The Infant Jesus of Prague
(Feast: the second Sunday after Epiphany)
O divine Child, splendour of believing souls, graciously fill the earth with your glory and reveal the brightness of your light before all peoples, you who live and reign for ever and ever. Amen.
The Spanish princess Maria Manrique de Lara brought the statue of the Infant of Prague to Bohemia. It is 48 centimetres tall and made of fine, graceful wax, and she had received it from her mother as a wedding gift. In turn, this noblewoman gave the precious statue of the divine Child to her daughter, Princess Polyxena. In 1623, when Polyxena was widowed, she decided to devote the rest of her life to works of piety and charity. Among those who benefited was the Carmelite monastery of Prague. The Carmelites were in great hardship, lacking even their daily bread. Princess Polyxena was inspired to have the statue honoured so that blessings would flow: she brought the statue to the friars and asked them to honour it so that they would be freed from want. The results of this devotion were remarkable: the friars received great spiritual and material blessings, which convinced them that the statue of the divine Child was blessed by God, and that the way it had come to their community, through Princess Polyxena, was no ordinary matter.
On November 15, 1631, Protestant armies allied with King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden invaded Prague and plundered its churches and monasteries. In the chaos of the friars’ flight, they forgot to take the statue of the divine Child. When the invaders found it, they contemptuously threw it on a rubbish heap. Although it was made of wax, it was not damaged, apart from losing its hands, and it lay there forgotten for seven years. When peace returned, the friars went back to their monasteries, but the statue remained forgotten until the arrival of Father Cyril, who had been devoted to the Infant of Prague as a novice. He began searching for it and kept looking until he found it. This devout priest placed the damaged statue on the altar of a small chapel, and devotion to the Infant revived with new enthusiasm.
One day, while Father Cyril was praying before the statue, he heard these words: “Have pity on me and I will have pity on you. Give me my hands and I will give you peace.” Father Cyril then noticed that the Child’s hands were missing. He took the beloved Infant to the superior of the monastery and asked him to have the statue repaired, but to no avail, because the community was poor. Father Cyril did not give up; he prayed fervently for help, and his trust was rewarded. Later, when a large sum of money came in, the superior thought it better to buy a new statue than to repair the old one. But the new statue did not stay intact, and it became clear that the old statue must remain the object of devotion and veneration. The superior left office before his term ended. Father Dominic of Saint Nicholas could have repaired the statue, but the monastery’s resources were meagre. Then the divine Child suggested: “Place me near the sacristy, and you will receive money.” Father Cyril did so, and his faith was clearly rewarded: a stranger came into the sacristy and offered to pay for the restoration of the statue. With the superior’s permission, Father Cyril had the miraculous image of the Child Jesus restored.
During this period plague broke out in the city, and the superior of the monastery caught it too. Reminded of the miraculous statue, he vowed to have the procession of the Blessed Sacrament pass before the statue for nine days in a row, and he gradually recovered. After fulfilling his vow, he placed the holy image in another room so that he could honour it fervently. The community again faced severe financial difficulties; the superior ordered all the friars to take part in a special devotion to the Infant of Prague, and three days later they received abundant and unexpected donations.
In gratitude, the statue was taken into the church so that everyone could share in the devotion. Those devoted to the divine Child received many graces and healings. In 1642 Lady Benigna Katharina of Lobkowicz built a chapel for the divine Child; in 1644, on the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus, the chapel was blessed and Mass was celebrated there for the first time. Since then, the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus has remained the principal feast of the Infant of Prague.
Prepared by Rita, of the Sawt el Rab team
