| "Make her known throughout the world!" Pope Pius IX to the Redemptorists)
O Lord Jesus Christ, who gave us your Mother Mary, whose renowned image we venerate, to be a Mother ever ready to help us; grant we beseech You, that we who constantly implore her motherly aid, may merit to enjoy perpetually the fruits of Your redemption, Who lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen.
It has been the JOY of the Redemptorists to make Our Lady known and loved as she is revealed in the miraculous icon of Our Mother of Perpetual Help. It has been the JOY of the Mission Church to enshrine the copy of the icon in a place of honor and to have seen so many blessings poured out on so many through the intercession of Our Mother of Perpetual Help! Mary's powerful intercession on our behalf is expressed so beautifully by this great prayer, the MEMORARE, of St Bernard (who was so deeply loved by St Alphonsus!): Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to your protection, implored your help or sought your intercession was left unaided. Inspired by this confidence, I fly unto you, O Virgin of virgins, my Mother. To you do I come; before you I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in your mercy, hear and answer me. Amen!
A History of the Miraculous Icon of Our Mother of Perpetual Help The meaning of the Icon of Our Mother of Perpetual Help The original Icon's Home The Mass of Our Lady of Perpetual Help From the Office of Readings for the Feast of Our Lady of Perpetual Help MARY'S NEVER FAILING HELP MARY'S HELP MEANS HOPE THE PRAISES OF MARY
by St Lomman, Irish Abbot, 7th century OUR LADY OF LIFE SERMON ON THE ASSUMPTION: ST ALPHONSUS FOR THE ASSUMPTION: A LITANY OF OUR LADY THE AKATHIST HYMN TO THE MOTHER OF GOD - the most popular devotion to Our Lady in the Byzantine Rite THE SHRINE OF OLPH IN THE BASILICA OF THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION NATIONAL SHRINE, WASHINGTON, D.C.
Our Mother of Perpetual Help in Haiti Our Mother of Perpetual Help in the Philippines Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Ireland Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Roxbury Massachussetts
Novena Prayers to Our Mother of Perpetual Help FIRST NOVENA PRAYER IN HONOR OF OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP Behold at thy feet, 0 Mother of Perpetual Help, a wretched sinner who has recourse to thee and confides in thee. 0 Mother of mercy, have pity on me. I hear thee called by all the refuge and the hope of sinners: be then, my refuge and my hope. Assist me, for the love of Jesus Christ; stretch forth thy hand to a miserable fallen creature who recommends himself to thee, and who devotes himself to thy service for ever. I bless and thank Almighty God, who in His mercy has given me this confidence in thee, which I hold to be a pledge of my eternal salvation. It is true that in the past I have miserably fallen into sin, because I had not recourse to thee. I know that, with thy help, I shall conquer. I know. too, that thou wilt assist me, if I recommend myself to thee; but I fear that, in time of danger, I may neglect to call on thee, and thus lose my soul. This grace, then, I ask of thee, and this I beg, with all the fervor of my soul, that in all the attacks of hell I may ever have recourse to thee. 0 Mary, help me. 0 Mother of Perpetual Help, never suffer me to lose my God.-----3 Hail Marys. SECOND NOVENA PRAYER TO OUR MOTHER OF PERPETUAL HELP 0 Mother of Perpetual Help, grant that I may ever invoke thy most powerful name, which is the safeguard of the living and the salvation of the dying. 0 purest Mary, 0 sweetest Mary, let thy name henceforth be ever on my lips. Delay not, 0 Blessed Lady, to help me, whenever I call on thee; for, in all my temptations, in all my needs, I shall never cease to call on thee, ever repeating thy sacred name, Mary, Mary. 0 what consolation, what sweetness, what confidence, what emotion, fill my soul when I utter thy sacred name, or even only think of thee. I thank the Lord for having given thee, for my good so sweet, so powerful, so lovely a name. But I will not be content with merely uttering thy name. Let my love for thee prompt me ever to hail thee, Mother of Perpetual Help.---3 Hail Marys. THIRD NOVENA PRAYER TO OUR MOTHER OF PERPETUAL HELP 0 Mother of Perpetual Help, thou art the dispenser of all the gifts which God grants to us miserable sinners; and for this end He has made thee so powerful, so rich, and so bountiful, in order that thou mayest help us in our misery. Thou art the advocate of the most wretched and abandoned sinners who have recourse to thee: come to my aid, for I recommend myself to thee. In thy hands I place my eternal salvation, and to thee I entrust my soul. Count me among thy most devoted servants; take me under thy protection, and it is enough for me. For, if thou protect me, I fear nothing; not from my sins, because thou wilt obtain for me the pardon of them; nor from the devils, because thou art more powerful than all hell together; nor even from Jesus, my judge, because by one prayer from thee He will be appeased. But one thing I fear: that in the hour of temptation I may through negligence fail to have recourse to thee and thus perish miserably. Obtain for me, therefore, the pardon of my sins, love for Jesus, final perseverance, and the grace ever to have recourse to thee, O Mother of Perpetual Help.---3 Hail Marys.
