Lourdes shrine records 72 medically unexplained cures after rigorous scientific review

Lourdes, a small town in the Pyrenees, welcomes roughly four million pilgrims annually, many hoping for divine healing. Since 1883 the sanctuary’s Office of Medical Observations has catalogued thousands of recovery claims and subjected them to a rigorous seven-criterion protocol. An international panel of more than 300 physicians, including Dr. Alessandro de Franciscis and specialists like Dr. Michael Moran, evaluates each case for a severe diagnosis, sudden and complete remission, lasting effect, and lack of any plausible medical explanation.

Sister Bernadette Moriau’s 2008 cure from Cauda Equina paralysis satisfied all criteria and was declared the 70th miracle in 2018, bringing the total to 72. The process remains open to scrutiny, with all records available to external doctors. While the Church views these events as divine intervention, skeptics are invited to examine the evidence themselves.