Free Republic

LOURDES, France (CNS) -- About 60 retired or active duty U.S. military personnel packed their uniforms, flags, wheelchairs, canes and the inevitable emotional baggage of their daily struggles to take part in a pilgrimage to Lourdes. While many of these men and women, who had been injured in some way in the line of duty, went to seek peace and healing from this sacred place, some said they also found enormous and unexpected blessings from the people they encountered on their journey. The soldiers, together with family members or caregivers, took part in a "Warriors to Lourdes" pilgrimage, sponsored by...

By the second half of the 19th century, the industrial revolution along with many new discoveries captured the minds of intellectuals and ordinary folk alike. By 1858 Mill, Darwin and Marx had published their ideas that challenged the way people looked at the world. So many drunk with the new wine of science dethroned God from his creation and denied the supernatural.   Voltaire's sarcasm and criticism reigned.  And rationalism made its wholesale rejection of basic beliefs that had sustained the human family.  The absolute, sovereign authority of God; the divine creation of humankind; the immortality of the soul; the moral...