Preface

Welcome! This is the only official source of information about this photo. I personally took the picture. The following blog post has received hundreds of thousands of views from over 180 countries worldwide. Every couple of years it goes viral again. Now with the advent of AI generated videos, there are no less than a dozen unauthorized videos floating around. Some of them contain inaccuracies but I have been unsuccessful in correcting or preventing their spread. I just hope that people will come here and get the facts straight from me. To the best of my knowledge, the photo itself has been viewed at least several million times.

For the Spanish translation, generously provided by Fr. John Herman, CSC, please visit: Version en español 

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On December 11th, 2016, I posted something on my Facebook page that kept me busy with correspondence for weeks. What began as a simple Facebook post quickly spread far beyond anything I could have imagined. I’ve heard from people from all around the world.  Initially, I simply posted the photo without much commentary. Since then, this photo has taken on a life of its own.

Why I Took the Photo

On a snowy Sunday morning, due to my poor shower time management (1 shower for 6 people), we experienced a “shower bottleneck” and couldn’t get everyone through in time to make our customary 11:00 a.m. Mass at St. Matthew’s Cathedral in South Bend. So the family went to St. Matt’s and I hit the 11:45 a.m. Mass at Sacred Heart Basilica on campus at the University of Notre Dame. After Mass, it was snowing a wet and heavy snow. On my way to the parking lot, I instinctively stopped at the Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes where I was touched by the presence of one lone student kneeling devoutly in prayer. I decided to take a photo because this young man didn’t move the whole time. Snow was piling up on him. As soon as I took the photo, my iPhone suddenly shut down despite the fact that I had a 42% charge. It was 1:50 p.m.

Nine hours later, when everyone was in bed, I had forgotten all about taking this photo and I went to free up some memory from my phone by deleting things I didn’t need. As I sat at our dining room table, I was astonished to see the image of a vertical “cloud”  directly above the student. This was quite surprising to me because when I took the picture there was no such image there.

The Aftermath

During the following days, I became quite busy answering questions and enjoying the great beauty of Our Lady at work. After receiving ten individual messages from friends and strangers telling me that they were spontaneously moved to tears by the photo, I quit counting. The number is now far greater.

A day after I posted the original photo above (which has not been altered in any way), my older sister’s high school classmate lifted the image off her page and enhanced it by Photoshop. Because I knew people were going to ask, I asked him to tell me exactly what he did to it. This is his reply: “About a minute’s worth of Photoshop. Highlighted the area and turned the brightness and contrast down on the background to see it better. That’s a remarkable image that you took. It’s making the internet rounds and strengthening Faith everywhere! “

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What Does It Mean?

You might see this photo as simply a beautiful photo of a person praying at the Grotto. You might see it as something more. You might think that it has a natural cause. You might think that the cause is supernatural.

What do I think?

My reaction to the image cannot be separated from my own history of faith. I’ve had an ongoing relationship with Our Lady for a very long time. During some of the most painful periods of my life, devotion to Our Lady sustained my faith and continually drew me back to Christ when I was tempted to walk away. Every time, she always seemed to say, “Do whatever He tells you!” So I’ve tried my best to follow her advice for the past 30 years or so. Still, I initially looked for a reasonable natural explanation for this photo. It doesn’t look like a flash of light to me. It certainly was not snow falling off of the rocks.

I think this photo is probably a result of Our Lady somehow arranging ordinary natural elements (probably a snowflake falling a few feet in front of the camera) with astonishing timing to remind the world that she is with us, prayer is real, and everything is going to be alright.

Let’s say it was a snowflake falling as I believe. What are the chances that a snowflake falling hundreds of feet from the sky would appear in the exact position necessary to form a “cloud” over the praying student? What are the odds that the camera shutter would open and close during the only milliseconds possible to create such an image. How did I choose to stand at precisely the right angle to capture all this? Why did the snowflake seem to perfectly highlight the rocks in such a way that thousands of people think they see the image of a mother with child? But most of all, why are so many, many people crying when they look at it?

This is how Our Lady works. I’ve observed it before. She uses natural things to touch her children deeply: elements, situations, “coincidences”, etc. In this way, she always leads us back to her Son, Jesus.

Please stop for a moment and consider the implications for your own life if indeed Our Lady is behind this photo. If she is, then she intended for you to be reading these words right now. If this is the case, then this whole thing is not some strange and distant event. This is personal. It is not an accident. She is calling to you!

As Jesus hung dying on a cross, during the moments of His greatest physical, spiritual and emotional agony, it was only Our Lady, a couple of her friends, and the apostle John that remained with Him. The apostles were the first bishops of the Catholic Church. All validly ordained Catholic bishops derive their authority in an unbroken line from one of the twelve. Notably, John was the only apostle with the courage to stay with Jesus to the bitter end. Then somehow, despite His unimaginable suffering, Jesus had the presence of mind to notice his mother and John keeping vigil. The following is an eyewitness account of what happened as told by John himself,

“When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple there whom he loved, he said to his mother, ‘Woman, behold, your son.‘ Then he said to the disciple, ‘Behold, your mother.’ And from that hour the disciple took her into his home.” (Jn 19:26-27) Catholics have always believed that from this moment on, Jesus’ mother officially became the mother of all of us. He bound His mother to the Church and the Church to His mother.

My Hopes In Writing This Blog For You

Whatever you believe about the photo is fine by me. One can certainly have a strong faith life without it. If it enhances your faith, great. If it is a distraction, then just ignore it. Everyone is on his or her own journey. Seek the truth, love what’s good, and rejoice in any beauty you find.

I hope, however, that my thoughts here have encouraged you to pause and consider the mystery, beauty, and power of prayer. I hope you consider the possibility that this wasn’t just a coincidence. I pray for every person who is interested in this photo. Whatever brought you here, I am grateful you took the time to read this story. I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comment section. If you have a special intention, please send it my way. I go to the Grotto often and I will bring your intentions with me in my heart. Please pray for me too.

God Bless! – BK

Grotto Snowflake Photo Part 2: The Student in the Photo Comes Forward

Grotto Snowflake Photo Part 3: February Brings New and Unexpected Twists

Grotto Snowflake Photo Part 4: Yet Another Surprise

Grotto Snowflake Photo Part 5: Upcoming Opportunities to Hear More 

Grotto Snowflake Photo Part 6: Notre Dame Day Interview

Grotto Snowflake Photo: The Role that Fasting Plays in the Supernatural Realm

More on the Grotto Photo: A Notre Dame Student Newspaper Takes a Look at the Grotto Photo Story

Equally Incredible:  The Waterfall Photo That Helped Save My Faith.