OUR MOTHER OF PERPETUAL HELP FEAST DAY JUNE 27, 2021
OUR MOTHER OF PERPETUAL HELP AT THE OMPH SHRINE IN HOUSTON, TEXAS
Our Lady of Perpetual Help is also know as as Our Lady of Perpetual Succour. The feast day is celebrated on June 27 by the universal Church.
According to tradition the icon was painted by Saint Lazarus Zographos. It was in the Keras Kardiotissas Monastery. It was considered miraculous. It eventually was stolen by a merchant sailing to Rome from the island of Crete. It was kept by a Roman merchant and his family til it was transferred to the Church of San Mateo where it remained for 300 years.
The last 60 years of the three centuries, a war broke out in Rome and the icon was moved to the Church of St Mary in Posterula, cared for by the Augustinians.The icon remained hidden there until Pope Pius IX granted the possession of the icon to the Redemptorists by Papal Edict in 1865.
The Redemptorists (The Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer) maintained an account of the icon and its final and current location is at Sant'Alfonso di Liguori, on the Esquiline Hill in Rome. The Redemptorists purchased the property where the former St Matthew's had stood, and established the modern church in honor of the founder of their congregation.
The Redemptorists have made the icon known to the world and copies of the original are in Redemptorist parishes around the world.
Icons are meant to help us connect directly with God. Each element of the icon has a specific meaning.
Mary's eyes are filled with compassion and love and are directed toward us.
Our Lady is clothed in the colors of virgins (red) and of mothers (blue). These are also royal colors.
Jesus, depicted as a young boy, wears the colors of a king.
The star on Mary's veil reminds us that she is the dawn announcing the coming of Christ.
Our Lady's hands hold her Son securely, and her right hand directs our gaze to Him.
The Christ Child grasps His Mother's hand as though He is frightened by what he sees.
In His hurry to reach His Mother, Jesus has almost lost one of His sandals. He became human, like us, in all things but sin.
On Our Lady's left and right we see the reasons for the child's fear. On the right is the Archangel Gabriel, holding a cross and four nails. On the left is the Archangel Michael, holding a lance, a pole with a sponge, and a vessel of vinegar. This vision of the instruments of the crucifixion has driven the young Jesus to His Mother's protective embrace.
Yet, Our Lady's gaze is fixed on us, her children on earth. She is our source of constant comfort and hope. (Redemptorists.net)
Have a joyous day as we celebrate the ordination of John the Baptist Thinh Ba Doan, new priest, called to serve God.
