The Meaning of the Icon of Our Mother of Perpetual Help

Scared of the two archangels who show Him the instruments of His passion, Jesus has run to His Mother, almost loosing one of his sandals on his run. Mary holds Him on her arms in a protective and loving way. Yet, Mary's sight is not on her son, Jesus, but on ourselves.

The tiny hands of Jesus are holding Mary's hands to remind us that just as He used to hold the hands of Her Mother seeking her protection and help, He entrusts into her hands our own protection and help.

This is the general message of this icon, but it is full of symbols that we should understand. It is important to consider that the shape and size of hands and eyes are always important to understand the meaning of an icon.

 1. Greek initials for "Mother of God".

2. The crown. It was added to the original icon by prescription of the Holy See in 1867. This is a tribute to Mary for the many favors she has granted to her children when invoked as "Mother of Perpetual Help".

3. The star on the veil. Mary is known as the Stella Matutina, the morning star that brought the light in the midst of darkness. As the morning star guides sailors to their port, Mary guides us to the port of salvation.

4. Initial in Greek for Michael the Archangel, who holds the spear and the sponge used in the Passion.

5. Initial in Greek for Gabriel the Archangel, who holds the cross and nails.

6. Mary's mouth is very small on its size, to symbolize her silent recollection.

7. Mary's eyes on the contrary are big, to see our problems and preoccupations. Mary's eyes are looking at us on this icon.

8. Red tunic, a garment proper of the virgins in the times of Christ.

9. Greek initials for Jesus Christ.

10. Jesus' hands, with their palms facing down and inside Jesus' Mother's hand, symbolize that the graces of redemption are kept in custody in the hands of Mary.

11. The yellow background is the symbol of Heaven, where Jesus and Mary have been crowned. This yellow is also reflected on the garments of Jesus and Mary, symbolizing the celestial joy they bring to our hearts.

12. The dark blue tunic of Mary was the garment used by mothers in Palestine. Mary was at the same time a mother and a virgin.

13. Mary's left hand supporting Christ possessively. She is her mother. It is a comforting hand for everyone who calls on her
14. The dangling sandal. Did Jesus loose it on His run seeking for the protection and help of Her mother after seeing the vision of His passion from the archangels?

************************************************************************************************

Ouseph pithavenodulla Japam

Prayer to St. Joseph

To you, O blessed Joseph, do we come in our tribulation, and having implored the help of your most holy spouse, we confidently invoke your patronage also.

Through that charity which bound you to the Immaculate Virgin Mother of God and through the paternal love with which you embraced the Child Jesus, we humbly beg you graciously to regard the inheritance which Jesus Christ has purchased by his Blood, and with your power and strength to aid us in our necessities.

O most watchful Guardian of the Holy Family, defend the chosen children of Jesus Christ;
O most loving father, ward off from us every contagion of error and corrupting influence;
O our most mighty protector, be propitious to us and from heaven assist us in our struggle with the power of darkness; and, as once you rescued the Child Jesus from deadly peril, so now protect God’s Holy Church from the snares of the enemy and from all adversity; shield, too, each one of us by your constant protection, so that, supported by your example and your aid, we may be able to live piously, to die holily, and to obtain eternal happiness in heaven

THE HISTORY OF THE ROSARY

St. Dominic received the Rosary from mother Mary in the Church of Prouille, France in the year 1208

There are differing views on the history of the rosary. According to tradition, the rosary was given to Saint Dominic in an apparition by the Blessed Virgin Mary in the year 1208 in the church of Prouille, France. This Marian apparition received the title of Our Lady of the Rosary. In the 15th century it was promoted by Blessed Alanus de Rupe (aka Alain de la Roche or Saint Alan of the Rock), a learned Dominican priest and theologian, who established the "15 rosary promises" and started many rosary confraternities. However, most scholarly research suggests a more gradual and organic development of the rosary.

The practice of meditation during the praying of the Hail Marys is attributed to Dominic of Prussia (1382–1460), a Carthusian monk, who called it "Life of Jesus Rosary". The German monk from Trier added a sentence to each of the 50 Hail Marys, using quotes from scriptures. In 1569, the papal bull Consueverunt Romani Pontifices by the Dominican Pope Pius V officially established the devotion to the rosary in the Catholic Church.

From the 16th to the early 20th century, the structure of the rosary remained essentially unchanged. There were 15 mysteries, one for each of the 15 decades. In the 20th century the addition of the Fatima Prayer to the end of each decade became more common. There were no other changes until 2002 when John Paul II instituted five optional new Luminous Mysteries.

                                       *****************************************

 THE POWER OF THE ROSARY

St. Louis de Montfort states in his classic book, The Secret of the Rosary:

If you say the Rosary faithfully until death, I do assure you that, in spite of the gravity of your sins, you shall receive a never fading crown of glory. For even if you are now on the brink of damnation, even if you have one foot in hell, even if you have sold your soul to the devil…sooner or later you will be converted and will amend your life and save your soul. If–you say the Rosary devoutly every day of your life.

St. Alphonsus Liguori says that at each Hail Mary the angels are attracted to us, while the devils are repelled

THE POPES ON THE POWER OF THE ROSARY

Pope Pius IX once said, "If I had an army to say the Rosary, "I could conquer the world." And he said this because the Rosary, next to the Mass, is the most powerful weapon in the Church’s arsenal.

Pope Leo XIII said, "The Rosary, if devoutly used is bound to benefit not only the individual, but society at large." In addition to this, he went so far as to state that "the Rosary is our best hope, since it can more than anything else implore from God the help that we need." And interestingly, he added, "the Rosary is the best prayer to help the cause of Christian unity."

Pope Pius XII believed its recitation is the key to peace and happiness in our age. For he wrote, "We put great confidence in the Rosary for the healing of the evils that affect our times." In fact, he said, "there is no surer means of calling down God’s blessings upon the family and especially of preserving peace and happiness in the home than the daily recitation of the Rosary."

Pope John XXIII spoke about the Rosary as "a prayer of love breathed from the heart." And in another he gave us new insights about how to use the Rosary as a form of meditation. He wrote:

The true substance of the well-meditated Rosary consists in a three-fold element that gives unity and cohesion…to the episodes in the life of Jesus and Mary… For in each decade of Hail Marys there is a picture, and for each picture a three-fold emphasis which is simultaneously: mystical contemplation, intimate reflection and pious intention.

Pope Paul VI explained how the Rosary can improve social life on earth and also help the poor souls in purgatory. "Through your Rosary you can succeed in giving comfort to the sick, in saving the dying, in converting sinners, in helping the missionaries, and in freeing souls from purgatory."

Besides this, he also strongly recommended praying the family Rosary. "There is no doubt," he wrote, "that the Rosary should be considered as one of the best and most powerful prayers in common that the Christian family could recite."

Pope John Paul II used to lead the Rosary every First Saturday in St. Peter’s Basilica, and he has been widely quoted as saying that "the Rosary is my favorite prayer."

He said the "Rosary is a privileged means of averting the danger of war and of obtaining the gift of peace from God," but also that the Rosary "dispels the seeds of family disintegration."

Pope Benedict XVI on the Rosary. “This Prayer Helps to Put Christ at the Center."In the current world, so dispersive, the Rosary helps to put Christ at the centre, as the Virgin did, who meditated within all that was said about her Son, and also what he did and said. When reciting the Rosary, the important and meaningful moments of salvation history are relived. The various steps of Christ's mission are traced. With Mary the heart is oriented toward the mystery of Jesus. Christ is put at the centre of our life, of our time, of our city, through the contemplation and meditation of his holy mysteries of joy, light, sorrow and glory.