The Catholic Defender: With Catholic Convert John Carpenter Journey With Mary to Częstochowa Poland
- Donald Hartley
- 3 hours ago
- 2 min read
A journey with Mary to Częstochowa, Poland, centers on visiting the Jasna Góra Monastery to venerate the miraculous Black Madonna icon, a profound Polish Catholic tradition. Each summer, tens of thousands of pilgrims travel on foot, by bicycle, or on horseback to the shrine, culminating in massive celebrations on August 15 and 26.
The icon of Our Lady of Częstochowa has been intimately associated with Poland for the past 600 years.
So St. Luke painted it on the top of a cypress wood table, which came from the home of the Holy Family.
When Mary saw it, she was so pleased that she wished her blessing to accompany it wherever it went.
The first victim of the Soviet Union’s international socialist crusade was Catholic Poland.
By the spring of 1920 Poland was under attack from the Soviet Red Army.
At the national Marian shrine of Czestochowa candles were lit and desperate prayers intoned beside the icon of the Black Madonna.
The intercession of Our Lady of Czestochowa was never more needed.
On May 20, 1920, the newly created Red Army crashed through the Polish frontier with one intention: to destroy all before it.
Bolshevik leaders meeting in Moscow for the Second Congress of the Communist International had already begun to prepare plans for a Communist-inspired world revolution starting with the nations of Central and Western Europe.
Lenin had ordered that Warsaw be taken without delay.
For over 300 years, tradition has brought people together in early August to walk from across Poland, covering 12-15 miles a day to arrive for the Assumption of Mary.
A replica of the icon travels to parishes across Poland, allowing the faithful to experience the visit of Mary in their own communities rather than traveling to the shrine.
The pilgrimage is a major spiritual, cultural, and social event, often featuring songs, prayers, and deep expressions of faith
Housed in the Chapel of Our Lady, the Black Madonna is a "Hodegetria" icon, meaning "The One Who Shows the Way".
Pilgrimages typically include Holy Mass at the shrine and private time for reflection amidst the many votive offerings (crutches, rosaries) left by those seeking or celebrating healing.
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