatural cures, formany of these sufferers could be cured natu-rally, granted the appropriate remedies and thenecessary time.

Assuredly the cure of organic disease suddenlyeffected without remedies cannot be callednatural.Now let us turn our attention particularly toa point coming directly under medical verification,namely, the instantaneity, or, in other terms, theabsence of the time factor. There are certainsupernatural occurrences which do not requirethis factor of instantaneity ; some even excludeitfor example, the fact of a person or somecombustible object escaping combustion despitea long period in the flames. Here it is evidentthat the fact of the supernatural would beemphasized by the extension of the time factor.

If we consider the supernatural occurrencesupon which medical men are more often calledto give an opinion, or if we take cognizance of


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10 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSthe cures presented during a cause of beatificationor canonization, we shall note that the instan-taneity of the cure, in the sense which will beexplained later, is alnaost always necessary.We say almost always because, as a matter offact, the supernatural might be seen in a casenot of sudden cure, but one which was otherwiseimpossible; for instance, the disappearance of/the cancer noted later on, or the restitution of

S^ sight to an eye the optic nerve of which was\ atrophied.The requirement in supernatural cures of thisinstantaneity accentuates as it were those cureswhich, though slow, were naturally impossible.

In the cases in which the time factor is absent/ or very short, there is a rapid formation of'^ physiological tissue which otherwise would have\ tdcen months to evolve, even were it then

possible; this constitutes the sign and mostcharacteristic proof of the supernatural.Reduction to Cellular Unity,When the phenomena of life are closelyexamined, it is seen that they are a summing up,a synthesis of the life of the cell. This life is

. subject to natural laws, and every time thatcellular life breaks through the observances ofthese laws it is reasonable to conclude the exist-ence of a force outside and superseding them.

Students of physiology will remember that thecell is a microscopic body which, in unison withother cells, forms all living tissue. At its originthe human body is represented by a single cell


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PHTSIOLOGT OF SUPERNATURAL iiwhich possesses the singular property of con-taining '' in potentia " all our organs, differingas they do from one another.The primitive cell is the result of the union oftwo other cells, male and female, and when thesetwo cells unite, their coalescence causes theappearance of a cell differing essentially fromthe two parent cells, since it is endowed with thepower of evolutionthat is, it has the capacityof generating other cells having forms andproperties which differ greatly from those of theparent cells. As soon as the primitive cell is con-stituted with its physiological properties it multi-plies itself by dividing into two. The twodaughter cells divide in their turn, very rapidlythere is formed a small mass of cells termed the^ embryonic cells. This is the embryo.Soon one of these embryonic cells forms a new

^ and differentiated cell ; this is the first nerve"^ cell, and it is endowed with special properties.y From it arises the nervous system, by which aremanifested externally the properties of the soul.Soon after another embryonic cell forms theprimitive cell of the vascular system, and again

. another initiates the beginnings of the osseous andconnective tissue systems. The other organs aregradually formed. When the body, the productof the embryo, is completed, this cellular lifeexists in all the organs ; but in order that thecell may live, it must receive from the bloodthe principles necessary for its growth and sus-tenance.

If for some reason the cell does not receive


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12 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSthese principles, and yet, despite this fact, cellularlife progresses or reappears after having dis-appeared, the intervention of a force other thannatural is evident.Applying these facts to the phenomena ofsupernatural physiology, the following schemecan be constructed, reducing all the facts tocellular unity, and to the biological phenomenav^hich take place in its protoplasm.^My task as a medical man is to investigate thecures from the medical and physiological pointof viev7. Leaving to theologians the task ofclassifying such in the third or, exceptionally, in/the second category, I endeavour to demonstratehow, in a certain number of well-authenticatedcases, the vital phenomena effected in the cure

\ do not follow the normal sequence. ..reconditions Constituting Proof of the Supernatural.We may now formulate the conditions requisiteto prove supernatural cure. These conditions

; are three in number.j A minute examination shows that we can andI ought to consider a cure as certainly supernaturalI

when in the same case are found united the three|. following conditions :

I. The proved existence of a serious lesion inthe tissues, or a loss of substance ; for example,a wound, osseous caries, or tubercles.

II. The proved existence of cicatrization,effected either instantaneously or in a time

* This name designates the substance which constitutes thebody of the living cell.

/


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PHTSIOLOGT OF SUPERNATURAL 13MIRACLE

above Nature.

Example :Resurrectionof a dead person.

Effect of death on the cell.Coagulation of the cellplasm.Arrest of phenomena ofassimilation.Arrest of disassimilation.Decomposition of proto-plasm by bacteria.Elimination of gases.Decomposition of themineral principles.Complete discontinuitythrough arrest of life.

No cellular life.MIRACLE

MIRACLEagainst Nature.

Example:The Child-ren in the furnace.Effect of heat on the cell.

I St stage :Eliminationof water from the pro-toplasm.Precipitation of saltswhich are no longer insolution.

2nd stage :Gases set atliberty.3rd stage :Oxidationof mineral elements.Formation of ashes.

Discontinuity throughabsence of physicalconditions permittinglife.No cellular life.MIRACLE

MIRACLEbeyond Nature.

Example : Instantan-ous formation of callusor scar tissue.Effect of the absence ofthe factor Time on the

cell.Phenomena of assimila-tion in the ceU havenot had time to occur.Nutrition and naturalevolution impossible.

Discontinuity throughabsence of physiologicalconditions permittinglife.No cellular life.MIRACLE

Cellular Ufa


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14 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSmanifestly too short for the normal processes ofcure.

III. The permanence of the cure and there-establishment of functions for a sufficientlength of time, mere amelioration being thusexcluded.We shall see later on that these three conditionsare all found united in the cases here examined,and we need not hesitate to regard such cures assupernatural.Elimination of Nervous Phenomena,

It is customary to put on one side all phenomenawhich are purely nervous.The physiology and pathology of the nervoussystem are not yet thoroughly understood, andthere is still much discussion of all that relates tohysteria*. Moreover, in this, as in many otherthings, the wisdom of the Church has anticipatedmedicine.

