Il Blog di Holyart.com
What is the nativity scene’s history? Where does this tradition that we experience every year come from? Here is the story of the first nativity scene, the Nativity Scene of Greccio requested by St. Francis. This year, as every year, a Christian symbol linked to…
Contents1 How to make a Neapolitan nativity shepherd2 Casting3 Trimming4 Drying and firing5 Painting6 Glass eyes7 Assembly8 Dressing9 Objects and gifts Neapolitan Nativity shepherds are artistic products that come from a long tradition. Here is the handcrafted process by which they are made! Why is…
The Advent Calendar was born alongside the Nativity scene, as a tool to make everyone understand the spirit of waiting and the magical suspension of Christmas. In the case of the Nativity scene, conceived by Saint Francis of Assisi in 1223 in Greccio, the intention was to communicate to the illiterate and ignorant people the great mystery of the Incarnation of Jesus, through the re-enactment of the Nativity scene, with its characters. The Advent Calendar was born with the same intention, but it is aimed, at least initially, at children.
Advent has always been one of the most important moments of the year for Catholics all over the world. Believers prepare for the coming of Christ, for the renewal of His miraculous birth, at Christmas. Advent is also the liturgical time when devotees reaffirm their hope, the wait for Jesus’ second coming, the one that will establish the end of the world as we know it, the end of time. It is not easy to make the little ones understand the authentic meaning of this period and not even of the party that will come. It is easier to make them understand the importance of a unique holiday, which is renewed every year and brings families and faithful together like no other.
Advent time
Advent has always been one of the most important moments of the year for Catholics all over the world…
The mother of Gerhard Lang, Maulbronn’s future publisher, who invented the Advent Calendar at the end of the nineteenth century, must have thought of the need to feed this climate of waiting, to increase the expectation of the children of the house. In Germany, the custom was already widespread of hanging small Christmas-themed decorations on the walls or marking twenty-four dashes with chalk on the door, one for each day before Christmas, inviting the little ones to erase them as they approached the fateful date. Tired of hearing your child repeat the question every day: “When is Christmas coming? How many days left?” Mrs Lang made 24 spicy cookies, sealed them in as many bags, and promised her son that he could open and eat one a day from 1 December until Christmas Eve. A very sweet thought, to accompany the days of waiting for the Feast and help the child understand its importance. In short, a DIY Advent Calendar was followed by many others in the following years.
This custom invented by his mother influenced little Gerhard Lang to the point that, once he grew up and became a publisher, he decided to propose the same idea again by creating a cardboard support with 24 small windows, one for each day from 1 December to Christmas Eve, where you could hide cookies, candies, chocolates, or small gifts inside that children could discover day after day. Soon others imitated his idea, creating empty Advent Calendars in cardboard, wood, and cloth, which could be filled with surprises by parents, and some pastry shops also began to sell Advent Calendars already full of sweets.
The idea of an empty Advent Calendar to be filled is still widespread today. Also in our online shop, you will find many colourful and cheerful proposals, suitable both as decoration ideas for Christmas, and to accompany the children of the house towards the Festival. For example, the cheerful Christmas Tree-Calendar of Advent, composed of 24 cloth balls attached with buttons, in which it is possible to store chocolates, candies or small gifts, or the nice wooden Advent Calendar with 55 x 52 cm bags, composed of 24 cloth bags hanging from a wooden stick, all to be filled. A nice decorative and very Nordic idea to decorate the house given Christmas can instead be the cloth Advent Calendar decorated with deer. It consists of 24 pockets of different colours ready to accommodate chocolates, sweets or small gifts.
Always wanting to choose an Advent Calendar to fill with sweets or personalised gifts, you can choose one of our beautiful wooden Advent Calendars, such as the 48 cm Advent Calendar depicting a house and a snowman, with its practical drawers, which will make your home even more cheerful during the Christmas holidays. Or the elegant and refined white Advent Calendar, with a backdrop reminiscent of a snowy forest and 24 small drawers decorated in gold. This calendar offers the additional advantage of being illuminated by battery-powered LED lights, as well as the Advent Calendar with a Nativity scene, in the shape of a hut, with shepherds and sheep, illuminated by LED lights that are activated thanks to AA-style batteries. Lastly, the folding boxed Advent Calendar is practical and original, revealing a snowy forest with trees, reindeer and a small house.