Invocations to Our Lady from Novena Priest: 0 Mother of Perpetual Help, thou whose very name inspires confidence.
People: Help me, 0 loving Mother.
Priest: That I may be victorious in the trying time of temptation.
People: Help me, 0 loving Mother.
Priest: That I may quickly rise again should I have the misfortune to fall into sin.
People: Help me, 0 loving Mother.
Priest: That I may break asunder any bonds of Satan in which I may become entangled.
People: Help me, 0 loving Mother.
Priest: Against the seductions of the world, evil companions, and bad books.
People: Help me, 0 loving Mother.
Priest: That I may soon return to my former fervor should I ever become lukewarm.
People: Help me, 0 loving Mother.
Priest: In my preparation for the Sacraments and the performance of my Christian duties.
People: Help me, 0 loving Mother,
Priest: In all the trials and troubles of life.
People: Help me, 0 loving Mother.
Priest: Against my own inconstancy.
People: Help me, 0 loving Mother.
Priest: That I may persevere to the end.
People: Help me, 0 loving Mother.
Priest: That I may ever love Thee and serve Thee and invoke Thy assistance.
People: Help me, 0 loving Mother.
Priest: That I may be able to induce others to love, serve and pray to Thee.
People: Help me, 0 loving Mother.
Priest: 0 Mother to my last hour, to my last breath do Thou ever watch over me.
People: Help me, 0 loving Mother.
Blessing of the Sick from traditional Novena Priest: Our help is in the name of the Lord '
People: Who hath made Heaven and earth. Priest: 0 Lord hear my prayer.
People: And let my cry come unto Thee. Priest: The Lord be with you.
People: And with thy spirit. Priest: Let Us Pray Look down, 0 Lord, upon Thy servants failing from bodily weakness and refresh their souls which Thou hast created that being bettered by Thy chastisements they may presently feel themselves saved by Thy pity. Amen. Grant, 0 Lord, we beseech Thee that these Thy servants may enjoy continual health of body and soul and through the glorious intercession of the Blessed Mary ever Virgin be freed from their present sorrow and enjoy eternal gladness : through Christ our Lord. Amen. The Lord Jesus Christ be with you to defend you; within you to preserve you; before you to lead you, behind you to guide you; above you to bless you, Who with the Father and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen. The blessing of Almighty God the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit descend upon you and remain with you always. Amen
PRAYER FOR THE HEART OF A CHILD Holy Mary, Mother of God,
preserve in me the heart of a child,
pure and transparent as a spring.
Obtain for me a simple heart
That does not brood over sorrows;
A heart generous in giving itself,
Quick to feel compassion;
A faithful, generous heart
that forgets no favor
and holds no grudge.
Give me a humble, gentle heart
Loving without asking any return;
A great indomitable heart
That no ingratitude can close,
No indifference can weary;
A heart tortured by its desire
for the glory of Jesus Christ:
Pierced by His love
With a wound that will heal
only in heaven. - Fr. Leonce de Grandmaison
As a young man, St Alphonsus painted this beautiful image of his beloved Madonna, Our Lady. How he loved Mary! And how he spoke his own love in so many ways -- from his great prayers and hymns, and his marvelous book "The Glories of Mary." St Alphonsus Mary believed that devotion to Mary is a sure sign of predestination!