In his treatise, "Of the Beatification of theServants of God," ^ Pope Benedict XIV does not

\ wish that cures should be considered miraculous\ which can be explained by the influence of thenervous system.He allows only very rarely miracles withregard to the hysterical, epileptic or paralytic.He says, with a clinical sense most unusual in onewho is not a student of medicine, *' When it is aquestion of hysteria, it will not do to make themiracle consist in the disappearance of the

1 De Beatif. et Canon, Lib. IV, Pars. I, Cap. XIII, n. 14.Roma, 1 747-1 75 1.


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PHrSlower of supernatural 15crises, but in the cessation of the morbid state thathas produced them. It is to be noticed thathysterical women are subject to natural criseswhich may produce an entirely normal disappear-ance of their illness. It will then be very difficultto hold such cases as miraculous. If sometimesthe postulators of causes of beatification havetried to do so, I have never seen them succeed."This quotation definitely proves that the Churchis among the first to distrust facts which are pro-duced purely under the influence of the nervoussystem.

In all cases in which there is doubt she prefersto hold aloof. It is, then, contrary to all truthto maintain that supernatural cures are onlyphenomena caused by natural nervous manifesta-tions. It may be asked, is it wise, philosophicallyspeaking, to say a priori that every cure occurringsuddenly in a hysterical person can never bedefinitely supernatural ?

Surely this would be pushing rigorism too far !Hysteria is a disease, and a hysterical person,just as well as any other, may be the recipient ofthe grace of being healed.Pope Benedict XIV finally settled the questionwith regard to his own sphere, when he wrotethat typical phrase quoted above : " When it isa question of hysteria, it will not do to make themiracle consist in the disappearance of the crises,but in the cessation of the morbid state that hasproduced them."

This simple phrase of the great Pope provesthat without having made medical studies in


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i6 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSnervous diseases he yet understood the maladyin a wonderful way, and distinguished its essencefrom its manifestations.The essence of hysteria is, however, unknown tous. The most minute examination of the nervecentres has not yet revealed to us anything as tothe nature of the lesions. Still, it is not unreason-able to think that one day this will be ascertained.Meanwhile, the schools in interpreting thesymptoms, dispute on the nature of hysteria, andthe symptoms are the only things of which we arecognizant. For a long time the SalptrireSchool made of hysteria a definite morbid entity.Now a new school tells us that this conception iserroneous! All this variety of opinion arisesbecause of our ignorance of any sound pathologicalbasis which would serve as the substratum of themalady.The discussion is sine materia. There is, then,nothing to oppose the opinion that this unknownsubstratum could be modified by supernaturalintervention in such wise as to cure the generalmorbid state, with its accompanying train ofsymptoms. But as we see hysterical manifesta-tions modified by natural causes it is prudent toput on one side nervous maladies to avoid allmistake.

It is evident how wise the Church is in observinga prudent reserve in a matter subject to suchcontroversies ; but, on the other hand, thisprudence gives her the right to pronounce oncertain cures when there are manifest proofs ofthe supernatural.


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PHTSIOLOGT OF SUPERNATURAL 17 .Special Clinical Phenomena ofSupernatural Cures.{a) Sudden Pain,The supernatural cure often presents at Lourdesa strange phenomenon which is never noticed inthe ordinary medical and natural cure. This is asudden pain, often extremely violent, felt some-times only in the affected part, sometimes dif-fused throughout the whole body." The sick," said Duret, " complain of feelinggreat distress, exhaustion, or intense cold. Some-times they have attacks of shivering, trembling,or they faint ; there is an apprehension of theend, and they become of a death-like pallor. Thensuddenly follows a sensation of calm, rest, and well-being. The sick person has the physical sensationthat he is cured. Some feel themselves impelledby an interior force which urges them to rise andwalk, and this they do even though they feel veryexhausted, as is evidenced by their pallor. Theylook like dead people emerging from theirshrouds. They kneel, or follow the procession,though no one would think them capable ofsuch an effort."

This first clinical observation does not affectdirectly the proof of the supernatural cure, sincewe have not made the fact of this sudden painaccompanying the cure one of the requisiteconditions. Moreover, it is not a constant featureof the cures at Lourdes. There is evidentlyhere some connection with the instantaneous-ness of the cure, and this explains why it is notmet with in the natural cures. It is different,


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i8 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUShowever, with the next dinical observation, theabsence of convalescence.(b) Absence of Convalescence.The absence of convalescence is another pheno-menon very frequently observed in the miraculouscure. This is part of the supernatural cure, andin a way its sign and seal. It is a means by whichthe instantaneity of the cure is controlled anddemonstrated. There is no convalescencethatis to say, the subject is able to perform at oncethose bodily functions which the illness hadrendered impossible or extremely painful. Heis cured, and the injured organs are renderedcapable in a moment of performing their normalfunctions.

In many cases, despite the gravity of the illnessand the exhaustion of the patient, the return tohealth has been complete.

Pierre De Rudder had remained eight yearswithout walking, and he would certainly have hadsome stiffness in the ankle joint, such as takesplace when the surgeon has not forestalled, byappropriate treatment, this form of fibrousankylosis. He also had undoubtedly rigidity of thetendon sheaths, accompanied with retraction ofthe leg muscles, a condition which could not beovercome save by careful treatment with massageand methodical movement. This treatment lastssometimes two or three months before the sickperson can walk with ease or comfort.But here all these inevitable complications com-pletely disappeared, so that some hours after thesudden consolidation of the fracture De Rudder


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PHTSIOLOCr OF SUPERNATURAL 19was able to run to catch the vehicle that had cometo take him to the station, and, having returnedhome, was very soon able to resume his strenuouswork as a woodcutter.Margaret Verzier, after the supernatural con-solidation of her fractured thigh, could walkbefore Dr. Tournaire, and did so at his first visit.

In the sudden cures of tuberculous peritonitiswe encounter the same surprising phenomenon.Dr. X. came to Lourdes with advanced tuber-culous peritonitis complicated with an intestinalperforation, which had confined him to bed fornine months. He arose from his bed and tookfood within half an hour after the procession ofthe Blessed Sacrament. He told Professor Des-plats that he felt able to get up at once, but hedid not dare to do so in public, as his cure seemedto him so extraordinary. What restrained himwas not a sense of prudence, quite natural in amedical man, but a feeling of doubt about thegrace vouchsafed to hima fear of being deceivedabout his return to health and of the realityof the total disappearance of an illness which,in the ordinary course, he knew would be fatalwithin a short time.

Gabrielle Durand, whose lungs, meninges, peri-toneum, and vertebral column were successivelyattacked by tuberculosis, affords us a similarexample. Carried twice to Lourdes in a metalsplint on account of her spinal disease, she wascured suddenly in the piscina at her second visit.She raised herself and began to walk in thepiscina. Tuberculosis had attacked many tissues


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T

20 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSfor a period of eighteen years, yet suddenly herwhole state is changed, all her strength comesback.