Contents1 The history of miniature Christmas villages2 Building a miniature Christmas village3 Type of village4 The heart of the village5 The base and background Miniature Christmas Villages are an original and novel way of bringing the atmosphere of the Festival into our homes. Let’s find…
The legend of Saint Martin reminds us of the importance of altruism and mercy. This is how the tradition of the summer of Saint Martin was born The first decade of November has always been characterised by a bizarre climatic phenomenon, the so-called summer of…
We have already spoken in many articles of how the feasts dedicated to the saints or Our Lady, sink their origins in older celebrations, before the advent of Christianity, or pagan festivals linked to the cycle of the seasons. Most likely also the Feast of St. Martin was born from the transformation of a pagan festival linked to the harvest and the beginning of winter celebrated in some countries of Europe. Later it was associated with St. Martin of Tours, a Christian bishop of the fourth century, who died on that date. It is in the context of this festival that the tradition of the Lanterns of Saint Martin is placed, which we will talk about in this article.
Who was Saint Martin?
He was a young man born in Sabaria Sicca, a Roman outpost located in present-day Hungary. His father was a military tribune and when Martin, named in honour of Mars, God of war, was just a child, he moved to Pavia bringing with him the whole family. As the son of a veteran, Martin also had to enlist as a boy and was sent to Gaul with a special body responsible for ensuring public order. One night, he came across a beggar. It was a very cold night, and the poor fellow was half-naked and shivering from the cold. Martin was a generous and kind-hearted young man, and seeing him so miserable he wanted to help him, but he had already given all his salary to the poor peasants. So without hesitation he took his own cloak, grabbed hold of his sword, and with a clear blow cut the garment in two, offering it to the beggar so that he could shelter himself from the frost.
Legend has it that the following night Jesus appeared to Martin. He was wearing half of his cloak and addressing the angels he said, “Here is Martin, the Roman soldier who is not baptised, he has clothed me.” When he awoke, Martin found the precious cloak completely intact next to his bed.
The apparition prompted the young man to embrace Christianity and ask for Baptism. Nevertheless, Martin continued to do his duty as a soldier, embarking on a brilliant military career. Only at the age of forty he left the army and began to fight a different war, the one against the Aryan heresy widespread in the territories of today’s France.
He then lived as a hermit for four years on Gallinara Island, where he was saved from divine intervention when, on the verge of death for eating the hellebore, a very poisonous plant, he was miraculously after a night of intense prayer.
After returning to Poitiers, he became a monk and later a bishop. In this role, he continued to fight heresies and paganism. He also founded many monasteries and promulgated among the monks the mission of evangelisation.
Like all festivals that arise from previous cults, especially related to agricultural work and the alternation of the seasons, the Feast of Saint Martin celebrated on 11 November also takes on different characteristics in the countries and regions where it is celebrated. The days before and after this date are known as the Summer of Saint Martin and are often characterised by good weather and warmth, which suspended the first warnings of winter for a few days. These are also the days when the casks of the new wine are opened and the first chestnuts are eaten. In antiquity, it was also the time when peasants had to pay taxes to their masters.
Harvest festival, therefore, and the first tapping of new wine, but in some areas of Europe it is also characterised by a very fascinating and picturesque tradition: the Lanterns of Saint Martin, or Torch of Saint Martin. This custom is widespread in some areas of Germany, where it takes the name of Laternenumzug, in Belgium, the Netherlands, and Northern France. On the night of 11 November, children take to the streets carrying lanterns. These lanterns are then lit and sometimes hung on trees, while the little ones sing songs and nursery rhymes dedicated to Saint Martin.
Speaking of liturgical candles, we have recalled the importance for Christians of the symbolism of light, of how it is closely linked to the very concept of God. Light illuminates, warms, vivifies, nourishes, and protects from darkness.
Liturgical candles: when and why they are important
Light has always had a very deep and essential meaning for men…
Thus the Lanterns of Saint Martin become symbols of light and hope, especially at this time of year, when winter begins to advance and cold and darkness become more pressing. These small coloured lights that float in the night, illuminating the path and warming the hearts, are a prelude to Advent that will begin shortly, and anticipate in a certain sense the festive atmosphere and the deep sense of warmth and happiness of Christmas that is approaching.
