The Miraculous Medal: Miracles for My Family

Katherine Doyle describes four miracles she personally witnessed after receiving a Miraculous Medal during a time of crisis. 

I remember my grandma always wearing a Miraculous Medal. Hers was silver and small. She was deeply devoted to Mary, but unfortunately I never asked her how this came to be. The question never occurred to me. Reflecting back on this, I see this missed opportunity as a testament of my youth. Her religiosity was profound, and I just assumed she was always like that.

Grandma went to Mass every day and was an active member in her parish. My grandparents unfailingly recited their nightly Rosary after dinner. The light would flicker off her rosary and her Miraculous Medal as I would watch her pray with her eyes closed, so focused on God.

My Own Miraculous Medal

My parents presented me with a gold Miraculous Medal in a hospital room the day after my 2-year-old daughter was diagnosed with leukemia. My mother said, “You will need this for strength and protection.” At first, I didn’t recognize the medal. My vision was so blurred with tears.

My mom could tell I did not know what it was. She whispered, “It is the Miraculous Medal. I have one too.” I nodded and immediately put it on. I was desperate for a miracle and still in shock, stuck in the bargaining stage of grief.

I remember clinging to the medal at night while listing to God all the reasons why he had to save Caroline. I would sob, demanding to know why He didn’t give me leukemia instead. It was a very challenging time. I was trying to pray. I was reaching out for God. Instead of shutting down, I was staying focused on God in my own way. This was the first miracle I attribute to my Miraculous Medal.

Weeks after Caroline’s initial hospitalization, as our new life’s hustle started to settle in as I quit my job to care for Caroline, I would find quiet moments amidst the hell. Mostly, this time would be when Caroline would nap in my arms. Literally trapped under a thirty-pound child, I was forced to be still. I couldn’t do anything productive like clean, fold laundry or meal prep for the family.

It was nice to have an excuse to be still. My brain kept trying to spin, but my heart willed my brain to take a rest. I would indulge myself by soaking in the feel of her soft baby skin. I’d try to memorize the feeling of her wet baby breath on my neck, just in case it would one day vanish. The fragility of her life was so apparent. In this painful quiet, I started really praying. This was the second miracle I attribute to my Miraculous Medal.

One morning while studying the exhaustion in the stranger’s reflection in the mirror, the light caught my Miraculous Medal. Curious and welcoming a good distraction, I googled the history of the Miraculous Medal. I learned of Saint Catherine Labouré, her incredible dream with Saint Vincent de Paul, and her three encounters with the Blessed Virgin Mary in 1830.

Mary gave Saint Catherine instructions to create the Miraculous Medal, which would pour out great graces for those who would wear it. I studied my Miraculous Medal and noticed the rays of light beaming from Mary’s hands. These rays of light coming from rings on Mary’s hands symbolize graces granted for those people who ask. The gems that do not give off rays of light show the lack of graces for those who do not ask for them. I learned I needed to keep asking for graces. This was my third miracle from Mary.

Even Caroline sensed the importance of my Miraculous Medal. She would constantly play with it in the hospital bed. She started calling it my “Hallelujah.” Occasionally, Caroline would randomly kiss Mary. Whenever I asked her why she did that, Caroline would just smile and say, “Because!” Her reasons were obvious to her. Mary was drawing Caroline in close and keeping her safe under her blue mantle. This was my most important miracle from Mary.

A Beautiful Medal, A Beautiful Testament, A Beautiful Faith

The Miraculous Medal is a testament to the beauty of our Catholic faith. The story of its creation demonstrates Mary’s profound love for us and is proof that she suffers with us. Our pain on earth is her pain too. Through my Miraculous Medal, Mary kept my eyes on God and let hope live in my heart. Her profound graces in the darkest period of my life deepened my faith and carried me through it. She gave me strength to wake up every day with a grateful heart for all God had given me. Every day, I marvel at Mary’s graces as Caroline is now a healthy 5-year-old preparing to start kindergarten.

My Miraculous Medal taught me how to accept God’s will over one’s personal will and the importance of truly living a devout life focused on God. While I still do not know the details about my grandmother’s experience with her medal, I know now that she too experienced Mary’s abundant graces by wearing it. I have witnessed incredible miracles, and I am blessed to be one of Mary’s children and a follower of Christ.

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Copyright 2026 Katherine Doyle
Images: iStockPhoto.com, licensed for use by Holy Cross Family Ministries