It was a little painted statue. It stood a foot and a half high, was dressed in exquisite court dress, and cherished as an heirloom wedding gift. It came from Spain during an early spread of devotion to the Christ Child.
In the 17th century, a Spanish noblewoman named Isabel Manrique gave this little statue to her daughter Marie when Marie married a Czech noble. Marie gave it, in turn, to her own daughter Polyxena when the latter married.
Polyxena treasured it for many years, but at last gifted it to the Carmelite monastery of Our Lady of Victory.
Shortly afterward the Czech kingdom was invaded by the Saxons, forcing the Carmelites to flee their monastery. The statue of the Christ Child, damaged and tattered, was left behind in the ruins of the church.
The original statue (photo: Fotobanka ČTK, René Fluger/CC BY-SA 3.0)
Ten years later in 1638, a Carmelite priest found it. He took it to his church in Prague and displayed it by the altar.
Suddenly, as he knelt in prayer before it, the statue spoke, saying:
“Have mercy on Me and I will have mercy on you. Give Me My hands and I will give you peace. The more you honor Me the more I will bless you.”
The priest, who did not know how to repair such a statue, prayed for help. One day, a man came to the sacristy and offered to fix the statue’s hands.
After this, many miracles were reported to have been wrought through the statue, and devotion to the Christ Child increased all the more.
Many saints, such as Thérèse of Lisieux, had great devotion to the Infant of Prague. You can call to mind her great devotion each time you pray with this stunning St. Therese Sacrifice Bracelet. As a child, St. Therese the “Little Flower” used a string of beads to count her sacrifices and acts of love done for God. In that way she was able to advance in perfection daily. With this bracelet tenner, you can follow her example! Available from The Catholic Company today!
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