Once children carried emptied turnip lanterns with a lighted candle inside, attached to a stick, and this tradition would also lead to that of pumpkins dug by American children on Halloween and used to keep away evil spirits. And like American children on Halloween, even on the occasion of St. Martin’s Day in some regions children go from house to house with their lanterns and claim sweets and fruit.
Today European children use coloured paper lanterns, which they often manufacture themselves, and which are lit all together, as part of a big party. Lighting the lanterns brings luck and you should keep it on every night until Christmas to keep the summer heat alive. In ancient times, children would light afternoon lanterns and use them to guide forest animals into their burrows. This custom remains alive in some areas, where children accompanied by their parents go for walks in the woods at dusk with their lanterns.
Keeping a lamp or lantern lit in your home while waiting for Christmas can be a suggestive way to symbolise the presence of light in your home, to invite it to enter, and to warm up those who live there. In our store, you will find a wide range of liquid and oil wax lamps and lanterns of various sizes, types, and materials. Many of our lamps and lanterns are entirely handmade. Let the light into your homes, and guard it as a precious treasure. It will bring luck and protection to everyone you love.
Here is a prayer for the sick to turn to Jesus or Our Lady to obtain relief for us and our loved ones Illness is a state of suffering that involves all human beings to varying degrees and at different times in their lives. The…
The anointing of the sick is a practice that comes from Jesus himself. Here is how it has evolved over time The Church traces the anointing of the sick back to Jesus, to His deep love for the sick and suffering, on whom He laid…
Although death remains a dramatic event for anyone, there is no doubt that in the Christian religion it is also conceived as a moment of deep and solemn connection with one’s spiritual dimension. Indeed, in death the Christian detaches himself from earthly life to go forth to the eternal one, in Heaven, with Jesus, the Virgin Mary and all the saints. This journey begins with the ritual of the Catholic funeral, with the words of the priest commending the soul of the deceased to God, and even before that, with absolution of all sins and Extreme Unction. Viaticum, the last Eucharist, is also a kind of spiritual nourishment that prepares the Christian to face the transit to the other life, a nourishment for the journey that is already a promise of eternal life.
Anointing of the Sick: what it is and how it takes place
The anointing of the sick is a practice that comes from Jesus himself. Here is how it has evolved over time
So death for Christians is only a passage, a temporary phase, often accompanied by illness, decay, suffering, but nevertheless destined to end to give way to a condition of otherworldly joy and bliss.
Every Catholic funeral, every exequial Mass, renews the Easter mystery of Christ, His victory over sin and death. The Christian funeral liturgy is a way of accompanying the deceased on their final journey, helping them through prayers that purify their souls to enable them to be received into heaven. Prayer for the dead is a heartfelt request for grace from relatives and friends, to help the dearly departed obtain forgiveness and absolution, possibly to shorten the duration of the soul’s atonement in purgatory, while the body awaits the second coming of Jesus and the Resurrection of the flesh.
The Catholic funeral is usually preceded by a wake, during which relatives and friends of the deceased gather to pay their last respects before they are buried. The body is displayed in the burial chamber, which may be the room in which he or she died or a designated room at the cemetery or hospital.
The recitation of the Rosary in the afternoon or evening following death is also a popular funeral tradition in Italy. People gather in church and pray together, led by a priest as well as a lay person. The Rosary in suffrage of a deceased person involves the recitation of the glorious mysteries related to the resurrection of Jesus, his ascension to Heaven, the assumption of the Virgin Mary into Heaven, and so on.
After the Rosary and the wake, the actual funeral ceremony takes place, presided over by a priest. The coffin is led into the church, sprinkled with holy water and incense. In most cases in our country there is an additional step that closes the Catholic funeral. This is the pious burial service, which takes place before the burial or cremation at the cemetery or crematorium, where the participants in the ritual have gone starting from the church on foot or by car, depending on the distance, following the hearse.
