From whichever side you look at the Icon, Belém of Nossa Senhora do Perpétuo Socorro, since 1957 in the homonymous parish on the Arthur Bernardes highway, in the Telegrafo neighborhood, in Belém, the saint reciprocates with a look of attention, hope, and love at the same time. time in which she holds her Son, Jesus Christ, in her arms. This Icon will go out through the streets of the neighborhood this Monday (27), Day of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, in the procession of the faithful, two years after the peak of the covid-19 pandemic that prevented the pilgrimage from being held. This is because, as the parish vicar Father Leo Brandão, of the Order of Redemptorist Fathers points out, “the devotion of the people of Pará is alive, so much so that the Sanctuary always registers many people in the Tuesday novena”.
It is Father Leo Brandão himself, coordinator of the festivity, who addresses the meanings of the Icon of the saint. “The great significance of the Icon lies in the presence of the characters themselves that are painted on it. We usually call the Icon a Living Gospel, which is composed of four characters: the angel Michael, the angel Raphael, Our Lady, and Jesus Christ. And It’s nice to note that in front of the four characters, the only one who appears with his whole body, composed in the painting, is Jesus. That’s why the title. The Icon is Our Lady of Perpetual Help, not that she is the Perpetual Help, the Perpetual Help is Jesus. That’s why it’s Our Lady of Perpetual Help, it’s the Mother of Perpetual Help”, highlights Father Leo about these curiosities.
As he points out, Our Lady uses her life, her body, as a throne for this Perpetual Help. “Hence if we look at her fingers (on the Icon) they are all pointed to Jesus, because ‘she is the one who points the right path that leads to her Son’, she observes.
The parish vicar draws attention to Our Lady’s gaze. “Mary’s gaze, in the present Icon, is that gaze that reaches you regardless of the position you look at, facing the Icon, from the side, for example; Mary’s gaze will always be turned towards you. look of condemnation, it is a look that calls you, that holds your attention, that points you to something, which is Jesus, the Perpetual Help”, he emphasizes. Regarding the golden tone prevailing in the Icon, Father Leo emphasizes that this aspect serves to remind us that human beings are heirs of the Perpetual Help “and whoever inherits from the Perpetual Help of Jesus, inherits Heaven; then, yellow refers us to the Celestial Kingdom, to the Kingdom of God, to the Kingdom of Heaven that Mary guarantees for all those who believe in her Son”.
About the origin of the original Icon – the one in Belém is a facsimile of it -, Father Leo Brandão reports that there are reports that it was painted by Saint Luke himself, who gave it as a gift to Our Lady. But after his disappearance for many years, he was found again just over 150 years ago and was then handed over by Pope Pius IX, in 1866, to the care of Redemptorist missionaries, with the phrase “Make her known throughout the world. ”.
In party
This Monday (27), Day of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, at the Arthur Bernardes Sanctuary, solemn masses will be celebrated at 7 am, 12 pm, and 7 pm, with the presence of the provincial superiors from Porto Alegre (RS) and from Manaus (AM) to preside over these celebrations. Soon after the 19:00h mass, around 20:00h, the traditional luminous procession will take place on the 75th anniversary of the festivity, with the devotees and the faithful in general carrying the Icon of the saint through the streets. The route will be: exit from the parish (Arthur Bernardes), Pedro Álvares Cabral avenue, Djalma Dutra lane, Senador Lemos avenue, Passagem das Flores, Arthur Bernardes to the parish.
“In addition to this motivation to have the return of our people in the procession, we also have the Jubilee celebration of the 75 years of devotion to Our Lady of Perpetual Help here, in the State of Pará”, emphasizes Father Leo Brandão. The Jubilee Year began on October 16, 2021, and the festivities in 2022 were intensified with an Icon motorcade at the end of May. On the 19th, a procession of the Icon took place in the neighborhood; this week the camp began to function in the Sanctuary area, and on Friday (24th) the triduum in honor of the saint was started. For Saturday (25) afternoon, the Youth Walk was scheduled.
The saint is the patron saint of the Redemptorist Popular Missions. “And devotion to Our Lady arises from the beautiful witness that the Icon, the painting, brings; so much so that we have intensified a campaign for all people to adopt the icon, the picture, and not the image of Our Lady because it has its rich meaning. Firstly, this Icon was called “Our Lady of the Passion”, because of the angels who bear the mark of the Passion – one comes with the arrow and spear and the other with the Cross and nails of Jesus. But later it was called “Our Lady of Perpetual Help” because she presents to Humanity the Perpetual Help, which is Jesus Christ, the boy who is in her arms (in the painting).
Novena
The Novena of Our Lady of Perpetual Help will complete 100 years in the world in 2023. In Pará, there are 75 years of the novena. The novenas on Tuesdays at the sanctuary, in Belém, are always full of devotees and the general public. Father Leo Brandão points out that every Tuesday, an average of 20 to 25 thousand devotees pass through the space. In general, graces are obtained, such as the cure of chronic diseases; deliverances; resumed marriages; winning a new job, and having children who stopped using drugs.
“And the first miracle was dedicated to someone who only looked at the Icon, as soon as it was translated from Rome to the church where it currently stands, the original, there in the Church of St. Alphonsus (in Rome). It was a mother whose daughter was hopeless and she only looked at the Icon and when she got home her daughter was cured”, says Father Leo.
One of the devotees of Nossa Senhora does Perpétuo Socorro is the cleaning lady Josiane Tavares, who was at the Sanctuary this week on the Arthur Bernardes highway. “I am devout because I believe a lot in our Mother. As a child, I had mumps, and I got well, I kept the promise, on my knees, all the novenas and I got grace. So I am here again to ask regarding another illness situation and I am sure she will grant me this grace,” she declared. Apart from the personal request, Josiane asks the patron saint that “this disease (covid-19) disappears from the world”.
Homage
In the Nossa Senhora do Perpétuo Socorro Mission Area (51, Rua Jesus é Amor, Canaã – Marituba), the festivity has the theme “Mary, the first educator” started on the 23rd and continues until the 27th, with a rosary at 6 pm, followed by of Holy Mass.
On Monday (27), Patroness’s Day, the program will begin with the procession, at 18:30, upon arrival there will be a Solemn Mass celebrated by Father José Reinaldo, followed by cultural programming.
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