Product Description
Mother of Perpetual Help Banner Stand
This banner stand is 78" tall by 33" wide and features the image of Our Lady of Perpetual Help. Fully retractable and stored in an aluminum case, it takes less than a minute to extend the telescopic pole and unroll the Our Lady of Perpetual Help banner. Each unit includes a nylon travel bag for storage and transport, making the banner stand an excellent tool for priests, professors, and missionaries who travel and spread devotion to Our Lady.
The icon of Our Lady of Perpetual Help is renowned for many cures and miraculous responses to prayer. Its origins trace back to 1495 and the island nation of Crete in the Mediterranean. A merchant brought the icon to Rome where it remained in the Church of Saint Matthew for 300 years. Although the icon survived the 1798 French invasion of Rome, the church did not and the popularity of the devotion was lost. Pope Pius IX, familiar with the miraculous history of the icon from his youth, placed it in the custody of the Redemptorist Order at the church of St. Alphonsus.
The Virgin of Passion (Our Lady of Perpetual Help) is rich in symbolism involving the Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ. In regards to the various abbreviated Greek words inscribed on the icon, the letters on the opposite sides of the upper part of the icon MP θY represent the Greek for "Mother of God." The ICXC to the right of the Christ child is an abbreviation or "Christogram" of the Greek words for Jesus Christ (ΙΗ'ΟΥ' ΧΡΙ'ΤΟ') and the letters next to each of the angels reveals their names: OAPxM for Michael the Archangel and OAPxT for Gabriel the Archangel.
On opposite sides of the icon, the archangels hold the different "tools of the Passion," with the Archangel Gabriel on the right holding the cross and the Archangel Michael on the left carrying the lance that pierced Christ's side and the sponge. The large eight-pointed star on Mary's veil symbolizes Mary's title as "Star of the Sea." Finally, the loose sandal on the Christ child's foot has been interpreted with various meanings, including Christ's fear of His future sufferings during His Passion and as a symbol of Christ's humanity. Legend often attributes the original writing of this icon to the gospel writer Saint Luke.
From top-to-bottom, the banner stand measures approximately 78" tall when fully extended. In reality, the banner stand can be extended several inches more, but a total height of 78" is our recommendation for the best combination of visibility and stability.