During the Catholic funeral, in addition to the readings done by the priest, it is common for relatives and friends to also want to remember the deceased with remembrances and readings. Usually, if people do not want to read something written in their own hand, they choose passages from the Holy Scriptures, particularly from the Old Testament. One of the most frequently chosen texts is the Book of Job: “…After this skin of mine is torn off, without my flesh, I shall see God. I shall see him, myself, my eyes shall behold him, and not another” (Job 19:26). An alternative is the Gospel according to John: “…Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection and the life; he that believeth in me, though he die, yet shall he live” (Jn 11:25). Or also Psalm 22:
The Lord is my shepherd:
I shall not want for anything.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me to still waters.
He restores my soul,
He leads me in paths of righteousness
for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of shadows,
I will fear no evil, for you are with me.
your rod and your staff,
the comfort me.
You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow
all days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of Lord
forever. (Psalm 22,1-6)
The Tree of Life is a symbol that occurs in many cultures. Let’s discover its meaning and why giving a jewel that represents it, is a gesture of great affection and friendship Since ancient times men have bestowed upon the surrounding nature a strong spiritual…
Contents1 Martyrdom and iconography2 The Black church3 Patron saint of lost causes4 Prayer to St. Jude October 28 celebrates the memory of St. Jude Thaddeus the Apostle, patron saint of hopeless cases. Here is how this belief originated Tradition has it that St. Jude Thaddeus…
Contents
World Mission Day celebrates the missionary activity of the universal Church and promotes the support of solidarity and support projects around the world. Thus, the driving force behind this occasion is solidarity, in all its forms and declinations, and involves catechists, seminaries that train new priests especially in areas of greatest poverty and degradation, and organizations that provide health and humanitarian support and relief for children and those most in need in the initiatives.
This day only reconfirms October missionary month. The missionary consciousness of the Church has deep roots. We think of St. Paul of Tarsus, who was the most important missionary of the Gospel of Jesus among the Greek and Roman pagans, but also of many others who became bearers of God’s word to distant and often hostile populations.
Throughout the centuries many humanitarian, health and economic initiatives have been promoted and organized by religious and lay missionaries to bring a significant contribution to the less fortunate parts of the world. We have already mentioned some of them in the past, such as Operation Mato Grosso, which deals with the education of young people through service and mission in different parts of the world.
Since the 1960s, what was an occasional yearning that took the form of episodic interventions without precise rules has become coordinated and defined according to codified criteria and a widespread organizational network. In this context of reevaluation and reorganization of missionary work comes the request of the Italian Work of the Propagation of the Faith for the proclamation of World Mission Day.
World Mission Day was proclaimed in 1926 by Pope Pius XI. Strongly desired by the Work of the Propagation of the Faith, it is a celebration dedicated to missionary solidarity and involves the whole Church as an instrument of charity in the world. Since 1963, each World Mission Day has been defined by a papal message proclaiming its intentions and anticipating the fundamental themes that will be its protagonists.
It is celebrated every year on the penultimate Sunday in October, so this year it falls on October 24.
But before we get to World Mission Day, which is the culmination of Missionary October, a spirituality journey unfolds in five weeks, each dedicated to a specific theme for reflection. Let’s look at this year’s ones:
This year falls the 95th World Mission Day. The theme for Missionary October 2021 is Witnesses and Prophets, and it concludes a journey of missionary reflection and formation that has unfolded over the past two years, with the 2019 theme, Baptized and Sent, examining the missionary vocation as an integral part of all the baptized, and the 2020 theme Weavers of Fraternity, focusing on the need and willingness on the part of missionaries to live out Jesus’ plan as disciples who love as He loved.
Witnesses and Prophets is an invitation to confront the world in which we live, a world disrupted and profoundly changed by many events, of which the pandemic is only the latest. Precisely in a world that is increasingly complex and difficult to relate to, it becomes necessary to recognize the Kingdom of God, already present and alive, and to become its heralds and prophets to bring hope to those struggling in darkness, in the manner of the biblical prophets. A mission of proclaiming the Kingdom of God, then, but also of practical and concrete action to make it more real and tangible for those who need it most.
As he does every year, the Pope wrote a message for World Mission Day. This year in particular, the Pontiff wanted to remind that we are all called to be active participants in Jesus’ mission of love and compassion and message of Redemption.
“Everything in Christ reminds us that the world in which we live and its need for redemption are not foreign to him, and he also calls us to feel an active part of this mission” […] “no one is a stranger, no one can feel a stranger or distant in relation to this love of compassion.”
