Patristic origins

There are two inscriptions from the first centuries of Christianity in Greek related to Mary: θεοτοκος (Teotokos, Theotokos, Mother of God) and βοηθεια (Boetheia, the Helper). The Fathers of the Church referred to Mary as "βοηθεια". John Chrysostom used the title in a homily of 345, Proclus in 476 and Sebas of Caesarea in 532. After the Patristic period (5th century), other notable Christian patriarchs used it like Romanos the Melodist in the year 518, the Patriarch of Jerusalem, Sophronius in 560, John of Damascus in 749 and Germanus I of Constantinople in 733.

The Litany of Loreto

The venerated namesake image in the Mary Help of Christians Seminary in San Fabian, Pangasinan, crowned by Pope Francis for the Philippines on 22 August 2018.

In 1576, the Archpriest of Loreto, Bernardino Cirillo published at Macerata two litanies of the Blessed Virgin, which he contended, were used at Loreto. One is in a form entirely different from the present text, while another form, “Aliæ Litaniæ Beatæ Maria Virginis”, is identical to the litany approved by Pope Clement VIII in 1601 and now used throughout the Church. This second form contains the invocation Auxilium Christianorum warriors returning from the Battle of Lepanto (7 October 1571) visited the Loreto, and saluted the Holy Virgin there for the first time with this title. It is more probable, however, that it is a variation of the older invocation Advocata Christianorum, found in a litany of 1524.^[1]

The first surviving translation of this litany, yet still incomplete, in the Spanish language was recorded in 1621 under the title La Letania Sagrada de la Bienaventurada Virgen Maria in Valladolid, Spain.

The Italian religious author Orazio (Horatio) Torsellini (1597) and the Roman Breviary (May 24, Appendix) claim that Pope Pius V inserted the invocation in the Litany of Loreto after the Battle of Lepanto. The form of the litany in which it is first found, however, was unknown at Rome at the time of Pope Pius V. ^[2]

Marian Feast

The feast of Our Lady, Help of Christians, was instituted by Pope Pius VII. By order of Napoleon I of France, Pope Pius VII was arrested on 5 June 1808, and detained a prisoner first at Grenoble, and then at Fontainebleau.^[3] In January 1814, after the battle of Leipzig, he was brought back to Savona and set free on 17 March, on the eve of the feast of Our Lady of Mercy, the Patroness of Savona. The journey to Rome was a veritable triumphal march. The Pope, attributing the victory of the church after so much agony and distress to the Blessed Virgin, visited many of her sanctuaries on the way and crowned her images (e.g., the "Madonna del Monte" at Cesena, "della Misericordia" at Treja, "della Colonne" and "della Tempestà" at Tolentino). The people crowded the streets to catch a glimpse of the Pope who had withstood the threats of Napoleon. He entered Rome on 24 May 1814, and was enthusiastically welcomed.^[4] To commemorate his own sufferings and those of the church during his exile Pope Pius VII extended the feast of the Seven Dolours of Mary to the Catholic Church on 18 September 1814.

When Napoleon left Elba and returned to Paris, Murat was about to march through the Papal States from Naples; Pius VII fled to Savona 22 March 1815.^[1] After the Congress of Vienna and the battle of Waterloo, the Pope returned to Rome on 7 July 1815. To give thanks to God and Our Lady, on 15 September 1815 he declared 24 May, the anniversary of his first return, to be henceforth the feast of Our Lady, Help of Christians. The 1913 Catholic Encyclopaedia article commented that "it has spread nearly over the entire Latin Church, but is not contained in the universal calendar."

Mary, the Help of Christians giving naval aid to the Holy League of (1571) during the Battle of Lepanto. Oil on canvas by Italian artisan Paul Veronese.

The Marian feast has been celebrated by the Order of Servites since the 17th century. The veneration to Mary became popular under this title in Rome especially, where the feast was especially promoted by John Bosco and Vincent Pallotti.^[5] Bosco was an ardent promoter of devotion to "Mary, Help of Christians". He built a huge basilica in her honour in 1868 and founded a religious congregation for women, under the title of, "The Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians". Interpreting the painting he had commissioned for the basilica, Bosco referred to it as depicting Mary Mother of the Church.

