Devotion to the Infant of Prague may have fallen by the wayside in this age of progressive Catholicism, but for many traditionalists, it is still loved and treasured.
By Marc J de Castella
I first discovered devotion to the Infant of Prague when I was a young boy, probably in my early teenage years.
The three stories I will explore are quite remarkable, engendering in me an ongoing interest in this devotion. Over the years, I have offered innumerable novenas to the Divine Child for both personal needs and those of others, invariably experiencing the merciful Goodness and generous intercession of the Divine Child.
However, before embarking upon these amazing true accounts, it is important to consider the profoundly edifying history of this devotion.
As we all know (or should know !), the Third Joyful Mystery of the Holy Rosary invites a profound meditation upon the ineffable and marvellous generosity, humility and love of the Divine Son who assumed human nature for the Redemption of the world.
It is truly amazing to contemplate the sublime revelation from St. John’s Gospel :
“ For God so loved the world as to give His Only Begotten Son that whosoever believes in Him may not perish but may have Eternal Life.”1
The omnipotent and omniscient God, in the Person of the Divine Word, the second Person of the Blessed Trinity, the Eternally Begotten Son, shrouds His Infinity Majesty and Glory in the form of a vulnerable, fragile infant.
Thus, God makes Himself easily accessible and approachable to even the most obdurate sinner or the most timid and weak in faith. Who can remain consumed by despair and an inordinate fear of Divine Justice and retribution for sin when mindfully, deeply and genuinely reflecting upon the merciful Goodness and Self abasement of this Divine Child ? Atheism and agnosticism vanish like toxic, dissipating fumes, exposing their absurd and baseless claims, when confronted with the all-encompassing, immutable reality of the Incarnation.
Let us consider the remarkable detachment and simplicity God teaches our broken, spiritually impoverished humanity. The Divine Child shuns the pomp, grandeur and luxury of the world in assuming the abject poverty of a stable, a manger to lie upon and lowly shepherds for worshippers. In this severe material austerity, bereft of even basic amenity and comfort, in the freezing, inclement bitterness of a cruel winter night, the Divine Child offers His Merciful Love to all who approach Him with sincere simplicity, contrition and love. Indeed, Our Saviour grants special Graces to all who venerate His Sacred Infancy.
History of the Infant of Prague devotion
The history of the Infant of Prague devotion is truly remarkable. In the early seventeenth century, a Spanish Princess brought a beautiful wax statue of the Child Jesus to Bohemia. It was, in fact, a wedding gift from her mother which, in turn, she later gave to her own daughter. After the death of this daughter’s husband in 1623, the pious widow immersed herself in works of piety and charity. She was particularly philanthropic towards the Carmelite priests and brothers of Prague.
After their founder, Emperor Ferdinand II moved to Vienna, she saw, with great consternation, the utter destitution of this religious community in which they were almost reduced to starvation. Moved with characteristic compassion, this devout lady gifted her cherished statue to the community with these prophetic words : “ I hereby give you what I prize most highly in this world. As long as you venerate this image, you shall not be in want.”
Placing this precious gift in their oratory, the zeal and faith of the Carmelites was soon rewarded with spiritual and temporal blessings. However, over the ensuing years, there were periods in which, sadly, this devotion was relaxed . Accordingly, God’s blessing would be removed at such unfortunate times.
Political unrest soon raged in Bohemia and the Carmelites were forced to abruptly flee. In the confusion and turmoil of war, they were unable to take the miraculous statue with them. The Islamic Turkish invaders found the statue, contemptuously throwing it into a pile of rubbish.
With great relief and joy, the Carmelites were finally able to return to Prague when peace was restored in 1635. One of their community, Fr Cyril, had a particularly fervent devotion to the Infant of Prague, receiving many spiritual blessings over the years. He prayerfully sought the lost statue.
Undoubtedly through Divine guidance, he found it in a rubbish heap . Intensely over-joyed, he placed the statue once more in the Carmelite oratory. Before the statue one day in fervent prayer, Fr Cyril heard a voice saying :
“Have mercy on Me and I will have mercy on you. Return My hands to Me and I shall give you peace. The more you honour Me, the more I shall bless you.”
Naturally startled, Fr Cyril examined the statue. Drawing aside the mantle which covered it, he found both hands had been broken off. Through the generosity of a client of the Divine Child, the hands were soon restored to the statue. Both peace and prosperity once again returned to the Carmelite community.
Since the Divine Child had come into the world through their Mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Carmelites had traditionally practised devotion to the Divine Child. The two most prominent devotees were St Teresa of Jesus and St Therese, the little Flower.
For many years this original wax statue has been enshrined on a side altar in the Church of Our Lady of Victory in the City of Prague. Standing approximately nineteen inches in height, it is clothed in a royal mantle and has an ornate and exquisitely beautiful jewelled crown. Raising its right hand in blessing, its left hand holds a globe, signifying sovereignty.
So innumerable and remarkable were the blessings of those who invoked the Divine Child before the original statue, that it became known as “The Miraculous Infant Jesus of Prague.”