It is the same with Amlie Hbert, thepatient of Dr. La Nele of Lisieux, who hadpulmonary tuberculosis, with cavity formation.She had arrived in Lourdes so exhausted by herhaemorrhages that she had several fainting attacksduring the journey. The attendants at thepiscina hesitated to bathe her, fearing too violenta reaction from the cold water. She left thepiscina cured ; there was no further suppurationof the lungs or vomiting, and appetite returned.The re-establishment of her health was immediateand absolute. On her return to Lisieux Dr.La Nele verified at once the cure of the lungs,and testified to the excellent state of her health,which permitted Amlie Hbert to take up againher work on the land.

Here, then, are two typical cases where in-veterate tuberculosis has disappeared, and wherethe return to healthy life has been absolute, with-out the patient going through even a short periodof convalescence. I insist again on the mysteriousabsence of the period of convalescence, becauseit is never seen in our ordinary medical cures.Here, then, are two clinical phenomena, the oneless important, the violent pain which accompaniesthe cure in a certain number of cases ; the other,more remarkable, the absence of convalescence.

It will be easy to demonstrate that in thesesupernatural cures there is evidence of vitalactions which are absolutely inexplicable by known


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PHTSIOLOCtT of supernatural 21natural causes. We shall study successively thesephenomena, in cases of fracture, Pott's disease,ulcerated wounds, cancer, and varicose veins.Physiological Pathology of the Supernatural Cure,{a) Cure of Fractures,The phenomena which occur in the supernaturalcure of lesions of the osseous system differ markedlyfrom those which occur in other tissues. We seethe osseous gaps filled up by matter containingcalcareous salts, which are not to be found in thebody a moment before the cure.

It will be useful to narrate quite shortly themanner in which an osseous scar, that is to say" callus," is formed in a normal and naturalrecovery.

Fractures are cured by the formation at theextremity of the two osseous fragments of aslender layer of cartilage, of a thickness less thana millimetre, which is solidified gradually by thedeposition of calcareous salts. This cartilaginouslayer grows and ossifies in proportion as the saltsmineralize the deeper portion in contact with thebone. Beneath the cartilaginous layer appearcapillary vessels which carry the salts necessaryfor this mineralization.The two cartilaginous coverings of the upperand lower bony fragments gradually approach

each other, finally they meet, and the callus isunited. At first, however, this osseous scar issoft and incapable of bearing the weight of thebody. It acquires solidity and strength, bybeing mineralized, and this is effected by a deposit


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22 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSof lime which the blood furnishes to it in thefollowing mannerpure phosphate of lime, whichis the principal foundation, is only contained inthe blood in very minute quantities.Schmidt calculated the quantity contained inthe blood serum to be i gr. 60 ; Becquerel i gr. 47for the whole of the blood, estimating theadult total average of blood at about 5 litres.This phosphate is derived by the blood from thefood, and it is only after chemical elaboration bythe digestive secretions that the blood is able toabsorb this salt and carry it to the capillaries ofthe callus.The quantity of salt deposited is proportionateto the number of capillaries and the quantity of

blood which circulates in these microscopicvessels. It is therefore very slight. One doesnot hesitate to say that only a fraction of a milli-gramme of this salt can be deposited during aminute in the whole of the callus. The slownesswith which this deposit of salt is made can bebetter realized if we recall the physiologicalconditions of the circulation in the capillaries.The capillary vessels have a calibre of five totwenty thousandths of a millimetre. The rateof flow in the small capillaries is estimated asfifty - seven hundredths of a millimetre persecond, but it is more rapid in the large ones andhas not yet been calculated with precision.The volume of blood which traverses a capillaryduring a second is very slight.We know that the blood contains about i gr. 60of phosphate of lime per litre, about 32 centi-


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PHTSIOLOGT OF SUPERNATURAL 23grammes. It is, however, impossible to give anyaccurate computation of the amount of mineralsalts carried in the blood in a definite time, forall this depends upon the chemical and biologicalrates of assimilation by the intestines, and this isbeyond our powers of measurement.Knowing, however, the measurement of thecapillaries and the rate of the circulation, thequantity of salt deposited in a second can only beextremely minute, for forty or fifty days are usuallynecessary to form callus sufficiently strong tocarry the average body weight.-^ We think thatwe are correct in saying that the quantity ofphosphates thus carried would be increased in thecase of a person with a fracture above that of 3normal individual, because the normal quantity,o gr. 32 per litre, only serves to maintain theadult skeleton, and in the case of a fracture theblood ought to carry a considerably increasedquantity for the formation of the callus.Here we might ask by what mysterious actionthis quantity of phosphatic salt deposits itself

only from the capillaries of the injured bone andnot elsewhere ?

Again, it would be equally interesting todiscover what is the unknown force which deter-mines that this excess of phosphate shall circulateonly during the time necessary for the repair ofthe fracture, disappearing as soon as the callus isformed.

Physiology gives us no answer.^ Surgical operations practised to remove callus show that

ossification is far from complete by the sixtieth day.


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24 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSWhat then are the preternatural phenomena

which occur outside the sudden formation ofcallus, as in the case of Pierre De Rudder orMarguerite Verzier ?

I have taken measurements of the tibia ofPierre De Rudder, and the osseous fragment whichrepaired the loss of substance of the bone can beestimated at about the weight of 5 grammes,hence a great quantity of phosphatic salts musthave been deposited suddenly. It is quite certainthat this quantity was not available in the bloodat the moment of the miracle.Can we say, then, that there is some unknownnatural force which has instantaneously extractedfrom the blood much more phosphates than itcontained ?Whence came this amount which did not exist ?Is it necessary to say the blood has formed thesesalts ? That is to acknowledge a supernaturalpower, a creative agency, which unbelieversreject, but believers recognize.Let us follow up our hypothesis. Could it besaid that the quantity of salts, thanks to someunknown mechanism, was in solution in the blood,and that the blood was instantaneously despoiledof the total amount it contained ? But that isabsolutely impossible, since the chemical composi-tion of the blood is fixed and cannot be changedwithout causing grave illness. The subjects ofmiracle, however, are not illthey are cured andin sound health.Can we imagine these necessary salts depositedsomewhere as a reserve in case of sudden cure ?


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PHTSIOLOGT OF SUPERNATURAL 25This is anatomically impossible, for there does

not exist in the body a site where such phosphatescould be stored. It is manifest that such reason-ing has no scientific basis.

