Saint Joseph and the Miraculous Spring

Compared to the numerous apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary, there are relatively few approved private revelations of Saint Joseph. But there are some. One of them took place in Cotignac, France, on June 7, 1660.

On an extremely hot summer day, a humble shepherd called Gaspard Ricard was parched with thirst. His flask of water was dry and he was nowhere near a stream or body of water. Ricard sat down on the dry grass in agony.

At that point an older man suddenly appeared to him and said, “I am Joseph. Lift up the rock and you can drink.”

Joseph was pointing to a large rock nearby, a rock that Ricard knew he couldn’t lift by himself. Yet, he tried, and somehow he was able to lift the rock with ease. Underneath he found a cool spring.

Overjoyed, Ricard looked up to thank the mysterious stranger, but he had already vanished.

Ricard rushed to the village to tell everyone about the miraculous spring. Soon enough the spring became associated with countless miracles, both physical and spiritual, and a shrine was built at the location.

The spring of St Joseph in Cotignac has been a pilgrimage site ever since, and a nearby shrine was eventually combined with a separate apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St Joseph that occurred in 1519 under the title of Our Lady of Graces.

Adapted from Aleteia