Pray with St Alphonsus: Most Holy Immaculate Virgin and my Mother Mary, * to thee, who art the Mother of my Lord, the Queen of the world, the Advocate, the Hope, and the Refuge of sinners, * I have recourse today, I , who am the most miserable of all. * I render thee my most humble homage, 0 great Queen, * and I thank thee for all the graces thou hast conferred on me until now; * particularly for having delivered me from hell, which I have so often deserved. I love thee, 0 most amiable Lady; and for the love which I bear thee, * I promise to serve thee always and to do all in my power to make others love thee also. * I place in thee all my hopes, I confide my salvation to thy care. Accept me for thy servant, and receive me under thy mantle, O Mother of Mercy. * And since thou art so powerful with God, deliver me from all temptations, * or rather obtain for me the strength to triumph over them until death. * Of thee I ask a perfect love for Jesus Christ. Through thee I hope to die a good death. * 0 my Mother, by the love which thou bearest to God, * I beseech thee to help me at all times, * but especially at the last moment of my life. * Leave me not, I beseech thee, until thou seest me safe in Heaven; blessing thee and singing thy mercies for all eternity. Amen. So I hope. So may it be.
This icon, beloved by both Catholics and Orthodox Christians, is known as Our Mother of Perpetual Help. And how beautiful it is! Here Our Lord has had a vision of His coming Passion (the angels are showing Him the instruments of His Passion and Death). In his fright, he runs into the lap of his mother, Mary (notice how the sandal hangs from his foot to indicate the speed of his flight to his Mother). Mary, however, is looking not at Jesus but at *us*...... Can we hear her saying something like this: 'When Jesus was afraid and in need, He came to me as His mother to find help and comfort--and I am your Mother too...' In our own fears and needs, in our own struggles and heartbreaks, why not run to her as Jesus did and in her arms, in her bosom--we will find in her a Mother of perpetual help. And if we feel unworthy, maybe we could at least hold on to her as the string holds Jesus' sandal to his foot. For she is the Mother of Mercy!
The same sentiments--and more!--are expressed beautifully and powerfully in this touching sonnet, written in honor of our beloved Mother of Perpetual Help:
Madonna, in thy eastern shrine reposing,
We crown thee Empress of the adopted West,
And hail thee Mother, for redemption's closing
Left thee to us in Jesus' last bequest.
Perpetual Help! Upon the breast of mother,
Omnipotence here lisps His childhood's fears,
And thou dost soothe His terrors as no other
But thou couldst do, and kiss away His tears.
But even while thy Infant's fingers tremble
Their fright within thy palms, while cherubim,
Golgotha's grim precursors, here assemble
With spectral cross and lance, 'tis not on Him
But on us Cains, whose sins have slain our brother,
Thy eyes gaze sadly from thy frame above;
The wayward child is dearest to his mother,
The prodigal e'er nearest to her love.
Behold us, like the loosened sandal cleaving
To Jesus' feet by but a single strap--
Should that thong fail, be thou our hope receiving
Thy fallen children in a mother's lap. (Rev. John T. Feeney)
O my Perpetual Help, all heartache and all love, Give me the gold of your picture, The light of the star on your veil, The tenderness in your eyes, The shelter of your mantle, The treasure in your arms. And I give you my heart forever, and all its love.
**A PERSONAL TESTIMONY TO MARY'S PERPETUAL HELP**
AVE MARIA!
THE SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL ON OUR LADY
OUR MOTHER OF PERPETUAL HELP IN HAITI  In 1984 when Pope John Paul visited the nations of Central America, one of his first stops was at the national shrine of Our Mother of Perpetual Help in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Haiti along with Santo Domingo is part of the large island in the Carribean known as Hispanola, a name given to it by Columbus when he landed there on December 6, 1492.
