Miracle Conversion

[00:00:01]Good day, my friends. There are many miracles of the Miraculous Medal, and they still happen to people today.

[00:00:07]But, there is none so great as the conversion of the Jewish atheist, Alphonse Ratisbonne.

[00:00:15]Here is his full story.

[00:00:18]Alphonse despised the Catholic Church.

[00:00:22]He was born in 1814 into a wealthy Jewish family in France, and was expected to join his uncle's banking empire.

[00:00:30]Though raised a nominal Jew, everything changed when his older brother converted to Catholicism and became a priest. A deep hatred and anger awakened in him.

[00:00:43]Alphonse later admitted, "When my brother became a Catholic and a priest, I persecuted him more fiercely than anyone else in my family.

[00:00:52]I hated him with a violent hatred."

[00:00:55]His resentment soon extended to all Catholics. He described how his hatred "made me believe every accusation against them," causing him to despise the church entirely. This fueled the loss of faith, and he drifted into worldliness, no longer believing in God.

[00:01:16]Yet, an emptiness grew within him.

[00:01:18]Hoping to fill it, he agreed to marry his young niece. Though the wedding had to be delayed, while waiting, he set out on a leisurely, unfocused journey.

[00:01:30]After a month in Naples, he attempted to travel to Malta, but boarded the wrong ship, ending up in Rome, a God coincidence.

[00:01:39]Making the most of the mistake, he met old acquaintances, including Theodore Bussier, a Catholic convert who knew his priest brother.

[00:01:51]Through Alphonse, sorry, although Alphonse disliked him, he enjoyed their debates.

[00:01:58]During one heated discussion, Theodore challenged him.

[00:02:02]"Would you dare to try a simple test?

[00:02:05]Wear this medal of the Blessed Virgin Mary and pray the Memorare morning and night."

[00:02:13]Although he mocked the idea, Alphonse agreed mostly to prove how foolish Catholic beliefs were.

[00:02:21]He prayed uh sorry, he placed the Miraculous Medal around his neck and prayed daily.

[00:02:28]One afternoon, while accompanying Theodore, through Rome, they entered a church.

[00:02:35]The moment Alphonse stepped inside, everything changed.

[00:02:39]He later recounted, "I had barely entered when confusion overwhelmed me.

[00:02:45]The whole church seemed in darkness except for one chapel filled with a brilliant light.

[00:02:51]There stood a living figure, majestic, beautiful, full of mercy, the Virgin Mary, just as she appeared on the Miraculous Medal.

[00:03:01]I fell to my knees.

[00:03:03]Though she spoke no words, I understood my misery, my sins, and the truth and beauty of the Catholic faith."

[00:03:12]And he had a complete understanding of the Catholic faith infused in him at that moment.

[00:03:20]He left the church in tears, clutching the medal.

[00:03:24]Within days, he had asked to be baptized. Returning to Paris, his fiance was stunned and refused to accept his conversion.

[00:03:33]News of the miracle spread quickly. In early 1842, the Vatican opened an investigation.

[00:03:39]After extensive testimony, the church concluded that the conversion was entirely miraculous, an act of God through the Blessed Virgin Mary.

[00:03:50]His brother, Father Theodore, rejoiced at the news and the two were reconciled at last.

[00:03:57]After ending his engagement, Alphons entered the Jesuit novitiate and was ordained a priest in 1847.

[00:04:07]God bless my friends.