The Second Vatican Council in the Constitution on the Church (Section # 61, 62) cites this Marian title and states the following:

"In an utterly singular way she co-operated by her obedience, faith, hope and burning charity in the Saviour's work of restoring supernatural life to souls. For this reason she is a mother to us in the order of grace…By her maternal charity, Mary cares for the brethren of her Son who still wander through this world in the midst of dangers and difficulties until they are led to the happiness of their heavenly home".^[6]

Observance

The church has traditionally focused on two aspects of Our Lady's help on this feast day. Firstly, the church focuses in this feast on the role of Our Lady's intercession in the fight against sin in the life of a believer. Secondly, the church focuses on Our Lady as one who assists Christians as a community, through her intercession, in fighting against anti-Christian forces.

Michael Daniel observes that, while this approach may be regarded as outdated, in light of Vatican II, where the world and non-Christians elements therein were seen in a positive rather than a hostile or threatening light, it would seem that it would be naïve on the part of Christians to regard all movements and all social trends as either good or harmless.^[6]

The dioceses of Tuscany adopted it on 12 February 1816. The hymns of the Office were composed by Brandimarte.^[7]

It became the patronal feast of Australasia, a double of the first class with an octave.^[8] After the reforms of the Second Vatican Council, it was designated a solemnity to be kept on the first available Sunday on or after 24 May.

The Fathers of the Foreign Missions of Paris, in accordance with a vow (1891), celebrated this feast with great splendor in their churches.

The venerated namesake image in Brezje, Radovljica crowned by Pope Pius X for Slovenia, which was decreed a Pontifical coronation in 24 June 1907. Pope John Paul II later raised her shrine to the status of Minor Basilica in 5 October 1988.

It has attained special renown since John Bosco, founder of the Salesian Congregation, dedicated his foundation to Our Lady, Help of Christians, the mother church of his congregation at Turin on 9 June 1868. The Salesians have carried the devotion to their numerous establishments. It was established due to the great appreciation of Don Bosco for this Marian title and the development of the Salesian works in many countries since the second half of the 19th century. The Salesian National Shrine of Our Lady Help of Christians is located in Stony Point, New York. There is also the National Shrine of Mary Help of Christians in Parañaque City, Philippines, which is also in the care of the Salesians of Don Bosco. ^[9]

In memory of the liberation of Pope Pius VII from the captivation and imprisonment of Lord Napoleon Bonaparte, which the Pope credited to be by supernatural assistance, the following congregations honored the Blessed Virgin Mary under this title:

• The Diocese of Australia, by institution of an Octave (1888)
• The Order of Barnabites (1908)
• The Society of the Divine Savior (1909)
• The Society of Saint Francis de Sales (1910)
• In the Diocese of La Serena, Chile (1914)
• In the Diocese of Skopje, North Macedonia (1914)

The Church of Notre Dame du Bon Secours in Blosseville, France was also inaugurated under this Marian title “Help of Christians”, dating back to the original church structure in the 13th century. It was finalized in 1840 and Pope Benedict XV ultimately granted a pontifical decree that raised the shrine to the status of minor basilica on 27 March 1919.

The Abbey of Mary Help of Christians, better known as Belmont Abbey, is a small American monastery of Benedictine monks in the town of Belmont, Gaston County, North Carolina, outside of Charlotte, North Carolina. The minor basilica of Our Lady Help of Christians is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.^[10]

A chapel dedicated to this namesake Marian title exists at the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C., America. ^[11]

Under this title, the Virgin Mary is venerated by the Chinese Catholics, particularly at the Shrine of our Lady of Sheshan, the only minor papal basilica in mainland China. In May 2007, Pope Benedict XVI designated 24 May her feast for the Catholics in China, who face persecution and restriction from the Chinese Communist Party.

Although it is commonly associated with the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church has also known the devotion since 1030 in Ukraine, when the country was defended from a barbarian invasion.