The Infant of Prague
 Devotion to the Infant Jesus as a child and yet King of Heaven is a wonderful theme to contemplate in prayer. As far back in Old Testament times the prophet Isaiah spoke:
"And there shall come forth a rod out of the root of Jesse, and a flower shall rise up out of his root. And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him: the spirit of wisdom, and of understanding, the spirit of counsel, and of fortitude, the spirit of knowledge, and of godliness." [IS 11:1-2]
This Child was given to us who "being rich, became poor for your sake. in order that by His poverty you might become rich" [2 Cor 8:9]. Our Eternal Father ordained that His Son, Jesus, should know all life's stages: infancy, childhood, youth, and that He should be like us in everything, except sin.
Our God made Man and Savior was born as a helpless baby, who, in deep humility, relyied on His Mother for all His needs. As He grew, He was obedient to His Mother and Father sanctifying the Holy House in Nazareth with His Divine Nature united to His Human State. There is no condition of growth that Jesus has not sanctified for us by living it Himself.
Children hold a special place in His heart. Their innocence and unconditional love and trust are the qualities He admires most. Preaching to His disciples he said:
At that hour the disciples came to Jesus, saying: Who, thinkest thou, is the greater in the kingdom of heaven? And Jesus, calling unto him a little child, set him in the midst of them. And said: Amen I say to you, unless you be converted, and become as little children, you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, he is the greater in the kingdom of heaven. And he that shall receive one such little child in my name, receiveth me. [Mat18:1-6]
Devotion to the Infant of Prague
In 1628, the Carmelite friars in Prague received a gift of a beautiful statue of the infant Jesus from a devout noblewoman, a Princess Polixena. They placed the statue in their Church in order to venerate the infant Jesus of Prague, their veneration then being the source of numerous and miraculous favors.
In 1631, when enemies of the Church sacked Prague, they mocked the Holy Infant and threw the statue into a heap of trash in an obscure place. Some years later, Ven. Father Cyril of the Mother of God, a Carmelite of the Prague monastery, found the statue. One day, while praying before the holy image, Father Cyril heard the consoling words,"Have pity on Me and I will have pity on you; restore My hands and I will give you peace; the more you honor Me, the more I will bless you."
So many graces, blessings, and miraculous cures came to those who embraced this devotion that it spread throughout the Catholic world and continues to be a source of much grace to this day.
St. Teresa of Avila with the Child Jesus
St. Teresa of Jesus, always traveled with her statue of the Infant Jesus when she was establishing new convents. Her devotion to the Infant Jesus was established after an very interesting incident.
One day Teresa of Avila was coming down the steps of her convent when she saw a beautiful young boy. The Child spoke to her and said: "Who are you?" Teresa answered: "I am Teresa of Jesus, who are you?" The Child answered: "I am Jesus of Teresa!"
St. Thérèse of Lisieux and The Child Jesus
St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus (to which she later added the title "and the Holy Face") was throughout her life particularly devoted to the Infant Jesus just as her great spiritual mother, Teresa of Avila, had been. Thérèse placed and Infant statue in the novitiate at Lisieux when she had charge of the novices, because she knew how many blessings the Divine Child brought to the Carmelite novices in Prague when it was placed in their midst. The same statue still stands in the cloister at Lisieux.
The spiritual teaching of St. Thérèse of Lisieux is often called the "Way of Spiritual Childhood." Her most simplistic approach to attaining holiness is deceptively simple but it has the power to make each one of us a Saint! The infancy of Jesus was for her a source of inspiration.
In teaching about her "little way" Thérèse writes in her autobiography:
"My mortifications consisted in breaking my will, always so ready to impose itself on others, in holding back a reply, in rendering little services without recognition, in not leaning my back against a support when seated, etc., etc."
In mortifying her own self-will she was offering herself to God through ordinary everyday living. She says:
"It was through the practice of these nothings that I prepared myself to become the financee of Jesus, and I cannot express how much this waiting left me with sweet memories."
She also wrote, "I went to war against myself in the spiritual domain of self-denial and little hidden sacrifices. I found humility and peace in this hidden combat in which selfish nature can get no hold."
With her teaching us the path to sanctity found in the midst of ordinary life Pope Pius X claimed Thérèse the "greatest saint of modern times" and on October 19th, 1997, Pope John Paul II declared Thérèse of Lisieux a Doctor of the Universal Church.
|
