Dedicated to my mom who has passed on. Her devotion to the Infant was unwavering even through the tough days and even though she was not a catholic

 

 

The devotion to the Holy Child Jesus has long been a tradition of the Catholic Church. This devotion is a veneration of our Lord's sacred Infancy. Many saints have a very strong devotion to the Devine Child, notably St. Theresa of the Child Jesus, St. Francis of Assissi, St. Anthony of Padua and St. Theresa of Avila.

Prague is the capitol city of the Czech Republic,which is at the very center of Europe with Germany, Poland, Russia and Austria as its neighbours. The history of the Infant Jesus of Prague starts in the 17th Century when a statue of the Infant Jesus was brought into Bohemia (now Czech Republic) and eventually was given to the Discalced Carmelites in Prague. Since then, the statue has remained in Prague and has drawn many devotees worldwide to go and honor the Holy Child. Many graces, blessings, favors and miraculous healings have been recieved by many who petitioned before the Infant Jesus.

The exact origin of the Infant Jesus statue was not truly known, but historical sources point to a small28cm high sculpture of the Holy Child with a bird in his right hand carved in around the year 1340. Many other Infant Jesus sculptures were also carved by famous masters throughout Europe in the Middle Ages.

The popularity of the Child Jesus grew in the Baroque period in Spain which may have been caused by the visions of St. Theresa of Avila. A number of sculptures made in Spain eventually found their way to Prague. These sculptures were made of wax, ivory, and bronze and were dressed in garments reflecting the aristocratic fashion of that period.

It is unknown to this date which of those early sculptures that got to Prague was the exact origin of the Infant Jesus of Prague. It was speculated that it came from a monastery in Bohemia and from there it was obtained by Dona Isabella Manrique who gave it as a wedding gift to her daughter Marie Manrique who married a noble of the Czech kingdom. Later, the Holy Infant statue was again given to Marie's daughter Polyxena as a wedding gift in 1587. In 1628, Lady Polyxena presented the statue to the Carmelites at the Church of the Virgin Mary the Victorious in Mala Strana saying, "I am giving you what I most esteem of my possessions. Keep the sculpture in reference and you will be well off". This statue then became known as the Infant Jesus of Prague. It stands 47cm high, including a 2cm base, and has a long gown around the wax body.

Shortly after 1628, the Saxons and the Swedes took turns to invade Prague and the Carmelites had to flee and the veneration of the Holy Infant ceased. IT was not until 1638 that a young priest named Fr. P. Cyril, a Matre Dei, returned to Prague and found the Holy Infant statue buried in the ruins of the Lady of Victory church. Fr. Cyril cleaned the statue and placed it in the oratory for worship. While he was praying before the Infant Jesus, he heard the Infant Jesus say," Have pity on Me and I will have pity on you. Give Me My hands and I will give you peace. The more you honor Me the more I will bless you".

The repairing of the statue's hand was a miracle since Fr. Cyril and his peers did not have the financial resources nor the know-how to repair it. Through prayer, Fr. Cyril asked The Blessed Virgin Mary on several ocassions to provide the necessary funds for fixing the Infant statue. The Devine Infant spoke to him again, "Place Me near the entrance of the sacristy and you will recieve aid". Fr. Cyril then did what he was told and in a few days time, the statue was fixed by a man who came to the sacristy to offer help.

Since the statue was fixed, a number of miracles had occurred and the word spread, resulting in a large increase in veneration to the Holy Child. This includes the Czech nobles as well. These early miracles were recorded in a book by P. Emerich a St Stephano, published in Germany in 1736 and in Czech in 1749.

In 1641, an alter was built for the Infant Jesus in the church, and in 1644 a chapel was built, but was not completed until 1654. Many nobles of the time had greatly supported the Infant Jesus, among them were Lady Polyxena, King Ferdinard (Czech), King Charles Gustav (Sweden), and Bernard Ignatius of the lords of Martinic. It is interesting to note that the crown over the Infant's head came from Bernard Ignatius, who presented the Infant statue with a little crown set with precious stones and jewels on 14 January 1651 during a procession that carried the Infant Jesus statue from the Lady of Victory church to other Prague churches. The Infant Jesus was solemnly coronated on 4 April 1655 by Archbishop Josef Corta acting for Cardinal Harrach III who was sick.

After that period, Prague went through more wars and unrest but the church and the Infant Jesus chapel was miraculouly protected. In 1776 the altar was rebuilt using marble and two hugh sculptures of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Joseph were placed to the left and right sides of the altar. The Holy Infant was kept in a glass case standing on a pedestal engraved with crystals, and surrounding the Infant were twenty angels in gold.

Since then copies of the Infant Jesus were made and distributed throughout European churches. The Spanish colonial efforts later brought the Infant Jesus to the Philippines and to Central America. and since then, the devotion has kept spreading to all parts of the world.