Worldwide

The devotion to Mary as a child is not as prevalent in North America as it is in other parts of the world. We generally see her only in the images where she is shown with her mother, St. Anne. 

In 1984, while speaking to the Sisters of Charity of Milan, Pope John Paul II said, “This mystery [of the Holy Childhood of Mary] seems to be very little known. I think you have a great task… to deepen the appreciation of the mystery of Mary’s Childhood.

Honoring Mary in her infancy and childhood is not a new idea. A feast of Mary’s nativity was celebrated in the sixth century in Syria and Palestine, and began to spread to the Western Church in the eighth and ninth centuries. A feast of Mary’s presentation in the temple began to be celebrated around the middle of the sixth century in the East, and spread to the West only in the eleventh century. It is first heard of in England at Canterbury and Winchester, and was admitted to the Roman calendar in 1585.

Much of the iconography concerning the Infant Mary can be traced to the Franciscan nun, the Venerable Clara Isabella Fornari (1697-1744). Born in Rome, she entered the convent of Poor Clares of Saint Francis in Todi, Italy at the age of 15, and later became its abbess. A mystic and stigmatic, she lived a life of austerity and penance. A talented artist, she had a deep devotion to the Virgin Mary, whom she represented in a number of sacred paintings. She also is credited with sculpting a number of images of the infant Mary from wax, one of which is the Maria Bambina of Milan. 

There is no biblical description of Mary’s childhood. All we know comes from tradition. According to this venerable body of tradition, Mary was taken to the temple by her pious parents at the age of about three years. In Hispanic popular Catholicism, a lovely coming of age ceremony honors this tradition. On a young girl’s third birthday, she is taken by her parents and the padrinos, or godparents, to the church, dressed in white. There, they wait at the door until the celebrant comes to greet them and lead them to the altar. The child is consecrated to the Blessed Virgin and invited to take Mary as her model. The padrinos assist her in saying a prayer. One of these reads: “Oh, Immaculate Mary, precious child, who at the age of three years was consecrated to God in the temple of Jerusalem. Here I am, also a child like you. I want God to accept me, filling me with your virtues and your graces. Carry me to the Jesus whom I love that I may remain pure until death.“ 

There is an illustration of Mary’s presentation in the temple at the right of the main altar in St. Anne’s church in Jerusalem. The church is in an area which is traditionally considered the birthplace of Our Lady. In addition to the painting of the presentation, and one of St. Anne’s education of Mary, there was also, for many years, an image of Mary as a baby, wrapped in swaddling clothes. The original was kept in the crypt, and was damaged during restoration. A replacement in wax was given, but was later moved to the Italian hospital in Nazareth. The replacement image bears a strong resemblance to the Maria Bambina image of Milan, Italy, and may also be the work of Venerable Clara.

One beautiful image of Mary as a child is venerated in the parish church of Palafrugell, Girona, Spain. It is the work of the Catalan artist Joseph Espelta and was sculpted in 1954. It was inspired by a traditional Catalan song. Pictured with long braids, the young Mary carries a book of the Gospels and a lace making cushion. Here she is venerated as the patron of lacemakers and seamstresses.

The Monastery of St. Dominic in Newark, New Jersey had a striking image of the young Mary which is sculpted in white marble and which dates to about 1917. The statue shows the virgin at a tender age, kneeling in prayer. An orange from the convent garden was sometimes placed by the statue as a reminder of the orange tree planted by Saint Dominic in Santa Sabina, the Dominican world headquarters. The tree in New Jersey and those in other Dominican houses throughout the world was brought from the original and when the crop is good, the sisters use the oranges to make orange marmalade. The monastery closed in 2004 with the sisters going to other monasteries of the order. The statue is now at the Monastery of the Blessed Sacrament in Farmington Hills, Michigan.

A seventeenth century image of the virgin child was brought by Spanish Jesuits and is venerated at the side altar of the Jesuit church of San Pedro in downtown Lima, Peru. The church dates to 1638 and is built in baroque style. Many consider it one of the best examples of colonial architecture in Lima. Known as the Imaculada Niña Maria, the image has light hair and brown eyes and is dressed according to Hispanic custom. The halo of the infant is ornamented with stars, and devotees have presented her with a gold bracelet and rings. Her shrine is guarded by four angels with golden clothing, and is filled with small china figurines, a popular ex voto offering to the holy child at this shrine.

Honoring the Virgin as a child is no different than honoring her in any other phase of her human life. The sparkling eyes and innocent expressions of the images of the young Mary can remind us of the childlike simplicity we need in order to love others in the way God asks us.

Prayer to the Immaculate Child Mary

Sweetest Child Mary, you are my friend, my guide, and my helper. As I look at your tender face, let me see the reflection of all the faces – born and unborn, young and old – that belong to the precious souls God has created. Remind me of the childlike simplicity I need to love as Christ taught us. Human like me, you are a model for all mankind. Born without sin, you willingly said “yes” to face a sad and sinful world. Greatest of the slaves of God, you reign now as Queen of Heaven. Help me to live in faith, hope and love. I place my hand in yours. Lead me to your adorable Son.