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Also known as Our Lady of Perpetual Succour, is celebrated on June 27 by the universal Church.The devotion to this Marian advocation revolves around the picture of Our Lady of Perpetual Succour, painted on wood, with background of gold. It is Byzantine in style and is supposed to have been painted in the thirteenth century. It represents the Mother of God holding the Divine Child while the Archangels Michael and Gabriel presenting Him the instruments of His Passion. Over the figures in the picture are some Greek letters which form the abbreviated words Mother of God, Jesus Christ, Archangel Michael,...

The Meaning Behind the Our Lady of Perpetual Help Icon The icon of Our Lady of Perpetual Help represents the Christian mystery of Redemption.Our Lady of Perpetual Help is a Byzantine icon that is believed to have its origin sometime during the 13th -15th century. The image is also known as “Our Lady of Perpetual Succour.” The icon is known for being miraculous; over the centuries countless healings and special graces have been attributed to it, so much so that the image has been honored and venerated by many Popes.The miraculous icon is painted on wood and measures about 20"...

Our Mother of Perpetual HelpSince 1866 the Redemptorists have spread devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary under the icon and title of Our Mother of Perpetual Help (also known as Our Lady of Perpetual Help). According to tradition, the ancient Byzantine icon of Our Mother of Perpetual Help was stolen from a church in Crete, where many miracles had occurred.The image remained in the private possession of a Roman merchant and his family until 1499, when it was publicly displayed in the Church of St. Matthew in Rome between the Basilicas of St. Mary Major and St. John Lateran. When...

Our Mother of Perpetual HelpPainted in tempera on hard nutwood, 21 inches by 17, the original picture of Our Lady of Perpetual Help is one of many copies of the famed Hodeguitria of St. Luke. (The Hodeguitria, reputedly painted by St. Luke, was venerated for centuries at Constantinople as a miraculous icon. It was destroyed by the Turks in the year 1453.) This particular image, however, is THE ONE COPY singled out – by Our Lady herself – for special heavenly favors. You may see it today enshrined above the high altar at the Redemptorist Church of San Alfonso,...

Catholicism preaches forgiveness, but this might be a tough ask. The face of a Virgin Mary statue outside a Downtown Jersey City church was found covered with dog feces and the depraved vandal added a cigarette to the desecration. The vandalism was reported by a parishioner who was entering St. Michael Church on Ninth Street just before the daily midday Mass, said the Rev. Thomas Quinn, the pastor. “I was shocked, saddened and angry,” Quinn said. “Without a doubt it was the work of someone who is emotionally disturbed. Still, there was some degree of deliberation there.”

“Praise and glory be to thee, O holy Trinity, who hast brought us all to this day’s solemnity. Praise be to thee also, O holy Mother of God, scepter of the orthodox faith: through thee the Cross triumphs, and man is called back to heaven; through thee the idols are overthrown, and the nations are brought to repentance.” Such words as these, which the Church borrows from her doctors to close the bright Octave, were doubtless sung in prophecy by the angels around the new-born babe Mary. And such, in the light of the ages since elapsed, must needs...

Red Simple “DIMITTE ME, jam enim ascendit aurora; let me go for it is break of day;” such were the words which put an end to the struggle between the Angel and the Patriarch on the banks of the torrent. Blessed dawn, which triumphed over God himself! How long had been that night, during which the human race had been struggling by its supplications and tears! Ever since the fall, the Angel of justice had been guarding the entrance to the true land of promise; at every turn he was to be found, resisting in his inexorable vengeance poor,...

White Double of the Second Class FROM TIME IMMEMORIAL the Greeks have celebrated the feast of St. Joachim on the day following our Lady’s birthday. The Maronites kept it on the day after the Presentation in November, and the Armenians on the Tuesday after the Octave of the Assumption of the Mother of God. The Latins at first did not keep his feast. Later on it was admitted and celebrated sometimes on the day after the Octave of the Nativity, September 16th, sometimes on the day following the Conception of the Blessed Virgin, December 9th. Thus both East and...

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The Biblical Roots of the Assumption of Mary Msgr. Charles Pope • August 14, 2017 • While the actual event of the Assumption of Mary into Heaven is not recorded in the Scriptures, there is a biblical basis for the teaching that, considered as a whole, confirms Catholic teaching as both fitting and in keeping with biblical principles. Let’s ponder this feast in stages:The Assumption Explained – To be “assumed” means to be taken up by God bodily into Heaven. As far back as the Church can remember we have celebrated the fact that Mary was taken up into...

July 26, 2016 Memorial of Saints Joachim and Anne, Parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary Reading 1 Jer 14:17-22 Let my eyes stream with tearsday and night, without rest,Over the great destruction which overwhelmsthe virgin daughter of my people,over her incurable wound.If I walk out into the field,look! those slain by the sword;If I enter the city,look! those consumed by hunger.Even the prophet and the priestforage in a land they know not. Have you cast Judah off completely?Is Zion loathsome to you?Why have you struck us a blowthat cannot be healed?We wait for peace, to no avail;for a time...

