We have new fun for your coloring kids (and you!) for the month of Mary–all through May!

It’s a series of “Our Lady’s Color-by-Number” Apparition Activity Pages!

Every few days throughout the month of May, we will post another Color-By-Number of a different Marian Apparition!

This will help you and your children learn more about Our Lady’s messages in many of her apparitions (some you’ll have heard about, some you may not have!) and the importance of each of her outfits. She always dressed beautifully, but she never wore the same outfit twice!

Want to get all 6 at once? Click to download the entire Color-By-Number coloring book below!

Onward! Here’s #4 in our series: Our Lady of Pontmain:

During the summer of 1870, a war began between the Germanic nation of Prussia and France. By January of the next year, Prussian soldiers had control over most of France and were still advancing.

One of the small towns in the path of the soldiers was the village of Pontmain.

During the cold winter evening of January 17th in Pontmain, the Barbedette family was tending to their duties. They were worried because the Prussian soldiers were so close that they could march on the town the very next day.

The two youngest children, Joseph (10) and Eugene (12), were working with their father in the barn. When Eugene had finished his chores, he walked to the door of the barn and was startled by the sight of a beautiful young woman in the sky.

There was snow on the ground, and he was very cold, but he couldn’t help but stand and stare.

The woman wore a deep blue gown covered with golden stars and a long black veil over her hair. On her head was a simple crown with a red stripe across the middle. On her feet were blue shoes with golden bows on her feet. She smiled down at him sweetly. 

Eugene’s little brother, Joseph, and their father came out of the barn. Joseph grew very excited at the sight of the beautiful lady in the stars, which attracted the attention of their mother.

Neither of their parents could see anything except a dark spot in the night sky where there seemed to be no stars, but they did not doubt that their sons did see a woman. From their description, their mother, Victoire, suggested that it might be the Virgin Mary.

While the boys prayed, Victoire hurried to get a friend, Sister Vitaline, thinking that surely a pious nun would be able to see the apparition. But Sister Vitaline could also see nothing.

More people in the town were beginning to gather to see what all the fuss was about.

Four more children exclaimed at the sight of the Lady in the stars. Among these children were several neighbors of the Barbedette family: Francoise (11), Jeanne-Marie (9), Eugene Friteau (6), and little Augustine Boitin, who was only one year old!

The older children described the Lady just as the Barbedette boys had and baby Augustine reached out to her in the sky, as though he wanted the Lady to pick him up.

A faithful priest named Father Guerin gathered everyone to pray the rosary and to sing hymns. When they began, the children said they saw the woman smile, revealing beautiful white teeth.

As more and more people prayed, the stars on the Lady’s dress began to multiply. The children thought she would soon be covered completely in gold!

Three stars formed a triangle around the lady’s face–and even the adults could see these stars.

Then the children reported an oval frame surrounded the Lady with four candles around her and many stars at her feet.

When they prayed the Magnificat, Joseph Barbedette tugged on his brother’s sleeve and asked, “What is the lady doing?”

The children saw the Lady unfurling a banner which read,

“Pray, my children. God will hear you soon. My Son allows Himself to be moved with compassion.”

The villagers were comforted by the report of these words and began to believe that they would be saved from the Prussian soldiers.

They began to sing together the hymn, “My Sweet Jesus,” and the Lady, who had been smiling so tenderly, began to look sad and thoughtful. In her hands, a red crucifix appeared and the banner with her message was rolled away.

As everyone began to sing one final hymn, “Ave Maris Stella,” the beautiful Lady’s smile returned and the red crucifix was replaced by two crosses of pure white at her shoulders.

Giving the faithful people of Pontmain one last tender glance, she stretched out her arms, and a white veil began to rise from her feet to the top of head and crown–and the Lady was gone from view.

The apparition had lasted over three hours!

The Prussian soldiers never entered Pontmain. When they were approaching the town that night, they had halted at the sight of a Lady in the sky!

The commander of the army sent a message to his superior saying, “Madonna is guarding the country and forbidding us to advance!”

Eleven days later, on January 28th, Prussia signed an agreement of peace and removed its soldiers from France.

Years later, both Joseph and Eugene Barbedette became priests.

Our Lady of Pontmain is called the Lady of Hope because of her message to the children and people in the village.

When Our Blessed Mother was getting ready to visit Pontmain, France, that January in 1871, she picked out a blue dress dotted with stars and shoes to match.

And her dress was very special–because the more people prayed, the more stars appeared on the fabric! Maybe it was a present from her Son Who is the creator of the very stars themselves?

The Virgin Mary knew that the people were anxious about the dangers of the war, so that may be why she wore a black veil like one worn by mothers who were mourning their sons killed in the war, and a simple golden crown so that they would know she was the Queen of Heaven and be comforted. Our Lady of Hope, pray for us!

PS Here’s a pdf download to an account of the apparition made by a priest within a few days of the Blessed Mother’s visit based on interviews with the children who saw her and the 60 adults who surrounded them that night.

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PS Want to see some beautiful pictures of what Mary chose to wear for this and other visits from Heaven? Get a peek “inside Mary’s closet” (!) with this gorgeous new book: Our Lady’s Wardrobe!

“It’s a fast favorite at our house. Boys and girls love it! We can’t get over how beautiful the illustrations are!”
–5 star review

Our Lady’s Wardrobe tells the story of some of her most famous apparitions, highlighting the clothes she wore and the things she did. This delightful rhyming book introduces Catholic children to the Blessed Virgin Mary in a fun and simple way—through her apparitions and the clothes she wore! (Yes: you’ll see her as Our Lady of Guadalupe and many more!)