Again, can we suppose that the calcareoussalts, which appeared suddenly at the momentof the cure, came from the mass of the samesalts which exist in the skeleton, from whichthey have been derived ?

I shall show later on, when dealing with thecure of a case of Pott's disease, that this theoryis also chemically impossible.

It is, then, a theory purely imaginarya hypo-thesiswhich is not only unsupported by fact,but which contravenes the phenomena of thephysiological life of the osseous system. The bloodis unable to transfer from one part of the bodyto another salts already combined with livingtissues.Moreover, it might be asked, so as not toshirk the problem, how could the blood, in thisunique circumstance, take away one of theconstituent parts of the skeleton and transportit instantaneously to the necessary spot whereit would be fixed ?

Outside this untenable theory we are compelledto acknowledge that this quantity of phosphatesdid not exist in De Rudder"^ body and that it wasdeposited instantaneously by a force other thanbiological. Finally, we may safely say thatphysiology forbids us to assume that phosphate oflime drawn from its natural source could be fur-nished in such quantities to the callus instan-


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26 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUStaneously. This salt comes from the food, asmentioned before, and the following is the seriesof necessary changes through which it passesbefore arriving at the callus of the fracturedbone.

I. Introduction of food into the intestine.II. Action of intestinal secretions and ferments

upon the food.III. Liberation of phosphate of lime.IV. Absorption of the phosphate by the blood.V. Transportation by the blood to the cells,forming the new bone.VI. Deposition of the salts about the cells.Here we may point out that all these variousoperations by their very nature take place

successively, and this excludes instantaneity.(The instantaneousness of the cure constitutes the(^^definite supernatural fact.There is an aspect of the case of De Rudderwhich seems to have escaped the attention ofobservers, despite the fact of its importance :What happened to the superficial necrosed portionof the bone ? These dead fragments of thetibia were certified to by Dr. van Hoestenberghe,in December 1874, and also by Dr. Verriest.The witnesses who assisted at the dressing ofthe wound the evening before and also themorning of the cure, saw these dead osseousfragments in the wound. This is an importantpoint relative to the cure of the fracture. Everysurgeon knows that such dead bone plays thepart of a foreign body and is an obstacle to anycure until it has been removed. This removal


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PHTSIOLOGT OF SUPERNATURAL 27did not take place. They did not sequestratespontaneously, so what became of them ?To elucidate this matter for readers not familiarwith surgical phenomena, allow me to make ashort digression into the domain of pure anatomy.

Living bone is composed essentially of two parts.(I) A part hard, mineralized, not susceptible ofgrowth by itself, and pierced by microscopic canals.(II) Another part soft, nitrogenous, living, capableof growth by itself, forming the blood capillariesand the cells of the marrow. These two elements(blood-vessels and cells) are contained in the smallcanals of the mineral portion. The mineraland nitrogenous portions united constitute livingbone. If these parts are separated, if the capil-laries and the cells of the marrow disappear, thebone dies. What remains is only the mineralportion, the corpse of the bone, known as asequestrum. This necrosed, or dead, portionmust be removed before the processes of repaircan definitely commence.In the case of De Rudder, the dead boneremained in the wound, forming an absoluteobstacle to the formation of callus. For theformation of callus it was necessary first of allthat one of the two following processes shouldoccur : (I) Either that there should be a revivis-cence of the dead bonethat is to say, that theblood capillaries should instantaneously reappear,and also the cells, in all the canaculi of the mineralsubstance ; (II) or that the dead fragments, stilladhering strongly to the bone at the momentof the last dressing, should suddenly disappear by a


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28 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSmeans which I cannot explain, for they were notfound in the dressing, as had happened when thefirst fragment was detached on a previous occasion.

If one may choose between these two hypo-theses, I should be inclined towards the first,for we ought not to assume the fact of annihilationthat is to say, the return to a primitive nothing-ness, except in case of absolute necessity.But really it matters little, for no natural forcecould effect either this annihilation or the suddentransformation into living bone.

It would be very interesting to know theinternal process of a deposit of phosphates ina miraculous case of this sort, to ascertain ifthe salt has been carried in the blood to thecapillaries of the callus, which implies a surchargeof salt, as it were, in the blood serum, orwhether it has been deposited directly in thecallus without passing by the blood. Un-fortunately, this process escapes the evidenceof the senses. Neither do we know how thislarge quantity of phosphate of lime has been ableto appear instantly without passing in the blood,or without modifying profoundly its chemicalcomposition, or, again, without causing theslightest systematic reaction.Humanly speaking, the problem is insoluble.

(b) Cure of Potfs Disease.The mode of cure of vertebral caries is wellknown. It varies according to the site of thedisease and the extent of the lesion of the verte-bral bodies. If the Pott's disease is not of old


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PHTSIOLOQT OF SUPERNATURAL 29standing, if the suppuration of the vertebrae isvery limited or only superficial, the abscess driesup, transforming itself into fine, fibrous-lookingthreads. If a radiograph is made of diseasecured at this early stage, nothing can be seen, forthese fibrous threads do not show on the photo-graphic plate. This slight osseous cicatrix isinvisible to our processes of investigation. Thiswas the case with my patient Gabrielle Durand.It is, however, another matter in the cure ofPott's disease with extensive destruction of thevertebrae. Then the cure is made by the depositof calcareous salts, phosphate and carbonate oflime, along the vertebral column. These depositsreunite and consolidate the bodies of the vertebraedestroyed by the tubercular suppuration. Thedeposits may be of large size. In the museum ofthe medical faculty of Paris I have examinedone which was more than 30 centimetres longand would weigh some 18 to 20 grammes.

Let us take a lower figure and say that a caseof Pott's disease, cured suddenly, would require10 grammes of lime salts. The chemical analysisof the blood tells us that it contains but 6 to 7grammes. Where does the remainder comefrom ?We know that the calcareous salts are taken upby the blood from the food, and in no other way.

It is necessary that the patients can take food, butthey arrive at Lourdes often in such a state ofillness and exhaustion that this is practicallyimpossible ; indeed, it is one of the reasons whythey are taken there.


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30 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSMust we, then, say that the salts, phosphate

and carbonate of lime, have been suddenly takenfrom the osseous system ? It would be difficultto demonstrate it. To effect this result it wouldbe necessary that the blood should carry somechemical substances capable of instantaneouslydissolving an enormous mass of calcareous saltsand then of depositing them again practically atthe desired site.Chemical or other agents of this sort are non-existent.We know that in certain diseases such as osteomalacia there is a loss of calcareous salts, and thisis followed by a softening of the bony skeleton.But all this occurs slowly, and the course of theillness runs into years, and when the salts havebeen thus drained away the patient dies.

