OUR LADY OF VICTORY
Feast Day - January 13
Among the shrines dedicated to Our Lady of Victory, that at Prague has become world-famous because it is also the home of the statue of the Infant Jesus of Prague.
The story of the shrine is an unusual one. In 1620 the
Austrian Emperor Ferdinand II and Prince Maxmilian of Bavaria gained a major
victory over a coalition of Protestant armies in the battle of the White
Mountains near Prague. The previous day, Rev. Fr. Dominic of Jesus-Maria, a
discalced Carmelite, had found in the castle of Strakowicz a picture
representing the nativity of Christ. It showed the Blessed Virgin kneeling
before her Divine Son, while St Joseph stood behind her holding a lantern. In
the background were two shepherds. The Calvanists had shown their fanaticism by
piercing the eyes of Mary and her spouse, St Joseph.
Carrying the picture to the camp, the monk held it up and
urged the soldiers to restore Mary’s honor. His words decided the hesitation of
the generals and gave courage to the men. They adopted Mary’s name as their
battle cry and Mary blessed their efforts. In the moment of success, they
hailed the painting as Our Lady of Victory and carried it in triumph into
Prague, where their leaders adorned it with rich jewels.
In gratitude to God for his great success, and in
recognition of the help given by Father Dominic, Ferdinand II founded several
Carmelite monasteries, including one at Prague which was solemnly blessed under
invocation of Our Lady of Victory.
Before this time, however, Father Dominic had taken the
picture of Our Lady of Victory to Rome where it was first venerated in the
Basilica of St. Mary Major, then carried – in the presence of Pope Gregory XV –
to the church of St Paul near the Carmelite convent, on May 8, 1622. Pope Paul
V subsequently changed the name of the church to Our Lady of Victory, and the
feast was officially inaugurated.
The original painting was destroyed in a fire in 1833 and
has been replaced by a copy. Another copy hangs in the church of Our Lady of
Victory in Prague, in a building erected in 1706 replacing the earlier church.
From the Shrine of Our Lady of Victory in Prague, came to
the entire wold the devotion to the Infant of Prague.
Our need for Mary’s help continues as long as we live, and
so long, too, we need her guidance. The struggle between the forces of evil and
the forces of good will continue until the end of time. The devil whose
intelligence and power exceed those we can command in our own right, has an
acute appreciation of the value of our souls bought with a great price. Our
sure way to defeat him is to range ourselves under Mary’s banner, to call on
her to bring us victory, and to acknowledge her as Our Lady of Victory when she
protects us from dangers and brings us triumphant through temptation.
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