Pope Francis recalled how Jesus’ example, witnessing the many healings, the acts of mercy He directed toward the poor, the sick, the excluded, animated the apostles with great joy and an irrepressible desire to do the same. Similarly, the early Christians had to face a hostile and arduous environment, clash with unbelief and often violence, but this rather than winning them over made them stronger, more determined, able to turn every inconvenience and obstacle into a strength in their mission of evangelization.
Above all, the pope indicated that the way forward is that of compassion, of dedicating oneself to one’s neighbor, in the name of a mission of mercy and hope. “No one is saved alone,” the pontiff reminded, emphasizing that we are never alone when we work good in the name of Jesus, and, at the same time, reminding us that we cannot keep the Lord to ourselves alone. Again, he called for greater openness that would enable us to reach out and embrace everyone.
The Pope concluded his message by thanking the missionaries and likening the missionary vocation to a love story: “Today Jesus needs hearts that are capable of living the vocation as a true love story, which makes them go to the peripheries of the world and become messengers and instruments of compassion” […] “To live the mission is to venture to cultivate the same sentiments as Christ Jesus and to believe with Him that those who are next to me are also my brother and sister. May His love of compassion also awaken our hearts and make us all missionary disciples.”
On the occasion of the feast day for his liturgical memory on October 16, we discover the Sanctuary of St. Gerard Maiella, the patron saint of mothers and children Oct. 16 marks the memory of St. Gerard Maiella, The Father of the Poor, The Apostle…
Among sacred icons, that of the Black Virgin of Czestochowa is one of the most emblematic and fascinating. Here is her story Russian icons possess a fascination that transcends centuries, an allure so rich in exoticism and spirituality that they are still one of the…
St. Joseph, the putative father of Jesus, is one of the most beloved saints among those venerated by the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church. Yet not everyone knows that there is a Rosary of St. Joseph, only the last of the devotional practices dedicated to this special saint.
Already in 1536, there is a practice called the Practice of the Seven Sorrows and Joys of St. Joseph, in which the saint himself would have taught two fishermen that he had miraculously saved from a shipwreck.
Subsequently, many other prayers dedicated to the saint were published and disseminated, such as the Litanies of St. Joseph, the Track of St. Joseph, and in more recent times, in the nineteenth century, the Chaplet of St. Joseph and the Scapular of St. Joseph.
Pius IX and Pius XI consecrated the month of March to St. Joseph, whose feast is celebrated on 19 March. But in reality, every first Wednesday of every month would be dedicated to him and should be honoured with special prayers, which guarantee graces and protection.
The Sacred Mantle of St. Joseph is also a special devotional form composed of prayers that must be recited for thirty consecutive days, as were the thirty years that Jesus spent with St. Joseph, to honour the latter and put us under the mantle of his protection.
What do we know about St. Joseph?
Not that much, actually. The Holy Scriptures speak little of him, of his life before the encounter with Mary, and even in the Gospels, he appears only as a marginal figure. His role in the coming of Jesus was of fundamental importance.
St. Joseph: the supposed father of Jesus
St. Joseph is a very beloved figure venerated by Christians and with affection and incomparable devotion.
Without his support or protection, the Virgin Mary would have been alone in facing the burden that God had entrusted to her. It is precisely in humility and modesty, in the full confidence with which he accepted the divine will that the great strength of St. Joseph resides.
He entrusted himself to God’s will without arguing, without demanding anything in return. He accepted the not-easy role that had been established for him and carried it forward with submission, but also with a moving dignity, especially if we imagine him as a carpenter forward over the years, devoid of culture, accustomed more to hard work than to religious dissertations.
For this humble legacy, St. Joseph is remembered with the title of Worker, and of the Workers he is patron, as he is of many categories of craftsmen and workers, as well as of the fathers of the family.
But how did the tradition of reciting the Rosary of St. Joseph come about?
From 1994 to 1998, a series of apparitions took place in the small towns of Itapiranga and Manaus in central Brazil. Glauber de Souza Coutinho, a young student of Telecommunications Sciences, and his mother Maria do Carmo received several visits from the Holy Family of Nazareth, namely Mary, the Child Jesus and Saint Joseph, as well as from the Archangels Michael and Raphael.