Since that time, the people of Haiti have had a very troubled history. Most of the original natives died from European diseases and slaves were imported from Africa. After 200 years of Spanish rule, Haiti became a French colony in 1697. Capuchins and Jesuit missionaries evangelized the country until 1804, when, after winning independence from France, the government expelled the clergy loyal to Rome and set up their own national Church. The schism lasted until 1860 when President Geffrard signed a concordat with Pope Pius the Ninth. In 1877, just ten years after the picture of Perpetual Help was restored and enshrined in the church of San Alfonso in Rome, a Haitian lady, Mrs. Desjardins, visited the shrine and secured a copy of the miraculous icon. When she returned home to Haiti she gave the picture to a young priest, Father Francis Kersuzan, who was later to become the Bishop of Port-au-Prince. In 1882, during a severe drought, an epidemic of smallpox broke out in Port-au-Prince. Thousands were dying. At the peak of the epidemic, Father Kersuzan asked the Archbishop to allow him to place the picture on the altar of the church of St. Francis of Assisi. On February 5, 1882 the picture of Our Mother of Perpetual Help was carried through the streets in procession. Before it was returned to the specially decorated altar on the steps outside the main doors of the church, Father Kersuzan asked the Archbishop to bless the city with the picture. The Archbishop held the picture of Our Mother of Perpetual Help high above the kneeling crowd and traced the sign of the cross over them as he solemnly blessed the city, the diocese and the nation. At that moment, it began to rain and the ravages of the small-pox epidemic dramatically decreased. Ever since that time, the grateful people of Haiti have had a very deep and tender devotion to Our Mother of Perpetual Help.... so much so that, on December 8, 1942, at the request of President Elie Lescot, the bishops of the five dioceses of Haiti gathered in Port-au-Prince and solemnly dedicated the nation to Our Mother of Perpetual Help. Under that title, Mary is the official Patroness of the island, and the church of San Alfonso in Rome, where the miraculous icon is enshrined, is the national Church of the Republic of Haiti. Postage Stamps have appeared regularly with representations of Our Mother of Perpetual Help. In 1984, when Pope John Paul II visited Haiti, he was appalled at the misery, the poverty and oppressive conditions that afflicted many of the people there. Speaking very forcefully and bluntly to the leaders of the government at the time, he said, "Something must change here." Since then, despite a number of changes in governments, the people of Haiti are still suffering. The poverty and standard of living is the worst in the western hemisphere. The disease of Aids is spreading virtually unchecked. This is truly a terrible tragedy and one that we as devoted clients of Our Mother of Perpetual Help should take to heart and pray that Mary will intercede with her Son, Jesus to safeguard and protect these desperate children of a land that has been entrusted to her maternal care. Father John Travers, C.Ss.R.
THE PHILIPPINES AND OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP Devotion to Our Mother of Perpetual Help in the Philippines is truly an extraordinary miracle of grace. Over 100,000 people attend the Perpetual Novena at Baclaran every week. Devotions are also conducted in over 1,000 other churches throughout the Islands. And countless millions listen to the weekly radio broadcasts.
In 1906, when the Irish Redemptorist Fathers arrived in the Philippines, they immediately began preaching devotion to Our Mother of Perpetual Help. Soon, copies of her miraculous icon began to spread throughout the Islands as many favors and graces were received through her intercession.
In 1932, the Redemptorist Fathers came to Baclaran to preach missions - especially to the poor in the rural areas. They did not intend to establish a formal parish there. So, next- door to their monastery, they built a rather small chapel with the picture of Our Lady of Perpetual Help enshrined above the altar.
Baclaran, is situated about five miles from the Capitol city of Manila. When the Japanese occupied the area during the war, they seized the Redemptorist house and the little church and the picture of Our Lady of Perpetual help disappeared.
After the liberation of the island, the lost Madonna was found by a U.S. Army chaplain, a Redemptorist, in the rubble of an old prison. He returned it to the Redemptorists in Baclaran. He then persuaded the priests at the tiny shrine to begin Novena devotions similar to those that were so popular in the States.
The first Service was held on June 23, 1948 and 70 people attended. By the end of July, 700 came; by Christmas, 7,000. The small church couldn't hold the crowds, even with the addition of extra services.... so many people were coming to thank the Madonna of Perpetual Help for favors received.
Three years later, in 1951. over 60,000 people were attending the Novena Devotions every Wednesday. Services were conducted from early morning into the late evening. To accommodate the crowds, they enlarged the original church to seat 600, and constructed open-air verandas to provide standing room for 3,000 more. Many had to stand outside in all kinds of weather.
A few years later, they constructed a huge shrine to seat 12,000. It was the largest church in the Far East, and had the largest seating capacity of any church in the world, except for St. Peters Basilica in Rome.
By 1960, over 85,000 people were attending services at the shrine in Baclaran every Wednesday, and since then, the crowds have regularly exceeded 100,000.