Perpetual virginity 3/9/2016 Question: I am a lifelong and devout Catholic and have always considered Mary to be ever virgin. But recently, I read in my Bible that Joseph had no relations with Mary “before” she bore a son (Mt 1:25). Now, I wonder if our belief does not contradict the Bible.— Eugene DeClue, Festus, Missouri Answer: The Greek word “heos,” which your citation renders “before,” is more accurately translated “until,” which can be ambiguous without a wider context of time. It is true, in English, the usual sense of “until” is that I am doing or not doing something...

A Woman Wrapped in Silence – A Meditation for the Feast of the Annunciation By: Msgr. Charles PopeIn preparation for today’s Feast of the Annunciation I picked up Jesus of Nazareth, Vol. 3 (The Infancy Narratives)  by Pope Emeritus Benedict. I was very moved by a very brief reflection that he made on Mary as the Angel Gabriel left her. His remarks consider her faith in a very touching manner. I must say that I have always been moved, and intrigued, by the faith of the Blessed Mother, for she is “a woman wrapped in silence,” a phrase that forms the...

The Stories of Our Lady of Czestochowa Sarah ReinhardI never wanted to be a mom. It was never in my goals or my plan for life.And yet here I am, watching my three-year-old “mow”as I type away in the comfort of a camp chair in the shade of the garage. Right now this kid is the focus of most of my photos and social media efforts. He’s immensely quotable, hilarious, and spontaneous. It’s something that I can’t help but share (lest it drive me crazier than I already am).But don’t get me wrong. Three is not my favorite age. And...

While the actual event of the Assumption of Mary in Heaven is not recorded in the Scriptures, nevertheless there is a biblical basis for the teaching that, considered as a whole, confirms Catholic teaching as both fitting and in keeping with biblical principles. Let’s ponder this feast in three stages:1. Explained – To be “assumed” means to be taken up by God bodily into heaven. As far back as the Church can remember we have celebrated the fact that Mary was taken up into heaven. We do not just acknowledge that her soul was taken to heaven, as is the...

La Paz, Bolivia, Feb 4, 2013 / 12:09 pm (CNA).- The largest statue of the Virgin Mary in the world, dedicated to Our Lady of Socavon, was inaugurated at a Feb. 1 ceremony in the city of Oruro, Bolivia. Rolando Rocha, the lead sculptor for the project, told reporters that more than simply “a work of engineering and art,” the monument “is an act of faith that strengthens our traditions.” Towering at 149 feet, the statue is located on a 12,000-foot mountain south of La Paz, the country’s second largest city. It stands 22 feet taller than the Christ the...

Why Catholics Believe in the Immaculate ConceptionDAVID M. BRISTOWWhy do Catholics believe in the Immaculate Conception? The belief means that Mary, the mother of Jesus, was preserved without sin for her entire life. It was Mary's closeness to Christ that made her receive God's "fullness of grace" to be sinless. Without God's grace, it would have been impossible for Mary to be sinless, and she too would be like the rest of humanity. However, because of her decision to say, "yes" in giving birth to Christ, she was given a special privilege by having no sin touch her. Catholics believe...

News services were quick to pick up the story last week of a Massachusetts Appellate Court overturning a ghastly decision by Probate Judge Christina Harms (pictured right) that would have forced a 32-yr-old mentally ill pregnant mother to get a late-term abortion (at 21 weeks) against her will and also be sterilized. Women’s groups and pro-abortion politicians, eager for the unusual opportunity to demonstrate they were pro-”choice” and not just pro-abortion, piled on. Pro-abortion website Jezebel called Harms a “horrible judge.” Robin Marty at RH Reality Check lectured, “Just as we will condemn those who force women to continue pregnancies...

"A dress cannot be called decent which is cut deeper than two fingers' breadth under the pit of the throat;; which does not cover the arms at least to the elbows; and scarcely reaches a bit beyond the knees. Furthermore, dresses of transparent material are improper." (The Cardinal vicar of Pope Pius XI) Marylike is modest without compromise, "like Mary", Christ's Mother. Marylike dresses have sleeves extending at least to the elbows; and skirts reaching below the knees. Acceptable Marylike Standards have been revealed in many private revelations since 1917 throughout the world. One of these standards is the dress...

Immaculate Mary: "Trust Jesus, he will save you" December 08, 2010Pope Benedict XVI marked the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary by reciting the Angelus in St. Peter’s Square and by reminding us Mary's immaculate heart tells you to trust Jesus, who will save you. The Holy Father said the mystery of the dogma proclaimed by Pius IX in 1854, is "a source of inner light, of hope and comfort" . In the midst of life's trials and contradictions, which man experiences within himself and around him, Mary, Mother of Christ, tells us that grace is...