Even Jesus felt need for a mother's loving care

I have a photo -- taken at one of those old-fashioned, coin operated booths -- of my mother and me. I was about a year old, sitting on her lap. We both grinned at the camera; me with a lollipop in hand.

On June 27, we celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, a feast tied to an icon. Perhaps the best-known icon, Our Lady of Perpetual Help shows Mary holding the Christ Child. Mary looks toward us, while Jesus looks over his shoulder at one of two angels. A classic mother and child picture, like any other.

Except this is an icon. And, like all icons, it teaches a lesson about our faith. Icons are an important part of the Eastern Church, where painting them (it is formally called "writing an icon") is a specific ministry. Icons are believed to be more than mere pictures; they are images that -- in a mystical way -- offer real glimpses at divine reality and opportunities for intense spiritual revelation.

Our Lady of Perpetual Help was painted in the early 15th century, probably on the island of Crete. It eventually came to Rome and San Matteo Church, near the Basilica of St. Mary Major. When Napoleon invaded Rome in 1798, San Matteo was burned down. However, the icon survived and in 1865 was entrusted to the Redemptorist Fathers by Pope Pius IX. The icon was placed in St. Alphonsus Liguori Church, newly built on the site of the old San Matteo.

Our Lady of Perpetual Help is painted on wood, less than two feet high. It bears traditional icon imagery -- such as Mary's large staring eyes that indicate a person who looks upon eternity; the gold background representing heaven; and Greek lettering. In this icon, the largest letters -- MR qU -- are initials that stand for Mother of God. Smaller letters to the left, identify the angel as the archangel Michael; those to the right identify the archangel Gabriel. Those by the Child are the first and last letters of "Jesus Christ": IC CC.

But far more interesting than the Greek letters is the story told by the picture. This is no lollipop moment. Jesus has run to Mary -- evidenced by his dangling sandal -- huddling against her in fear. Why?

Because the archangels hold the symbols of crucifixion. Michael carries the lance and urn for gall, while Gabriel holds the cross and four nails.

Faced with this fearful image of the future, the Child has fled to his mother's protection -- hence the title of Lady of Perpetual Help.

But there is still more to the icon's story -- Mary holds Jesus, but her right hand is open as if directing us toward him. Likewise, Jesus' hands are downward, as if placing something in hers. The Redemptorists at the Basilica of Our Mother of Perpetual Help in Boston explain that Jesus' hands indicate that the graces of redemption are in Mary's keeping. Pope John Paul echoed this sentiment when he crowned the Perpetual Help icon in the church at Wadowice, Poland (his hometown) in 1999. He spoke of how our love for Mary "is itself a source of grace and a pledge of the unfailing help which, through Mary's intercession, we receive from her Son."

Mary holds a special place in the heart of Catholics because of her unique role in salvation. The icon of Perpetual Help reminds us of that role and of how Mary's entire life was directed toward the work of her Son. This is what her open hand, pointing toward the child Jesus, means. The Lady of Perpetual Help holds -- and still offers us -- the eternal Source of all help. To seek that divine help, with her guidance, is based in Gospel tradition: the dying adult Jesus (his suffering foreshadowed in the icon) gave us his mother's protection through the person of his Beloved Disciple: "Behold, your mother" (Jn 19:27).

As Vatican II reminded us, while Christ is our only mediator, Mary's function as "mother of all" directs us and witnesses to the power of Christ's mediation. "The Blessed Virgin's salutary influence on people originates not in any inner necessity, but in the disposition of God. It flows forth from the superabundance of the merits of Christ, rests on his mediation, depends entirely on it and draws all its power from it. It does not hinder in any way the immediate union of the faithful with Christ but, on the contrary, fosters it" (Lumen gentium, no 60).

Gazing on Our Lady of Perpetual Help, we feel the influence of her solemn eyes -- looking both upon eternity and upon us. They seem to speak words from an earlier part of John's Gospel, at Cana, where a mother's concern and trust in her Son's ability to help led to advice that echoes through the ages: "Do whatever he tells you" (2:5).

So, just as the Child Jesus ran to his mother for help, as all children do, so we can feel confident in running to Mary -- for she will direct us to the Divine Aid that once sat in her arms and now draws all things to himself.