Her Wounds……Our Gateway to Healing and Wholeness Part 1

When I woke up the other morning (August 26th), my roommates told me it was the feast day commemorating the Black Madonna. I saw this beautiful image while taking a class trip to Czestochowa, Poland in 2003.

The story behind this beautiful icon is a fascinating one. Legend has it that St. Luke painted this on a table made by Christ, which was used by their family. Due to numerous votive candles being lit in front of it, the faces of Mother and Child Darkened over time.

What makes this portrait so unique are three marks imbedded in the face of Our Lady. They were inflicted when a Turkish Soldier drew his sword and struck the painting. The soldier drew back in fear, began to convulse and later died.

A Cover Up?

What is not well known are the numerous failed attempts to cover up these markings. After each attempt, the scars miraculously reappeared. In time they decided to leave them alone and let the beautiful icon be.

But, why would these scars reappear?

I don’t know about you but I have numerous scars on my chest from a medication I took, as well as on my shoulder from a previous operation. I don’t exactly run around showing everyone I meet these scars, nor would any person with half a brain.

If you want to see how men handle imperfections listen to a conversation at a bar. The boasting of accomplishments, possessions, house(s), wives and the inflated ego are enough to make you feel as if you are competing in an Olympic Decathlon. Women are even more conscious of these imperfections. I once read of a beauty queen who bruised her leg right before the Miss America Pageant. She covered the bruise with make-up to hide it. She won the pageant by the way!

If we, who are far from perfect, would make every honest attempt to hide from our imperfections and wounds, why would Our Lady have these scars so easily exposed in this beautiful icon?

I believe the key comes from understanding an inner strength she wishes to pass on to all of us. That inner strength she possesses? Vulnerability.

A Lost Virtue

What does it mean to be vulnerable?

Sadly we are taught to believe vulnerability equates to weakness, helplessness as well as co-dependency. Many believe that it will inevitably lead to hurt and heartache.

You will be relieved to hear that this could not be further from the truth.

Vulnerability, far from being the epitome of weakness, is the hidden gem of strength. It is an inner confidence. It is knowledge that even though you may get hurt, you still have something unique, irreplaceable and radiant inside you. It is being at peace in knowing that you are still more than enough despite the wounds, rejection and rumors spread about you. It is a deep-seated wisdom, that you have what it takes to be fully you, fully alive, fully the man or woman you were always meant to be!

Wounds: Their Hidden Glory

How does this tie into the image of the Black Madonna and Our Lady? Mary, through this portrait is quietly speaking to us of a stunning vulnerability, one we can only scratch the surface of. It is the vulnerability of her wounds and the great glory it can bring forth!

Our Lady never experienced a wound caused by her own sin. She was however wounded by our sins. The crucifixion is known as the sword that pierced her heart. I believe the scars seen on her cheek portray the rejection and blows she suffers from us, when we reject and ignore her and her son.

Why a blow to the face though? The face is the identifying marker of a person, their uniqueness. When anyone experiences rejection, and lets face it (pun intended) it sucks, it is a blow to your ego, pride and for lack of a better term, it is a smack to the face.

Through this beautiful image it is as if Our Lady is gently whispering to us, “I too have been wounded. Rejection, loss, sorrow, pain over seeing my own children’s inhumanity to one another, the suffering you feel, I feel also.

But I think Our Lady wants us to go even deeper and reveal to us, the heart of a mother who has lost her own little one. One of the most common images we see of Our Lady is with child. This is the only image we see her wounded while holding her son.

Why? She is quietly speaking to those of us who bear the wounds of the Sexual Revolution and Mary offers us a gateway to heal from those wounds!