Devotion to Our Mother of Perpetual Help flourished in the Philippines when the news spread about a number of miraculous favors attained through her intercession.
At the close of his sermon during his last visit to Baclaran, Pope John Paul said: "O Mother of Perpetual Help, I commend to you, the hospitable people of the Philippines. I have witnessed the truly filial devotion and the immense trust that you, O Mother of Perpetual Help, enjoy among the faithful people who live in this great nation of the Philippines. Safeguard and protect the people of this country who are so dedicated to you and your Son." Father John Travers, C.SS.R.
OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP IN IRELAND - JULY 1, 1998
A Report by Father John Travers, CSSR (Or How Our Wednesday Novena Here in Brooklyn Spread to Ireland, and from There to the British Isles, to India, the Philippines, Etc.) In late June of 1866, just two months after the miraculous icon of Our Mother of Perpetual Help was restored to the church of San Alfonso in Rome, a solemn novena of nine days was celebrated in honor of Our Mother of Perpetual Help.
At the start of the novena, Father Edward Douglas, the superior of our Mother-house in Rome, asked the crowd to pray for a Redemptorist priest from Ireland, Father Patrick Hall, who was dying. Each day of the Novena, Father Hall's condition worsened, and, early in the afternoon of the ninth day of the novena, the Redemptorist community gathered around his bed to say the prayers for the dying.
Later that evening, when it came time for the sermon, the crowded church was shocked to see Father Hall, completely cured, ascend the pulpit and give the most beautiful sermon about Mary any of them had ever heard.
A year later, in 1867, with the assistance of Father Douglas, Father Patrick Hall had a copy of the miraculous icon painted. He brought it to Ireland and began preaching about his beloved Madonna throughout the country.
This first authentic copy of the picture of Our Lady of Perpetual Help was enshrined in the Redemptorist Church of Saint Alphonsus in Limerick. From there, devotion to miraculous icon spread throughout all of Ireland - so much so that, fifty years later, it was said that scarcely a Catholic family in Ireland was without a copy of the picture.
Each year a solemn Novena of nine consecutive days is held in Limerick in preparation for the feast of Our Mother of Perpetual Help on June 27th.
In recent years, well over 60,000 devoted sons and daughters of Mary from all over Ireland attend the Novena each day. More than twenty services are held each day in the church of Saint Alphonsus and other churches throughout the city to accommodate the large crowds. Recently I was talking with Father John McKenna, a Redemptorist priest from this parish who had just returned from a three week trip to Ireland. While he was there, he and my brother, Tom, who is also a Redemptorist spent a few days in Limerick at the start of the Novena. Father McKenna said that he was amazed at the large crowds attending the 10 services conducted at Saint Alphonsus Church. Redemptorist priests are called in from all over Ireland to help with the confessions.
Although devotion to Our Mother of Perpetual Help in Limerick dates back to 1867, the Perpetual Weekly Novena as we know it was not started there until 1943. Two Redemptorist Army Chaplains, Father Matthew Meighan and Father Thomas Keenan, the brother of Father Joseph Keenan of our community, came to Belfast in Northern Ireland and introduced the Perpetual Weekly Novena there.
They followed the same format they used when they both preached the weekly novena here at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Brooklyn in the 1930's. In fact, they used the same novena booklets and other materials that were generously donated by our parish here.
The results of the efforts of Father Keenan and Father Meighan were truly phenomenal - indeed, miraculous. At the end of their first year, 10,000 people were attending six services a week. In a letter that he wrote home to his mother at the time, Father Tom Keenan mentioned that an overflow crowd of 5,000 people attended one of his first services. From Belfast, the Redemptorists carried the weekly devotions on to Limerick, Dublin, Galway throughout Ireland. The Irish Redemptorists, in turn, carried the Perpetual Novena to
England, Wales and Scotland, and on to India, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Singapore and Africa.
Today, the Perpetual Weekly Novena devotions that Father Keenan and Father Meighan carried from OLPH, Brooklyn to Belfast, Northern Ireland are spread throughout the world, and are reaching countless millions of people each week. This is truly a remarkable miracle of grace--a miracle that began right here in Brooklyn.
