Cunningham, Clement P.

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The Linacre QuarterlyVolume 24 | Number 3 Article 9August 1957The Medical Bureau at LourdesClement P. CunninghamFollow this and additional works at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/lnqRecommended CitationCunningham, Clement P. (1957) "The Medical Bureau at Lourdes," The Linacre Quarterly: Vol. 24 : No. 3 , Article 9.Available at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/lnq/vol24/iss3/9I THE MEDICAL BUREAU AT LOURDES Clement P. Cunningham, M.D. President, Rock Island Catholic Physicians' Guild A PILGRI MAGE to Lourdeshas a very special meaning for the physician who registers at the MecLcal Bureau and becomes a member of the A.M.I.L. (Asso­ciation Medicale Internationale de Notre Dame de Lourdes). This past fall it was my great privilege to visit the town of Lourdes and the Domain of the Grotto where the apparitions of the Blessed Vir­gin took place. The President of the Medical Bureau, Dr. Pelissier, and the staff doctors of the Med­ical Bureau personally welcomed, regardless of race or creed, each of the physicians who registered with the Bureau and invited each one to feel perfectly free to exam­ine all records, to visit any depart­ment of the hospital, and to parti­cipate in any of the discussions that took place. We were encour­aged to investigate on our own the validity of the past miracles and to take part in the examination and discussion of the present cures. When I registered with the As­sociation I noticed the paucity of United States registrants. There are a number of readily· apparent reasons for this condition; first, the distance between the United States and Lourdes is most incon­venient for the American doctor; second, once in Eu,:ope, Lourdes is rather inaccessible;1 and finally, 96 most American doctors visit" g Lourdes are not aware of the gr: Jt privilege extended them by mer· ly reporting to the Medical Bure 1u and each presenting evidence '.o them that he is a recognized D, c­tor of Medicine. It is for this l st reason that I am specifically writ1 tg this paper. Prior to my visit to Lourdes, I had no knowledge Jf the importance of registering at , '1e Bureau, and only through a char ce meeting with a Catholic pri::st from Belfast, Ireland, did I re;il­ize the privilege and experienLes that were to follow. The Medical Bureau. operates independently of the Church Au­thorities and receives no subsidies from the Church. The spedk function of the Medical Bureau is to examine and authenticate all alleged cures that may occur. 1 o treatment is carried out at Lourdes and only a few of the pilgrims who request it are examined upon their arrival. Most of the pilgrims arrive in well organized diocesan groups and are accompanied by a pilgrim-1In the·· fall of 1956, besides the railroad. travel, there were two scheduled air· flights a week from Brussels, Belgium and about ten scheduled flights a week from Dublin. The air ·field is being developed and enlarged and it is anticipated that by the Centennial year of 1958, many more major airlines will have scheduled flights to Lourdes. LINACRE QUARTERLY age doctor who usually has the records from their attending physi­cians. The .great majority of tb,::: pilgrims admitted to the hospital· represent illnesses that have beer­long standing in character anu have been given up as incurable: · by many doctors and clinics. ; 1 would, therefore, be very easy tn authenticate any of their illnesrc,since these patients have alre::i�·,built up an extensive record whk;,includes many x-ray and labor; ·tory reports from different hosFi­tals and clinics where they ha· ,�been treated. For this reason pre­liminary examinations at Lourdesare not neces·sary.The real work at the MedicalBureau begins with a pilgrim pre­senting himself as having beencured of a serious illness. At thistime the Medical Bureau starts itsinvestigation of