OLPH Icon
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At Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish in Bernardsville, we are proud to be part of a parish community under the patronage of our Blessed Mother under her title of Our Lady of Perpetual Help. We pray a novena in supplication to Almighty God relying upon the intercession of Mary every Saturday morning immediately following the 8:00 am Mass in church. We invite everyone to join us.
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For more about the icon and the Novena to Our Lady of Perpetual Help, please see the following sites:For a video series by Brother Dan Korn, C.Ss.R. explaining the significance of the icon, please click on the following:
- The Face of the Blessed Mother (Part 1)
- The Hands of the Virgin of Perpetual Help (Part 2)
- The Child God in the Arms of Mary (Part 3)
- The Hands of the Virgin of Perpetual Help (Part 4)
- The Gold Background (Part 5)
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Elements of The Image
- Mary’s eyes, filled with compassion and love, are directed toward us.
- Our Lady is clothed in the colors of virgins (red) and of mothers (blue). These are also royal colors.
- Jesus, depicted as a young boy, wears the colors of a king.
- The star on Mary’s veil reminds us that she is the dawn announcing the coming of Christ.
- Our Lady’s hands hold her Son securely, and her right hand directs our gaze to Him.
- The Christ Child grasps his mother’s hand as though he is frightened by what he sees.
- In His hurry to reach his mother, Jesus has almost lost one of his sandals. He became human, like us, in all things but sin.
- On Our Lady’s left and right we see the reasons for the child’s fear. On the right is the Archangel Gabriel, holding a cross and four nails. On the left is the Archangel Michael, holding a lance, a pole with a sponge, and a vessel of vinegar. This vision of the instruments of the crucifixion has driven the young Jesus to his mother’s protective embrace.
- Yet Our Lady’s gaze is fixed on us, her children on earth. She is our source of constant comfort and hope.
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Pray With The Icon
The following is adapted from “Novena Meditations to Our Mother of Perpetual Help,” compiled by David Werthmann, Liguori Publications, 2004. To order a copy of the booklet, visit www.liguori.org.
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