In certain pathological states of nutrition, aconsiderable loss of phosphate of lime takesplace through the urine, but here the course ofthe disease is even slower.In these maladies the blood is both the dissolverand the carrying agent, but it never deposits thesalts in some other part of the body ; they arealways eliminated by the urine. The salts thatare deposited for the cure of Pott's disease comeonly from the process of digestion by assimilation,and never from the osseous system.Now it would be absurd to say that the processof intestinal digestion can suddenly furnish thelarge quantity of salts necessary to repair thedestroyed vertebral bodies. It must be,_then, asI have demonstrated in the case of De Rudder,


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CARIES OF THE VERTEBRAE: POTT'S DISEASE

Medical cure of a long-standing case of vertebral cariesdestruction of thesecond and third lumbar vertebrasincurvation of the vertebral column. In frontof the diseased vertebrae is a large white plaque formed by calcareous salts, supportingthe carious vertebrae. Higher up and at the side is another calcareous plaque ofrounded outline which is reuniting two vertebral bodies.


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' * t.*

--,J%,,'-


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PHrSlower of supernatural 31that the calcareous salts are derived extraneouslyand hy some other route than the digestive tract.And here precisely it is that the supernaturalenters in.Cure of Cancer,

Pathological physiology of the disaffearanceof cancer puts before us a process different fromthat which has just been discussed, but one byno means less interesting. Here v^e see not anevolution of old cells nor the creation of new ones,but the total disappearance of a living tissue,without leaving the slightest trace.We can testify not only to the disappearance ofthe malignant growth, but also to that state ofthe blood and tissues which medical men termcancerous cachexia, a state which invariablyaccompanies cancer after it has existed some time.Here, then, is the sudden disappearance of thecancerous cell, with all its physiological accompani-ments. It would be beyond the scope of thiswork to give an extensive study of what is knownat the present day as to cancer, but for the benefitof the layman I shall give a short sketch whichwill enable him to grasp better what occurs inthe supernatural curethat process which Iterm " the physiological pathology of the miracu-lous " in the case of cancer.Cancer is a growth formed by the union ofcells which have the harmful property thatwhilst they grow rapidly they invade the neigh-bouring tissues and at the same time pour a poisonor toxin into the blood. The cancer in growing


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32 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSdestroys the cells of the tissues that surround it,gradually penetrating them more and more.So much for the local state. As to the generalcondition, dissemination or generalization comesabout by means of the circulatory system throughthe lymphatic and blood vessels.The cancerous cells permeate the lymphaticspaces of the surrounding tissues and then pene-trate their walls by means of the power of " dia-pedesis " ^ and enter the lymphatic and bloodcapillaries ; by these means they enter the generalcirculatory system, and thus the growth becomesgeneralized or disseminated.But there is yet something more. The canceralso operates by means of products secreted byits cells which are diffused in the blood.The action of these products approximates tothose animal poisons to which the name ofToxins is given. These act by infecting theblood, little by little, but continuously.Now the reason is clear why I stated at theoutset that the supernatural cure of cancer

necessitates two distinct acts : the one relating tothe cells of the tumour, the other to the poisonedcondition of the blood.

I do not ignore the fact that certain forms ofcancer exist in which there is a natural tendencyto the formation of scar tissue. This naturalcure is, however, strictly localized, and has beenobserved only on a small area; it never extends

1 By diapedesis we understand the power possessed by certainanatomical elements of piercing and passing through living cellwalls.


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PHTSIOLOGT OF SUPERNATURAL 33through the mass of the growth, which mean-while continues to grow steadily. It is interestingto consider what happens in these rare cases,because one is tempted to assume that thisnatural and very partial cure is similar in processto the supernatural cure, and that the mode isidentical in the two cases.

In certain forms of cancer of the skin the courseof events is very slow, and extends along thesurface instead of penetrating deeply, and onehas observed the following phenomenon : asuperficial ulceration cicatrizing at one of itsborders, whilst continuing to grow slowly at theremainder of its periphery. The formation ofscar tissue usually confines itself to one point,but remains limited here, and this cicatricialtissue is always powerless to arrest the progress ofthe cancer.This local healing is, then, far from being acomplete cure, since it has an effect only withinnarrow limits ; there is no action on the totalityof the growth, nor on the blood infection. Ifscarring takes place at several points this is effectedwith extreme slowness, very different from therapid disappearance of the growth seen in thetwo following cases : Ren Clment, withrecurrent cancer of the cheek, and CatharineLapeyre, with recurrent cancer of the tongue.Some philosophic reflexions may be permittedhere concerning the physiological pathology ofcancer. When the cancer is cured in a supexji.natural manner, the mode of cure differs con-siderably ; the cure of rodent ulcer, for instance,


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34 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSdiffers mucli from that of a solid growth. Whenthe maHgnant growth is ulcerating, the diseasedsurface is covered suddenly and wholly with alayer of healthy epidermal cells. The whole ofthe ulcer becomes a scar. This is what happenedin the case of Catharine Lapeyre./ It is the more remarkable in that the essential

( vital property of cancerous cells is normallyC to destroy eventually the epidermal cells. Some/ mysterious force must, then, have taken away fromthe cancer its distinctive biological properties.

/ Can one possibly sustain the thesis that it isonly a natural force when it has acted preciselyagainst natural properties ? But this would be

j the destruction of nature by herself. A manifest/ contradiction. No, the force is a supernatural^K)ne.The cure of a cancer that is not ulceratingshows us something more astonishing still, if I may

dare to express it thus, for it is the disappearanceof an existing living substance.Clinically there is sometimes seen, though veryrarely, the relatively rapid destruction of a cancerby mortification. In these cases the tumourbecomes of a black colour, and is little by littleeliminated in the pus flowing from it. This isthe process of gangrene. In the supernaturalcure there is nothing that suggests an absorptionof the growth into the system. In the cancroidof the cheek of Ren Clment and the cancer ofthe tongue of Catharine Lapeyre we see that thetumour has been replaced by a solid scar.A cancerous mass, formed of cells, can exceed


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PHTSIOLOGT OF SUPERNATURAL 35in weight 100 grammes ; such, for example, is acancer of the breast. As the cancerous cell hasa diameter of fifteen to twenty thousandths of amillimetre, the number of cells is immense.