Fifty-five years ago, devoted clients of Mary here in Brooklyn prayed for the success of Father Keenan and Father Meighan in introducing the Perpetual Novena in Belfast. Let us thank Our Blessed Mother of Perpetual Help and her Son, Jesus for hearing our prayers and granting us the greatest miracle ever received here at her shrine at OLPH.
OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP IN ROXBURY On March 24th, 1901, the Sunday edition of the New York Herald newspaper carried a rather startling headline: MARVELOUS CURES SAID TO HAVE BEEN EFFECTED MILES AWAY BY ROXBURY’S WONDER WORKING SHRINE. In the full-page article that followed, the reporter described a phenomenon that he called, “A Lourdes in the Land of the Puritans.” He was writing about the miraculous cures that were taking place at the Shrine of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Roxbury, a suburb of Boston, Massachusetts. The author began by describing how the shrine was located next door to the historic Dearborn Mansion in Roxbury. In 1869, the Redemptorist Fathers acquired this mansion and, in 1877, built next to it a magnificent granite church, similar in size and architecture to our Basilica here in Brooklyn. The Shrine was the first church dedicated to Our Lady of Perpetual Help in the United States, and novena devotions were conducted in her honor every Wednesday. The first, and perhaps the most extraordinary of the many miraculous favors reported in the article, was the cure of Grace Hanley, the sixteen-year-old daughter of P.T. Hanley, a former Colonel in the Union Army under General Ulysses S. Grant. When she was four-years-old, Grace Hanley had been playing in the family carriage when she fell and landed on a large rock. Her injuries resulted in a permanent deformity of her back and lameness in her legs. For twelve years, she was in constant agony, At times the pain was so great she couldn’t even move. At other times, she was forced to wear a heavy leather-covered steel corset and hobbled about on crutches. Grace was hospitalized numerous times. One time she spent an entire year completely immobile in traction. She was examined and treated by many renowned specialists who told her that her condition was hopeless and incurable. Grace began attending novena devotions with her parents at the Roxbury Shrine. On August 18, 1883, the last day of the Novena, as she was making her thanksgiving after Holy Communion, Grace suddenly put aside her crutches and walked up to the altar, completely cured. Word of the miraculous cure spread throughout the city and thousands of Catholics and non-Catholics came to the shrine hoping to catch a glimpse of the girl whose name and picture was featured in all the major newspapers. Soon after the cure, Grace Hanley went away to school at the Convent of Jesus and Mary in Fall River, Massachusetts and later joined the religious order there. For many years, that leather corset once worn by Grace Hanley was prominently displayed along with hundreds of other braces, crutches and canes in huge racks surrounding the shrine of Our Mother of Perpetual Help in Boston. When they became too numerous, unwieldy and dangerous to the crowds that gathered there, the fire department requested their removal. However, the miraculous cures continue to this day.... not only in Boston, but in the thousands of shrines dedicated to Our Mother of Perpetual Help throughout the world. This week we celebrate two of Our Blessed Mother’s greatest Feast days. Yesterday, September 8th was Our Lady’s Birthday, and, this Saturday, September 12th, we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Name of Mary. Speaking of the Name of Mary, the great St. Bonaventure once said: “Blessed is the man who loves thy name, O Mary. Yes, truly blessed is he who loves thy sweet name, O Mother of God, for thy name is so glorious and admirable, that no one who remembers it has any fears at the hour of death.” And St. Anthony of Padua once exclaimed: “O name of Mary! Joy in the heart, honey in the mouth, melody in the ear of her devout clients.” Even a non-Catholic like the poet, Henry Wordsworth Longfellow was inspired to write: Virgin and Mother of our dear Redeemer!
All hearts are touched and softened at her name;
Alike the bandit with the bloody hand,
The priest, the prince, the scholar and the peasant,
The man of deeds, the visionary dreamer,
Pay homage to her name as one ever present.
And if our faith had given us nothing more
Than this example of all womanhood,
So mild, so merciful, so strong, so good,
So patient, peaceful, loyal, loving, pure....
This was enough to prove it higher and truer
Than all the names the world has ever known. Truly, in the words of the great St. Bernard, never was it known that anyone ever invoked the name of Mary, and was left unaided. To countless thousands like Grace Hanley, Mary has proven to be A Mother of Perpetual Help. Father John Travers, C.Ss.R.
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