Our Lady of Victory
Second window on the right side of the Church
The central figure of the window is a close representation of Our Lady of Victories Church in Paris. Its history began in 1590 in a votive chapel served by the Augustinian Friars. In 1619, Fr. Angel of St. Claire joined the community and brought with him a figure of our Lady of Montaigu made of the actual wood of the oak tree in Brabant on which Our Lady was believed to have appeared. From that moment on, the work of the friars prospered.
Ten years later, when a larger church was needed, an appeal was made to King Louis XIII. He promised to help on the condition that the church be dedicated to Our Lady of Victories in thanksgiving for all of Mary's favors, especially for victory on the battlefield. The king laid the foundation stone himself. He is depicted in the lower medallion of the window in brilliant regal colors.
The upper medallion explains the story of Mary as "Refuge of Sinners" through an incident in the life of a priest, Fr. Des Genettes, who was assigned as a cure in 1832. He labored in great sorrow and distress, for the whole district had abandoned the faith. He felt it his duty to resign. On Sunday, December 3, 1836, he began to celebrate Mass in an almost empty church. He was seized by a frightful distraction. In his anxiety, he cried out during the Canon of the Mass. At that moment he heard a calm voice announce: "Consecrate your parish to the Most Holy and Immaculate Heart of Mary". After Mass he began to compose rules for a Confraternity of Our Lady. On the following Sunday, he announced the project to ten people at Mass that at Vespers, full details of the Confraternity would be disclosed. To his amazement, he found the church filled with well over 400 people, and a large number of them men. At Benediction they said the Litany of Loreto and at the petition "Refuge of Sinners" the entire congregation felt moved, spontaneously, to repeat the phrase three times and then they cried out, "Spare us, O Lord!"
Our Lady of Victory, pray for us |