In a miraculous cure all these have disappeared.Where have they gone ?Can we say that they have been absorbednaturally by the blood ? No, for when thecancerous cells enter the blood the death of thepatient follows from cachexia and secondarygrowths.But after the supernatural cure there is no suchthing as generalization and secondary growthsthe cure is absolute.

Is it possible that the reabsorption of the cellsof the cancer actually takes place, but that thesecells have been rendered harmless ? But this isto acknowledge an effect contrary to naturallaw. The cure is supernaturalin short, amiracle.

Outside the action exercised by the cancerouscells locally, we know that the growth exercisesan action on the whole organism by means of thecell products that emanate from it, which arediffused by the circulation. Thus the cancerbecomes a source of poison to the whole body.

It is possible to obtain this cancer poison, and itis found to be a toxin which gives the reactions ofthat class of poisons called Ptomaines. Thesepoisons -act by entering the blood in small butcontinual doses. We can say, speaking generally,that these cancerous toxins are thus more dan-gerous than the most infectious poison.


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36 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSHas the human body any means of getting rid

of these toxins ?Yes, but only under certain determinate con-ditions to which anatomy suppHes the answer ;but we know that these conditions are notreaHzed in the supernatural cures.

In order that general readers may grasp medicalreasoning more clearly, I am here obliged to returnagain to physiology.The elimination of poisons circulating in theblood takes place by the skin, but principallyby the kidneys, which are the true filters of theblood.

This elimination can only take place slowly onaccount of the anatomical structure of thekidneys, where it is subject to circulatory con-ditions. The volume of the kidney is smallits capillaries measure from eight to fifteenthousandths of a millimetre in diameter.For the purpose of argument we may say thatthe total capillary capacity of one kidney is about100 cubic centimetres. That is to say, onekidney would be filled by receiving lOO grammesof liquid at a time, or 200 grammes for the twokidneys together. Consequently, in the normalstate, the elimination of poisons circulating inthe blood takes place rather slowly. Surgeons,of course, are fully acquainted with this, and inpractice, when there is a necessity for what iscalled " lavage " of the blood, they know that thisprocess will take some hourssometimes evendays.

If, then, the whole blood could be filtered


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PHTSIOLOGT OF SUPERNATURAL 37suddenly, the kidneys would receive at oncetwenty-four times more fluid than they are ableto contain. This amount suddenly forced inwould most certainly rupture the capillariesand the kidneys would be destroyed.

It is therefore impossible that natural forcescould effect this instantaneous filtration. More-over, there exist yet other impossibiHties. Therapidity of the circulation of the blood is regulatedby the beats of the heart, seventy-two pulsationsa minute being the average. To pass suddenlythrough the kidneys the 5 litres contained in thebody, the heart would have to beat many timesmore rapidly. This would demand an amount ofmechanical work it is incapable of performing, forwe know that death is not far off when thepulsations exceed 160 to 180 a minute.

Again, if this amount of blood was suddenlyextracted from the brain, death would occurimmediately from cerebral anaemia. \

It will be clear to all, therefore, that natural -forces are powerless to eliminate the toxinsinstantaneously, taking into account the normalphysiological powers of the human organismyet this sudden disappearance is what actuallyoccurs in supernatural cures.Let us inquire further what happens from thepoint of view of bio-chemistry, when the wholemass of cancerous tumour disappears. The canceris a living animal tissue, hence it is a nitrogenoussubstance. When we make an analysis of anitrogenous substance we decompose it intogases, which escape in the air, and a solid mineral


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38 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSremainder, which is left in the retort, and is found

\ in the form of ash.In the supernatural disappearance we find

^^ nothing, neither gas nor mineral ash ; the dis-I appearance is absolute.V If we wish to maintain the thesis that this dis-appearance is made under the influence of natural

forces, we are obliged to recognize that thisdestruction of proteid material can only takeplace in the manner above indicated, by reductioninto gas and mineral salts. We must look some-where else, then, to find what has become of theconstituent elements at the moment of theirdisappearance. It might be maintained, perhaps,that the gases escape our notice because they areinvisible. This in itself is not impossible, butwhat has happened to the visible portion ? Ofthis there is no trace.We cannot imagine that they have passed intothe blood, for their presence would most certainlycause a certain amount of physiological embarrass-ment ; but there is no sign of any trouble arisingfrom the blood.

( If these mineral salts are not found at the spotwhere the tumour formerly existed, and if theycannot have been absorbed by the blood, what hasbecome of them ? This is where the supernaturalmanifests itself, since no satisfactory explanationcan be found to account for the instantaneousdisappearance of the cancer cells and the cancertoxins.Are we not forced to conclude that theirjtotal^annihilation has been effected ? Thus, In the


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PHTSIOLOGT OF SUPERNATURAL 39supernatural cure of cancer, we are confrontedwith a phenomenon the reverse of that which ""occurs in the sudden cures of fractures as seen inthe cases of De Rudder and Margaret Verzier.To sum up : on the one hand matter which )formerly did not exist in the body suddenly /appears; and on the other morbid pre-existing \matter totally disappears. / .

^Cure of Wounds and Formation of Scars.In a great number of supernatural cures anoteworthy fact is the persistence of marked -scarring. If one may be permitted to say such athing, it is as if God wished to leave very definiteevidence of the disease that has been cured.The cicatrization of wounds and the re-forma-tion of tissues is effected by a process whichappears to be absolutely identical with that seennormally in medical work.The consoHdation of De Rudder's fracture takesplace by true callus, ulcers are cured by cicatricialtissue and not by true skin (Duret), the fistulasin the cases of osseous caries are replaced by afibrous scar, depressed and adherent. The sameoccurs in the cure of lupus or in rodent ulcer, asin the case of Ren Clment. The ulceration inthe one case, the rodent ulcer of the other, arereplaced by scar tissue, having all the morpho-logical properties of normal scar tissue. What is,however, particularly remarkable here is the rapid ^evolution of the connective-tissue cells whichform the scar, and this does not conform to theirnormal evolution.


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40 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSThe connective-tissue cells are derived theone from the other, and are nourished by material

furnished to them by the blood. The bloodderives these necessary substances on the one handfrom the lungs, i.e. the respiratory gases ; on theother, the proteids and mineral salts, from thedigestive tract, where they have been elaboratedfrom the food.The marvellous discoveries of Pasteur havetaught us that the digestive ferments are formed

in the glands of the stomach and of the intestineunder the influence of bacteria, and the majorityof the digestive acts occur in their presence, andalso, as in the case of all fermentations, under theinfluence of active principles produced by thesebacteria.

