FEAST DAY OF OUR LADY OF CZESTOCHOWA - 26th AUGUST




FEAST OF OUR LADY OF CZESTOCHOWA
26 AUGUST
The icon of Our Lady of Czestochowa, the “Black Madonna,” is of Byzantine origin. It is an icon of the style attributed to St Luke the Evangelist, a close friend of Our Lady, who was a doctor and an artist. It has great graces attributed to it.
Legend has it that St Luke painted two portraits of Our Lady, one of which is in Italy and venerated today. The other was said to have been painted by St Luke on the top of a cypress wood table which came from the home of the Holy Family. The style in which the portrait was done is called the “way-pointer style (“Hodigitria”), whereby the Blessed Virgin points to the Christ-child – the Lord. The portrait by St Luke and subsequent portraits derived from this style are a prayer to Our Lady as the preparer of the Way to Salvation; http://marianvalley.org.au/miraculous-icon-our-lady....
Originating in Antioch, the Hodigitria style of iconography reached Constantinople in the 5th century. Many of the icons were destroyed in the iconaclsim of the 8th century, when the veneration of images was forbidden by the Emperor of Byzantium. Only a few portraits of Our Lady in the Hodigitria style survived – Our Lady of Czestochowa – believed to date from the 6th century -being the most famous.
In 1382, during the Tartar invasions an arrow pierced the painting, leaving a scar still visible on the Madonna’s neck. After defeating the Tartars, Prince Ladislaus Opolski brought the painting to Poland and presented the painting to the Pauline monks in Jasna Gora, Czestochowa.
In 1430, the shrine was looted by Hussite robbers. Legend has it that the icon was placed on a cart with the spoils of their theft. However, the horses refused to move the wagon. It was only when the robbers threw the painting from the cart that the horses moved. One of the robbers attempted to take the gold and jewels from the painting, and, in doing so, slashed the painting twice with his sword. When he attempted to slash it a third time, he fell down dead. The other robbers fled.
Repeated efforts to repair the icon to cover the scars failed and the painting was left to reveal the scars on her cheek.
In 1655 Poland was attacked by Swedes coming from the north, with the aim of establishing an empire united by the protestant faith. After capturing most of the country and compelling the exile of the Polish King, the Swedes advanced upon Jasna Gora, declaring that they would “have the hen house in ten days”.
However, despite heavy artillery assault by cannons and siege by a Swedish regiment of 3,000 men against the monastery with only 70 monks, led by the Abbot Father Kordeki, together with a contingent of 20 Polish noblemen and a small company of soldiers, the monastery held out and the Swedish forces retreated. The success was attributed to the protective influence of Our Lady of Czestochowa. As a consequence, the country was dedicated by the King, ratified by the two houses of Parliament, to the protection of the Mother of God in the Cathedral in Lvov and the country’s destiny was placed under her mantle.
In 1683, King Jan Sobieski of Poland answered the cry for help from Emperor Leopold of Austria and defeated the Turkish army, estimated to have been between 150,00-300,000, thereby ensuring the survival of Christian Europe, after Poland and Vienna had placed themselves under the protection of the Black Madonna, praying to her, fasting and doing penance.
In 1920, Bolshevik invaders moved on Warsaw with the objective, immediately subsequent to the Russian Revolution, of taking the whole country. While the Russians were in sight of the town, the people of Poland prayed fervently to her as their Queen and Mother and, on 15 August, the Feast of the Assumption, the Soviet forces retreated in what is called “the Miracle of Vistula”.
Edgar Vincent , First Viscount d’Abernon, an English politician and diplomat, described it as one of the most important battles in history as this particular victory by the Polish forces halted the spread of communism further westwards into Europe; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Warsaw_(1920).
The battle was described by Lenin as an ‘enormous defeat” for his forces.
PRAYER TO OUR LADY OF CZESTOCHOWA:
O holy Mother of Czestochowa,
You are full of grace, goodness and mercy.
I consecrate to you all my thoughts words and actions, my soul and body. I beseech your blessings and especially prayers for my salvation.
Today I consecrate myself to you good Mother, totally, with body and soul, amid joy and suffering,
to obtain for myself and others
your blessings on this earth and eternal life in heaven.
Amen.
Our Lady of Czestochowa, Queen of Poland, pray for us.
Image:

https://www.amazon.com/Czestochowa-Black.../dp/B0859XG8T8 

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