Without dwelling too much on these surprising apparitions, the aspect that we want to highlight in them is precisely the presence of St. Joseph, exceptional for this type of event. The seer recounted that he had seen the Saint himself, who held the Child Jesus in his arms, and that a great and intense light radiated from Saint Joseph in particular. The interpretation that was given to this apparition was the invitation to devotion to the Sacred Hearts of the Holy Family, and in particular to the Most Chaste Heart of Joseph, to whom the subsequent apparitions of Jesus and the Virgin Mary would also seem to be addressed.
In other apparitions the members of the Holy Family will alternatively speak of devotion to St. Joseph, and also of the prayer that must be recited, a special Rosary capable of bringing great graces and precious intercessions to those who recite it with a contrite heart.
St. Joseph himself will say to Edson Glauber: “Tell your brothers to pray the rosary of my seven sorrows and joys, for I desire to be their intercessor in their greatest difficulties. If you knew how many graces God allows Me to give you, you would not close your hearts and you would never stop praying this powerful rosary.”
And again Jesus Christ will add: “The rosary of the seven sorrows and joys of St. Joseph must be recited with the Hail Joseph prayer, so that you can be benefited by his intercession, invoking his most holy and powerful name that makes all hell tremble and put demons to flight.”
In an apparition in 1997, Our Lady spoke specifically about devotion to the Most Chaste Heart of St. Joseph, claiming the importance of the worship dedicated to him to be honoured on the first Wednesday of the month. Even today, the young people of the Queen of the Rosary and Peace Association of Itapiranga gather every first Wednesday of the month to recite the Rosary of St. Joseph.
October, as we know, is the month dedicated to the Rosary, and among the various online rosaries available to accompany private prayer you will also find the Rosary of St. Joseph, also known as the Rosary of the Seven Sorrows and Joys of St. Joseph.
October: the month of the Holy Rosary
What is the connection between the fall month with what is probably the most important and popular devotional form in the world?
It is composed of seven Mysteries that coincide with the seven sorrows and seven joys that St. Joseph lived during his life, including for example the birth of Jesus, the prophecy of Simeon, the flight to Egypt, and so on. The Rosary of St. Joseph can also be recited in March, the month dedicated to the Saint, and as we have seen in Itapiranga, it is recited every first Wednesday of the month.
In the opening, an invocation is addressed to God:
O God come to save me
Lord, come quickly to my aid
Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, now and forever, forever and ever.
Praised always be: the holy name of Jesus, of Joseph and Mary.
Then we pray Joseph with the formula Hail Joseph, and the prayer:
Hail Joseph, son of David, just and virginal
Man, Wisdom is with you,
you are blessed among all men and blessed is Jesus,
the fruit of Mary your faithful bride.
Saint Joseph,
worthy Father and protector of Jesus Christ and the Holy Church,
pray for us sinners and obtain for us from God’s divine Wisdom,
now and at the hour of our death. Amen!
Follow the Glory to the Father, then move on to the Mysteries. To every mystery, we recite one Our Father, ten Hail Josephs and one Glory.
Saint Joseph, for the pain and joy you felt on the occasion of the motherhood of the Virgin Mary, paternally assist me in life and death.
Saint Joseph, for the pain and joy you felt on the occasion of the birth of Jesus, paternally assist me in life and death.
Saint Joseph, for the pain and joy you felt on the occasion of the circumcision of the Child Jesus, paternally assist me in life and death.
Saint Joseph, for the pain and joy you felt on the occasion of the prophecy of Simeon, paternally
assist me in life and death.
Saint Joseph, for the pain and joy you felt on the occasion of your flight to Egypt, paternally
assist me in life and death.
Saint Joseph, for the pain and joy you felt on the occasion of your return from Egypt, paternally
assist me in life and death.
Saint Joseph, for the pain and joy you felt on the occasion of the loss and rediscovery of Jesus in the temple, paternally assist me in life and death
Novena to Saint Joseph for Labor Day
Saint Joseph in an unmissable figure when we think about Jesus life and work.