It is absolutely essential that these bacteriashall have the requisite time to reproduce andexert their action in the glands. Consequently,each cell formed, needs time for these necessaryvital operations.Here is a rsum of the series of operationsneeded for the work of cellular generation. It isanalogous to that drawn up for the productionof callus.

I. The introduction of alimentary materialinto the digestive tract.

II. Action of the digestive juices on the food.III. The elimination of assimilable principles.IV. Absorption of these principles by the

blood.V. Transportation by the blood to the cells.VI. Assimilation of these principles by the cells.


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PHTSIOLOGT OF SUPERNATURAL 41Our opponents have the awkward task of

postulating a force which shall perform instan-taneously all these complicated chemical andbiological processes. Clinical observation showsus that in the cicatrization of surface wounds thescar tissue is formed at the periphery under theform of a thin collar of epidermis which spreadslittle by little towards the centre. It is but rarelythat it is seen being produced in the centre of thewound.

I have explained why this process is so slow.In the supernatural cure we know that it isinstantaneous. If we cannot have recourse tothe hypothesis of creation of all the cells, we mustadmit that a mysterious force has suppressed thetime necessary to accomplish all these functions,and, comparing with the natural process ofcicatrization, must admit that this Force has madeuse of some of the existing cells, those probablysituated at the periphery. We may take it thatthis Force has been able to stimulate the cellswhich existed at the periphery, and has made themspread towards the centre with a supernaturalrapidity.We cannot always certify to a cure ad inte-grum in all lesions. Pierre De Rudder had lostthrough suppuration the extensor tendon to thegreat toe. This tendon was not renewed. Ap-parently the mysterious Force that cured thefracture, the main lesion, wished to leave sometangible evidence of the trouble that had beencured.Dr. Boissarie has very appositely remarked


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42 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSthat these remaining evidences are not to beregretted. Apropos of the visible callus in thecase of Pierre De Rudder, he said : '^ This per-manently remains an irrefutable sign of the illthat has disappeared. For if the leg at theautopsy had shov^n no sign of the fracture, thosewho denied the miraculous v^ould most certainlydeny the former existence of this fracture."The same happened with Mme Rouchel.The large lesion, the perforation of the cheek andsoft palate were cured, but a small ulceration

\ remained on the internal aspect of the upper lip.^ Mme Rouchel knew it and was happy about it,/ for, as she said, "It is a proof of the terrible^- trouble from which I have been cured."The probability is that in internal disease an

analogous process takes place instantaneously.The pulmonary cavities cicatrize up and thetubercular bacilli are destroyed. This is preciselywhat happens in the natural cure of pulmonaryconsumption, but the miraculous cure is achievedin a different manner from the healing thatfollows definite biological laws. The supernaturalclothes itself in a very different aspect from thenatural.We must remark that the cured pulmonarycavities usually leave traces of their past existence.- A complete return to normal respiration doesnot always occur ; this would constitute evidenceof the re-formation of the normal pulmonaryalveoli and a stethoscopic proof of the restitutioad integrum. Usually at the site of the cavitiesthere remains over a limited area a feeble air


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PHTSIOLOGT OF SUPERNATURAL 43entry, but unaccompanied by rles. This corre-sponds to the fibrous cicatrix of the lung, whichwe find post mortem in the case of ordinaryhealed phthisis. It is a proof, moreover, that alesion really did exist. It corresponds to thevisible cutaneous or osseous scar.Radiography demonstrates to us the cure andthe calcareous transformation that occurs in thesepulmonary cavities, just as we see it in our ordinaryclinical experience. It is both the sign manualof the disease and its cure.The Cure of Varicose Veins,The pathological anatomy of varicose veinsis perfectly known. The tissue alterations re-vealed by microscopical study demonstrate whythese lesions never clear up when once they haveattained a certain degree of gravity. Thesealterations affect the walls, the valves, and thelength of the veins.A short explanation will enable us to appreciatethe nature and the gravity of these extreme tissue

changes. We shall then realize why the medicalman never obtains an absolute cure, a restitutioad integrum of the large veins even after themost careful treatment.But it is an absolute cure that I testify to in thecase which I report, and of which I was myselfthe witness. The reabsorption of inflammatoryproducts is common in surgery, but that itshould be complete, very definite conditions area sine qua non. The products to be absorbedmust not be too old, there must be a certain


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44 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSrelation between the duration of the trouble andthe extent of the lesion.

If, then, diseased products of considerableduration disappear instantaneously, we can saythat a physiological phenomenon has happenedwhich is contrary to natural law.The purpose of the valves that exist in the veinsis to furnish a support to the column of blood,and in cases of varicosity these are atrophied.They are unable to fall back and to close the lumenof the diseased vein ; often even the valves them-selves are destroyed. As a result, the circulationis deprived of the physiological aid which theyshould normally furnish against the force ofgravity, and there follows a blood stasis in thelower limbs, with resulting damage to thenutrition of the skin, of which I shall speaklater.Embryology shows us that the valves are formedby the budding of the internal wall of the veinsand their development takes places -pari passuwith that of the veins.

In a case of cured varicose veins, when the cir-culation of the blood is fully re-established, weassume that the valves have reappeared, althoughthe development of the veins has long ceased, andthat these valves have been completely reproduceddespite physiological laws. Large varicose veinsshow a grave pathological change, namely an ex-traordinary and unaccountable increase in theirlength. As a result they show under the skin anumber of serpentine flexures, forming some-times veritable tumours. When the surgeon


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PHTSIOLOGT OF SUPERNATURAL 45removes these, if they are unravelled, he seesthat their length is very considerably greaterthan that of the incision that he has made.

I have seen this elongation many times in theoperations I have performed for the radical cureof varicose veins.Now, in the case w^hich I report, the veins lostall their pathological flexures and assumed anormal form. For this return to their normallength, in the case of my patient, a series of verycomplicated changes v^ere necessary : disappear-ance of the endothelial cells forming the internaltunic of the veins, disappearance also of the smoothmuscular fibres of pathological formation, in thethickness of the middle coat, and reabsorption ofthe cellular tissue v^hich retained the rigidityof the varicose walls. It is absolutely impossibleto furnish the slightest explanation of thisphenomenon. The total disappearance of thesegment of a vessel is never seen in medicine, andis an occurrence impossible to realize experimen-tally.

