My story

Sister Briege heals people all the world round since she received the gift of healing. Today, her ministry is mostly dedicated to priests. For more information visit her website (Briege McKenna)

We all know that the Holy Spirit is full of surprises. As a young 14-year old girl I offered my life to the Lord. I entered the religious community of St. Clare. At the age of 16 I took my vows. I was pretty young.

God is full of surprises. Back then, we were not allowed going home from the convent. When I was 17 I got severally ill. The doctors told me there was nothing to do. I just had to accept the idea of being disabled for the rest of my life.

I was like most of people. I loved the Lord. In our convent, I did all I was expected to do. I observed all the rules, but I did not have any personal experience concerning Jesus. Before my perpetual vows, they advised me to go to Florida and have some rest. So I went. I stayed in the worst place in the world. It was so overcrowded…

But God had His own plan. Exactly in that same year, Pattie Mansfield and some other people experienced the effusion of the Holy Spirit in Duquesne, near Pittsburgh. Of course, I did not know about that.

In the course of the following years, I had a sort of crisis, with repercussions on my faith. I was not considering leaving the convent, but I asked myself a lot of questions. Do I really believe in Jesus?

Sometimes the Lord sends us signals of crisis because He wants to move us from one place to another. I was a nun and everybody thought it was fantastic to see such a young girl consecrated to God. People said: “You must really love Jesus. You renounced to everything at such a young age.”

And I replied: my love for Jesus is not greater than your enthusiasm. I am just doing what I am expected to do. I had big pains in my body because of a physical deformation. One day, in my interior I heard the Lord telling me: “There is much more than Catholic faith can give you. There is more life than you have now“.  

I was not longing for physical healing, but I wanted to know the person of Jesus Christ in depth. I gave him my life. I was not even thinking about praying for my physical healing.

In 1970, I attended my first charismatic meeting and I didn’t want any of those charismatic gifts. I just wanted to know Jesus in a more personal way. I wanted to fall more in love with him. During the meeting I prayed for receiving more Holy Spirit. 

I also attended a spiritual renewal meeting organised by the charismatic renewal movement. I was a little scared. I didn’t know what to expect. I just knew I wanted the same thing as the will of God. Indeed, knowing God personally, it’s the will of God. We have to be ardent and help other people get the same fire of faith. That’s what I wanted.

During the Holy Mass the priest said: “Ask for the Holy Spirit”. He summoned people to impose hands on one another. People were laying hands on those who asked for more Holy Spirit. I did the same as many other attendants. I said no. Nevertheless, I knew I would be “baptised in the Holy Spirit” if only that priest prayed for me. He was far away, close to the altar, and I was in the back. I closed my eyes and I heard a voice: “search me, search me”. I left my eyes closed, I stretched my hands forward, and I said: “Jesus, come to me, come and show me your presence”. In that very moment a hand touched my head. I guessed that priest was a sort of kangaroo. How could he jump so rapidly to the back of the church…? I opened my eyes to look at him and… You know what?

I was miraculously healed. My deformed elbows and hands were not ill anymore. I jumped for joy.

After this experience, my first knowledge was that Jesus is living. I had fallen in love with Jesus. I had fallen in love with my Catholic faith. I was not a good singer. But then, I started to sing in foreign languages. I was not only physically healed, but also completely transformed.

There was one thing that scared me. In the course of the following 6 months I took part in many activities for Jesus. In the deepest of my heart I feared I could not do healing prayers, because it looked like something “sensational” and I didn’t want people to label me and stare at me as a healer who makes wonders. 

Six months after my physical healing I heard the Lord calling me: “Go to the chapel” And I replied that it’s late and everybody is sleeping. Can we meet tomorrow morning? Now, it’s almost midnight! Eventually, I went. I did not feel anything. I was just sitting there, staring at the tabernacle. The power of silence overwhelmed me.

A voice from the tabernacle said to me: “Briege, I give you the charism of healing. Go and use it.“

I fell on my knees and I said: “Jesus, I don’t want any gift of healing. I don’t want it“. Then, I thought I was probably moved by pride; and I decided not to tell anyone about it.

Two weeks later I flied from Florida to California. I attended a prayer meeting and I met an Episcopal Church pastor. He told me: “I never spoke to a Catholic nun before. You’ve got the gift of healing and God has already told you about that“.

I first thought: how does he know? He wasn’t even a Catholic. I experienced the healing of my relationship towards other denominations – and I need it. I told him neither the bishop nor my superiors would accept this gift of mine. He looked at me and said: “God doesn’t force anybody. He just shows His will.”

During my early 6 months in this ministry I was quite sceptic. I used to ask myself: do I correctly pray? Do I make the right things?

People were healed from cancer, blindness, leukaemia, and many other diseases.

Then, one day, Jesus told me that my uncle had a stroke, and that those things are not my work, but the work of God who uses me as a means.   

Then I took a decision. I was aware of the fact that, when you are in the healing service, you can easily become a sort of idol or celebrity. I was already working for the most important person: Jesus. So I was no superstar. Only Jesus counted.

I decided to go to Lourdes and ask for the help of our Virgin Mary. Indeed, I wanted to remain faithful to Church. Mary is our Mother and she wants us to magnify her Son Jesus Christ.

I left Lourdes and I went back to the USA. Here, a Mexican priest invited me to serve in his country. Father Rick Thomas is a fantastic charismatic priest and Jesuit.

He told me we would go to very poor people, in places with a lot of chaos with regard to the Eucharist. Those people were not supposed to know who I was and what my name is. I just had to pray for them.

During that Eucharist I saw miracles and I didn’t tell anybody about it. I saw a little boy being completely healed while the priest lifted the Body of Christ.

I saw even other miracles and I was surprised because I never had such strong experiences before, although I had attended so many holy masses since the time of my childhood. That night I received a prophetic word.

Jesus spoke to me at 3 o’clock in the morning: “Get up from bed. I want to talk to you. I brought you here, among the poor. They are rich in spiritual gifts. I want to show you what I want you to do“. And he added: “I want you to realise that I am present in world altars and I come every day in the bread and wine, as the living God. I want you to announce to the whole world my presence in the Holy Eucharist. And then you shall see signs and wonders. “

In the course of the past 40 year or more I spoke in several TV or radio programmes and I visited a high number of places round the world. I was protected because father Kevin Scallon was with me in this ministry. Today, 90% of our service is dedicated to priests. We also organise meetings for lay people in the diocese. And we do Eucharistic service in churches and stadiums.

I remember we were once in Africa and our place was full of people. I was explaining them that Jesus will come.

I said I don’t know how he will come to them, but I guarantee that Jesus doesn’t let down anybody.

There was a little boy in the first row. His face became luminous when I said that Jesus is here. He was staring at me and smiling. He stood up and wanted to touch Jesus in the monstrance passing by. We didn’t know that his father had brought him to the meeting completely paralysed. He had been miraculously healed.

The power of the Holy Spirit and the power of healing is offered to everybody through the Eucharist.