the case. Mem­bers of the Bureau first examinethe records the pilgrimage doctorhas brought with him, if available.Then they begin to extract a de­tailed history from the patient andconclude with a physical examina­tion to ascertain whether a cure ofthe affliction as previously de­scribed, has occurred. Nervous or functional illnesses are not accept­able for further inquiry. If the caserepresents a serious organic illnessand a cure is apparent which can­not be explained naturally. the pa­tient is asked to return one yearfrom the date of his cure. At thistime a very extensive inquiry andexamination is made by the doctorspresent at the Medical Bureau onthat day. During the course of the year, the records of the individualhave been obtained from the dif-Al:IGUST, 1957 f erent hospitals and clinics that the ;Jatient has visited. All x-ray and laboratory reports are sought and verified, as well as statements from the attending physicians. Dr. Smi­ley Blanton, a non-Catholic Amer­ican doctor who led the ·discussion of the inquiry of a recent cure at Lourdes, reported in The Psy­choanalytic · Quarterly, Vol. IX: 348-362 as follows: "For that it is a healing I am myself con­vinced. The records seem adequate to support this conclusion, and they were made by well trained and reputable physicians .... We must lay aside as untenable the accusation that these cases are in any ,;.,ay 'fixed, or the histories doctored '.' ' During the course of this exam­ination the assembled doctors ex­amine all the evidenc.e of the case. They personally . examine and question the patient to ascertain for themselves the answers to these very important questions: I. Did the described diseaseexist certainly at the time ofthe pilgrimage to Lourdes?2. Was it suddenly modified inits evolution when there wasno tendency to bettering?3. Has there been a cure with­out the use of medicine inLourdes, when all the treat­ment established before was.useless?4. Can any medical or scientificexplanation explain thiscure? 5. Is it beyond nature's laws?6. Is there any reason to post­pone the conclusions? If the above questions can· be· answered satisfactorily by the97 members of the Medical Bureauthe case is recognized as an unex­plainable cure. The documents are then referred to the Bishop of Lourdes who in turn assigns themfor further study by a medicalcommittee composed of some twen­ty-five members· who are expertsin different fields of medicine and surgery. This coumittee studiesthe ciocuments, examines the pa­tient, and may ask help of otherexperts. 7£ the case is accepted bythe medi,: •l committee, the Bishopof Lourd_.s sends the documents tothe dioces::- in which the patientlives, asking the Bishop to create a canonical commission to determine whether the cure had supernatural favor. This commission studies the case and proclaims whether or not the cure is a miracle. Up to this time the word miracle is not used. The Medical Bureau is very well organized and numbers some 7,000members as of October 1956.These members elect their ownofficers and are responsible for themaintenance of the affairs of theMedical Bureau. Their diagnostic .equipment ( electro-cardiographic and x-ray) leaves much to be de­sired by American standards,2 butthe doctors themselves represent some of the best talent of Euro­pean clinics and medical schools. With improved transportation fa­cilities and an increased participa­Jion of American physicians, I feel sure that the Bureau w111 ben­efit from technical advancements of American medicine and theAmerican physicians will benefitfrom association with one of thegreatest spiritual centers in theworld. extended to the physiciar. at Lourdes. none can be more -e­warding than the participatio in the Blessed Sacrament Procec on which occurs each afternoon , ir­ing the pilgrimage season. I ir­ing this procession the Bis JP, carrying the Blessed Sacramer ina gold monstrance, blesses the · ck as they are