Sunday August 15. Sun at its zenith and holiday spirit to the max.
On August 15 in Brittany, as in many coastal regions, we honor Saint Mary, protector of sailors, as we celebrate the high point of the summer season. Tourists and sea lovers meet during sea processions, Fest Noz and fireworks. It smells like holidays, family celebrations and escape, thanks to Mary, mother of Jesus, of Sailors, and of all Brides, of future mothers, in short, Mother of all...Universal protective and benevolent figure that whether you are Catholic or not.
It is probably the figure most represented on medals, precisely because it is tender and universal.
Decryption of the most famous Virgins...
- Our Lady of Lourdes . This medal commemorates the grotto of Massabielle, in Lourdes where the Virgin Mary appeared eighteen times to Bernadette Soubirous in 1858, during these "Apparitions of Lourdes", according to the latter, the Virgin presented herself as "the 'Immaculate Conception".
- Miraculous Medal . This medal was created following the Marian apparitions in the Chapel of rue du Bacen in 1830, in Paris, where a novice from the Parisian convent of the Sisters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul, named Catherine Labouré, said she saw the Virgin Mary. According to Catholic tradition, this medal was struck at the express request of the Mother of God, made during the second apparition as a testimony of love, a pledge of protection and a source of grace. This medal, distributed for the first time in 1832, in the midst of a cholera epidemic in Paris and throughout Europe, enjoyed immediate success, and became a symbol of protection against the disease.
- Virgin and Child. This medal represents the Virgin Mary and the Child Jesus united. Its symbolism refers to motherhood and the protection of a mother devoted to her child. In most representations, the Virgin Mary holds the child Jesus against her, with an expression of love and benevolence. It is often chosen as a Baptism medal.
- Virgin with the Veil . Representation of motherhood, benevolence and protection, often represented in profile, sometimes with a halo, the Virgin with the Veil has a gentle, serene and benevolent face, imbued with love and devotion.
- Virgo Carmeli . On one side the Virgin Mary seated holding the child Jesus, each of them holding a Scapular, a piece of fabric joined by two cords, in a trilobe surrounded by the inscription "Virgo Carmeli", Our Lady of Mount Carmel. On the other side, Jesus holding the sacred Heart, in a trilobe on a starry background. Originally, it was an indulgence to replace the wearing of the devotional scapular itself.
- Notre Dame de Fourvière . This medal represents Our Lady of Fourvière and the child Jesus crowned in front of representations of the two facades of the Basilica of Fourvière, a lion at their feet, emblem of Saint Joseph and allegorical figure of the city of Lyon. She is often invoked as a protector of women wishing to become a mother.
- Immaculate Heart of Mary. Catholic devotion to the Heart of the Virgin Mary, as a symbol of Mercy, of the Absolute of her Faith, of her trust and of the reception of Christ in the most intimate of her person., and represented adorned with flame and some times with a crown of roses. She also represents total purity, which would have been free from original sin.
And you, which one do you prefer?