A Colorado mom whose son became gravely ill as a little boy has always figured his prayer-aided recovery was miraculous, but now the Vatican has made it official.
Luke Burgie was just four in 1998, when he developed a severe gastrointestinal condition his doctors couldn't diagnose, much less cure, according to The Denver Post. For six months, he suffered stomach pain and unrelenting diarrhea and even stopped growing. But the illness went away on Feb. 22, 1999, just as two members of the Sisters of St. Francis of Perpetual Adoration finished praying a novena.
The nuns had recited a series of prayers over nine straight days asking Mother Theresia Bonzel, who founded the order in Germany in 1863, to cure the boy. Since then, the Vatican has investigated the case and has now scheduled Bonzel for beatification in November — a step toward sainthood .
Just before Easter, Pope Francis affirmed that Bonzel was responsible for the miracle. Two miracles are required for canonization, or sainthood.
Luke, now 18, doesn't remember being ill or suddenly getting well. He doesn't like to talk about any of it, his mother told the newspaper.
The Vatican did not pronounce Luke’s recovery a miracle lightly. Journalist Bill Briggs, who wrote "The Third Miracle," told the post the process is "rigorous." Typically, the church interviews doctors in the case, and then has a team of independent medical experts review all relevant records.
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