placed around he square in front of the Basilica. ' he doctors have the unique privi geof walking in this procession :li­rectly behind the Bishop as the ·ckare blessed. It is during this I ·o­cession, as we]] as in front of heGrotto or at the Baths, that m- nyfamous cures have occurred. W-1at a great emotional experience it must be for a doctor to. witr :ss such an occurrence . . . wha awonderful opportunity a docorhas at Lourdes to be the first to know that a miracle has taken place. The registered physician l,asspecial privileges at the Baths anda special place at the Grotto, in l e first seats before the altar where Mass is offered . . . the very ground where St. Bernadette knelt as she spoke to the Blessed Vir­gin. Of the many privileges that are98 In summary, the American doc­tor who plans a European tripshould make the extra effort that isrequired to visit the town ofLourdes. He will be richly re­warded for the spiritual gracesthat he will receive and . he wi1l long remember his participation in the Medical Bureau. !l'fhe Medical Bureau is entirely dee.en­dent on donations from its members andfrom their doctor friends. One of thepurposes of the A.M.I.L. is to support the Medical Bureau. Financial support for the Medical Bureau may be mailed to Dr. Pelissier, Lourdes, France. LINACRE QUARTERLY Sueettte,.e �aMd 6;ede,z,att(J.,e a/ {3a-tio&e. 'P4ueta-,e4' tfadd4. ,4,e,ut4/ ?lteeti"9- fJ&t·i�� 1951 The June meeting of the Exec-: utive Board of The Federation o:· Catholic Physicians' Guilds wils held in New York City, June ·r.1957, at the Waldorf-Astoria Ho­tel. The following were present: OFFICERS M. F. Yeip, M.D. - President N. F. Thiberge, M.D. -- HonoraryPresident W. J. Egan, M.D. - First Vice­President D. L. Sexton, M.D. - Second Vice­PresidentE. J. Murphy, M.D. - Third Vice­President J. J. Graff, M.D. - Secretary Rt. Rev. Msgr. D. A. McGowan -Moderator OFFICIAL GUILD DELEGATES W. Molony, Sr., M.D. - Los Angeles GuildRt. Rev. J. J. Reilly, V.G., G. J. Carroll, M.D. - Norwich GuildD. F. Conway, Jr., M.D. - New HavenGuildJ. J. Graff, M.D. - Wilmington Guild N. C. Barwasser, M.D. - Rock Island, Ill. Guild D. Ramker, M.D. - Hammond, Ind. Guiid T. J. Greteman, M.D. - Dubuque, Iowa Guild N. F. Thiberge, M.D. - New Orleans Guild W. E. Barker, Jr., M.D. -Baton Rouge, La. Guild . Rev. Michael P. Walsh, S.J.-Boston Guild . Wm. P. Chester, M.D. - Detroit Guild J. W. James, M.D. - Saginaw, Mich. Guild D. L. Sexton, M.D. - St. Louis Guild S. T. Mangimelli, M.D. - Omaha, Nebr. Guild A. T. Altieri, M.D. - Bronx Guild G. P. J. Griffin, M.D. - Brooklyn Guild AUGUST, 1957 D. A. Mulvihill, M.D. - New YorkGuild R. M. Eiben, M.D. - Cleveland Guild N. M. MacNeill, M.D. - PhiladelphiaGuildJ. E. Holoubek, M.D., F. J. Marsh, M.D. - Shreveport, La. GuildJ. F. Flynn, M.D. - Pittsfield, Mass.Guild J. J. Coletti, M.D .. D. J. Bradley, M.D., J. Corcoran, M.D. - Rockville CentreGuildWm. F. Brennan, M.D. - Pittsburgh Guild J.B. Muccigrosso, M.D., A. J. Mannix, M.D., M. Healy, M.D. - West­chester GuildA. M. Alexander, M.D. - Alexandria,La. GuildA. P. Reding, M.D. - S_ioux Falls, S. D. GuildG. C. Wright, M.D. - Sacramento, Calif. GuildW. F. Skaife, M.D. - St. Cloud, Minn. Guild OTHERS Rev. Ignatius W. Cox, S.J. - Fordham University Rev. J. J. Flanagan, S.J. - Editor, The Linacre Quarterly Very Rev. F. W. Carney - Cleveland Guild Rev. J. J. Lynch, S.J. - Weston Col­lege, Wes ton, Mass. Mr. J. Ryan, F.R.C.S. - London, England Miss Jean Read - Asst. Secy., Federa­tion Joseph J. Tolard, Jr. - Philadelphia, · Past President The meeting was called to order at 8:00 p. m. After roll ca11, the President re­quested vote on the minutes of the Executive Board Meeting, Decem­ber 8 and 9, 1956, in Cleveland, . Ohio, as mailed by the Central 99 

The Medical Bureau at Lourdes

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The Medical Bureau at Lourdes

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