Contents1 Why is the Rosary of St. Michael the Archangel famous?2 Chaplet of San Michele Arcangelo3 The prayer of St. Michael the Archangel The month of October is dedicated to the Holy Rosary. Let’s know better the Rosary of St. Michael the Archangel, its power,…
Contents1 The story of Saint Therese of Lisieux2 The theology of the “little way”3 Saint Therese of Lisieux Doctor of the Church4 Meaning of the name Therese5 Saint Therese of Lisieux Novena of roses Saint Therese of Lisieux, who died at the age of twenty-five,…
Some devotions are born from the personal experience of those who, tormented by some pain, have found comfort and consolation in Jesus or the very sweet image of their mother, Mary. This is the case of the Prayer against Depression, born from the devotion of Saint Therese of the Child Jesus to Our Lady.
Saint Therese, or Saint Therese of the Child Jesus, left a unique model of spirituality and heartfelt poignant faith. And this even though she died very young, barely twenty-five years old, after a life spent largely in a cloister. His love for Jesus was expressed in every gesture, in every action, and was made up of simple, everyday things. It was born from the absolute abandonment to love for God, inevitable, once we became aware of our being nothing, before the Most High, fragile, humble creatures, in need of protection and loving and safe guidance. Here is the wonder of the faith of Saint Therese of the Child Jesus, who never ceased to feel like a child before the fullness of God’s love, and in this feeling of being small and fragile resided her wealth, a wealth that was born from poverty, from the need to be filled with Grace and Love.
But how did Saint Therese’s devotion to Our Lady of Smiles come about? Meanwhile, we cannot help but think that the smile is a prerogative of the Virgin, the Mother par excellence, and as such always ready to address all her children, especially the most fragile and vulnerable, the sweetest smile that only a mother can give. The smile that comforts, that encourages, that instils the strength to face every snare, to bear every burden.
On the occasion of Pentecost, pray Mary that unties the knots
50 days after Easter, she will untie the knots and celebrate Pentecost, which recalls the descent…
Saint Therese of the Child Jesus suffered from various ailments that undermined her body and spirit. Among other things, she suffered from depression and panic attacks, which left her bedridden for days. Well, the Saint recounted that on 13 May 1883, the feast of Pentecost, while from her bed of pain, she contemplated the image of Our Lady, it seemed to her that the latter smiled at her. A very sweet, tender smile, which made her look even more beautiful and lovable, and which touched the heart of Saint Therese until it moved her and made her cry. The awareness that that enchanting smile was only for her, a gift from the Mother of all mothers, made her heal from every difficulty.
Thus was born Our Lady of the Smile, one of the Marian titles with which the Virgin is known and adored in the world. It was Saint Therese who wanted to tell her experience, first to her family, then to the Carmel of Lisieux, where she took vows. It was thanks to the Carmelite orders that this particular devotion spread throughout the world.
But St. Therese did more. To her experience of faith and healing, we owe a special prayer dedicated to Our Lady as a helper for those who are tormented by depression and in general by psychiatric disorders and diseases that poison the body through the mind. Just like St. Therese, many people have recovered from depression, or have found relief from illnesses and disorders of the soul, by reciting this prayer.
Here is the text of the prayer to Our Lady of Smile. At the end of the prayer, it is appropriate to recite two Hail Maries to remember the two tears of joy that slipped on the cheeks of Saint Therese of the Child Jesus on the day when the Virgin smiled at her.
O Mary, Mother of Jesus and our Mother,
who with a clear smile have deigned to console
and heal your daughter Saint Therese of the Child Jesus from depression,
restoring to her the joy of living
and the meaning of her life in the Risen Christ,
look with maternal affection upon so many
children and
daughters who suffer from depression, psychiatric
disorders and
syndromes and psychosomatic ills. Your beautiful
smile does not let the difficulties of life
darken our souls.
We know that only your Son Jesus can satisfy the deepest
anxieties of our hearts.
Maria, through the light that blossoms from your face,
pierces the mercy of God.
Your gaze caresses us and convinces us that
God loves us
and never abandons us, and your tenderness renews our self-esteem,
confidence in our abilities,
interest in the future and the desire to live happily.
The family members of those suffering from depression
help in the healing
process, never considering them as caregivers
of the disease with interestsVirgin of the Smile, obtain for
us from Jesus the true cure, liberate us from temporary
and illusory reliefs. Cured, we
commit ourselves to serve Jesus with joy,
disposition and enthusiasm as missionary disciples,
with our witness of renewed life.
