Feast of Mary Help of Christians at Don Bosco Oratory in Victoria
Salesians worldwide venerate her in all of their homes and institutes
The feast of Our Lady Help of Christians will be celebrated at the Don Bosco Oratory in Victoria, on Saturday. The feast in honour of Our Lady, under the title of Help of Christians, was instituted by Pope Pius VII in 1814 in thanksgiving for his release from years of imprisonment by Napoleon. The title, however, is of much older origin and it is popularly held that the invocation Help of Christians was included in the Lauretan Litany by Pope Pius V following the victory of the battle of Lepanto.
However, it was St John Bosco, who, in the second half of the 19th century, promoted this title to such an extent that the title of Mary Help of Christians became to be known as Don Bosco’s Madonna.
He built a famous basilica dedicated to Auxilium Christianorum in Turin and the Salesians venerate her in all of their homes and institutes. At the Don Bosco Oratory in Victoria this devotion is as old as the institution of the oratory itself. A commemoration is held on the 24th day of every month, but the feast proper is celebrated on May 24.
A mass will be celebrated on Friday at the oratory chapel for the students of the Laura Vicuna school at 9am. In the evening, oratory director Fr Effie Masini will lead a solemn mass at 7pm, followed by a prayer meeting for adolescents and youths.
A solemn mass will be celebrated by Fontana parish priest Simon Cachia on Saturday at 7pm, with the participation of the Chorus Urbanus. Following mass, a short procession with the statue of Our Lady will be held along the streets of the oratory. Afterwards, the Eucharistic Movement will hold an adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, starting with mass at 8.30pm; it will be concluded by another mass at midnight.