Here, then, is an absolutely inexplicable fact.The pathological changes in the walls of theveins produce in addition, in various places,ampullary dilatations. At the summit of thesedilatations the wall of the vein becomes ofextreme thinness. This thinness may causespontaneous rupture of the veins and gravehaemorrhages.

It would be an error to think that we neversee large varices cured, although such cures areonly partial, limited to short segments of the


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46 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSvein, and consequent on phlebitis, a grave inflam-mation of the veins.The pathological process is as follows : thepatient has considerable pain in a certain limitedarea of the varicose vein. The skin reddens atthis spot, the veins are sv^ollen, they feel hard onpalpation, and it is easy to recognize the presenceof a clot within the vein. At the end of severalweeks, when the inflammation has subsided, it isevident that the veins have diminished in volumeand contain a clot. This clot becomes organized,and with the progress of time shows itself as afirm and painless cord, the vein remains practicallyobliterated and the blood ceases to circulate.

In this the natural mode of cure there is nocomparison with the supernatural; this takesplace instantaneously, without fever, withoutphlebitis, and without the circulation of the bloodbeing interrupted.

Clearly, there is no comparison between thenatural and the supernatural termination sincein the one case there is a restitutio ad integrum,in the other a temporary or permanent oblitera-tion of the diseased vein.The skin presents profound changes, whichexplain the ulcers. The microscope revealshistological lesions of a chronic nature ; littlecollections of pus are formed which open, coalesce,and form ulcerous wounds, the resistance ofwhich to treatment are the despair of the patient.Medical treatment can effect something at thebeginning of the ulceration, but when this is ofold standing and the veins are voluminous the


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PHTSIOLOGT OF SUPERNATURAL 47outlook is practically hopeless. These ulcers areregarded hy medical men as chronic, and theyusually remain so while the veins that causedthem remain uncured. In the case of my patient,all the ulcers were cured instantaneously, andthey did not recur.With regard to the treatment of varicose veins,outside operation, it is practically limited to theapplication of pressure by means of elasticbandages. By these means there is a certaindecrease in size of the veins whilst the pressureis maintained, but there is no return to the pre-varicose condition. This treatment has alsonot the slightest effect in reducing the increasein length, once it has been acquired. Not only,in the case of my patient, did the veins againacquire their normal length, but the perfectregularity of the blood circulation made onebelieve that the valves had been perfectlyreconstituted.Action of the Nervous System.We can now inquire what is the organic prin-ciple of the human organism used by this mysteri-ous Force to cause an evolution of the tissues ina manner so differing from the normal.

'' It is difficult," said Duret,^ " not to admitsome impulsive and predominant action of thenervous system, moved by a superior invisibleforce. Even if we admit a curative action on theorganism, exercised through the intermediation

* Duret : Consideration sur les gurisons de Lourdes. Lille,1907.


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48 MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSof the nervous system, the miraculous characterof the cures is not lessened. For there does notexist any natural agent capable of producing suchresults."Duret explains how all these phenomena are

- dependent upon the central nervous system, whichis the great regulator of Iffe. " Illness," he said," is not a mysterious thing of which we cannothave exact conceptions, even if these be incom-plete. Claude Bernard said ' that illness is adeviation from the physiological laws of the organ-ism.' Now, the great regulator of these laws isthe central and peripheral nervous system, andmore particularly the nerves which preside overthe nutrition of the tissues and organs (the nerves,vasomotor and trophic). Natural history showsus that the sun has an action inciting the growthof plants. The nervous system plays a similarrle in the life and development of our tissues andorgans. If its function is hindered or paralysedby illness, the processes of necessary repair areonly effected very imperfectly ; but if they receivea mysterious excitatioiLj, then their sluggish action

f can be stimulated. We can then say that thecure operates under the intensive action of naturalV^ forces put into operation by Divine Power"It is logical to affirm with truth that the force/ that produces the supernatural cures, puts into/ action with an intensity and miraculous sudden-

l ness, the curative power of the organism, that is\ to say, of the nervous centres of the nerves and\ the tissues.


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CHAPTER IIITHE TIME FACTOR

COMPARATIVELY few people are awareof the rigorous proofs exacted by theChurch before she will acknowledge asupernatural cure. It is sometimes imagined thatabsolute instantanit is one of these conditions,but this is an error which should be dissipated.The different kinds of cures narrated in the pre-ceding chapter have this in common, that thetransformations or modifications which constitutethe cure are accomplished either quickly or instan-taneously ; although the same changes wouldnaturally require a considerable space of time.Without inquiring if instantaneity is a requisitecondition for miracles of the first and second class,it must be said that this condition is a requisitefor miracles of the third class, to which belongnearly all the supernatural cures.Of course, it does not follow that there ought tobe a mathematical and absolute instantaneity,so short that it cannot be measured. PopeBenedict XIV formulated in an admirable mannerthe rules observed for the examination of miraclespresented for the process of canonization. Hedistinguishes an absolute instantaneity and moralinstantaneity. This last is sufficient. . In themedical miracle it is necessary to demonstratethat the cure has been obtained in a space of timemanifestly too short for it to have been effectedsolely by the forces of nature.

It It IS not presumptuous to give anotherform to the words of Benedict XIV, I should4 49


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so MEDICAL PROOF OF MIRACULOUSventure to say that the " time factor has beenabsent." Moreover, it is a general characteristicrequired for the miracles admitted or recognizedby the Church.

In the process of Beatification the customaryformula of the question submitted to the Tribunalfor the approbation or acknowledgment ofmiracles is as follows : '* an constet de instantaneaet ferfecta curatione. ..." Instantanea is sup-pression of the time factorabsence of convales-cence; ferfecta^dihstnc^ of relapse and permanenceof the cure.

In the examples which constitute the basis ofthis work we find these two classes of instantaneityclearly demonstrated.The instantaneity was absolute and practicallymathematically so in the cure of De Rudder'sfracture (see page 119); in the case of the intestinalfistula, with tuberculous peritonitis, of Dr. X.(page 165) ; in the cure of the Pott's disease ofGabrielle Durand (page 140), whom I attended ;in the cure of the pulmonary tuberculosis ofAmHe Hbert (page 190) ; in the cure of varicoseveins (page 113).Absolute instantaneity has been proved atLourdes in many other cases ; moreover, aremarkable thing, and one worthy of specialattention, is that 'in these instantaneou

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