As both an act of public recognition and a manifestation of gratitude for the numerous graces and cures obtained, the miraculous statue of Prague was solemnly crowned on the Sunday after Easter, in 1665. 2 3
Of course, veneration of the Divine Child with faith, humility and fervour will obtain Divine favours when praying before images of the little King, the world over. Catholics do not venerate the Divine image (statue) per se, but rather, Our Divine Saviour, whom the statue tangibly represents to the feeble human imagination. It is indeed a Protestant iconoclastic error 4 to level the crude, trite accusation that Catholics “worship” statues. Any religious statue merely serves as an aid to meditation, a modality for enhancing and deepening one’s contemplation and veneration of a Saint, an Angel, the Blessed Virgin or for God Himself, exclusive worship.
With this brief history now recounted, I will finally embark upon narrating the first of the three true accounts of Divine intervention through this marvellous devotion.
The Infant of Prague helps a single mother
Claire, a single mother, lived with her young son, David in a high-rise apartment building in the inner Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy, Victoria, Australia. It was 1988 and Victoria was gripped by a severe economic recession, the predictable result of the incumbent, Leftist Cain Labor Government’s dilettante financial “Governance”, or perhaps more accurately, blatant ineptitude.
Coping with monthly rent was an increasing challenge for Claire, with the looming spectre of further rent increases and skyrocketing inflation which beset Victoria at that time. Although Claire diligently sought full time employment as a registered nurse, the occasional available positions in nearby Hospitals and clinics were immediately filled.
Consequently, Claire was forced to “work bank”, a colloquial expression referring to casual employment to fill short-term Hospital nursing staff shortages. Although the individual shift work days were well paid, this casual work was frequently inadequate. Claire sometimes found herself with little or no money.
One week in mid July that year, Claire had barely enough to pay the monthly rent. It was a Wednesday and although she had had full weeks of daily shifts over the past fortnight, payment into her account was not due until Monday, the next week. Although up to date with all her amenities, grocery supplies were alarmingly low. With sickening dread, Claire realised she and David would have no money for food until next Monday.
What should she do ? She was loath to borrow money from her elderly mother who was also barely surviving on her modest pension. Claire’s friends were in a similar position, struggling renting young couples or single mothers who were certainly “beneath the poverty line.”
A sudden flash of inspiration filled Claire’s mind. Raised in a devout Catholic home, Claire had often witnessed amazing intervention and miraculous assistance from fervent and trustful surrender to the Infant of Prague. Indeed, her mother, a widow, truly lived by faith, constantly casting all her problems upon the Divine Child. And the Holy Child invariably came to the rescue, often in the “nick of time.” No matter how improbable and uncertain success appeared, Mary Fitzgerald had taught herself not to worry. She often repeated the consoling words of the Capuchin Friar, Saint Padre Pio of Pietrelcina, Italy : “Pray, hope and don’t worry. The Lord is merciful, He will listen to your prayers.”
Given the dire urgency of her situation, Claire resolved to pray a nine hour novena to the Infant of Prague for financial assistance. At the beginning of each consecutive hour, she would recite the beautiful words Our Lord instructed His flock to address the Eternal Father in His Name :
‘O Jesus, Who has said, “Ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall find, knock and it shall be opened to you,” through the intercession of Mary, Thy Most Holy Mother, I knock, I seek, I ask that my prayer be granted. (Make your request.)
O Jesus, Who has said, “All that you ask of the Father in My Name, He will grant you”, through the intercession of Mary, Thy Most Holy Mother, I humbly and urgently ask Thy Father in Thy Name that my prayer will be granted. (Make your request.)
O Jesus, Who has said, “Heaven and earth shall pass away but My word shall not pass,” through the intercession of Mary, Thy Most Holy Mother, I feel confident that my prayer will be granted. (Make your request.)
Claire looked at the small porcelain statue of the Child Jesus on the mantle of her bookcase, a miniature replica of the original Infant of Prague statue. Her mother had given the statue at her Confirmation many years before.
Although Claire was a lapsed Catholic, only attending mass sporadically at that time, she firmly believed in the efficacy of prayer, especially to Our Lady or her Infant Son. Claire had a simple and child-like faith, blissfully unaware of her otherwise objectively woeful lukewarmness and presumption. However, she was indeed correct in believing God is always merciful and generous to anyone who humbles themselves with contrite, trustful surrender.
She knelt on the faded, worn Persian rug before the bookcase. After devoutly crossing herself, Claire fervently made an act of contrition. She then attentively offered the prayer to Our Lord depicted above.
Finishing the short prayer, she glanced at her watch. It was now 2.30 pm. For the next nine hours, she set the oven timer in the kitchen, alerting her at the middle of each consecutive hour.
At 10.30 that evening, Claire knelt for the final novena prayer. Although quite tied from the hourly vigil, she felt a deep, consoling peace she had never hitherto experienced. As she made the sign of the cross upon finishing, something totally unexpected and truly remarkable happened.
With no apparent cause, a book on the top third shelf of the bookcase, directly below the mantle where the statue was placed, fell onto the rug, directly in front of where she knelt. The momentum caused it to open, revealing a one hundred dollar note. Intensely excited, Claire grabbed it, hardly believing what she beheld. Examining the book, it was an Agatha Christi detective novel she had bought from a local secondhand bookshop earlier that year. Presumably, someone had used the note to mark a page, obviously intending to retrieve it, but never, in fact, remembering to do so !
Overwhelmed with gratitude, Claire fervently thanked God. Despite inflation in 1988, one hundred dollars had considerably greater purchasing power than it now has in 2026 ! She would only need a portion of this sum for urgently needed groceries…
That Sunday, Claire and David attended Mass. She even managed to make a good Confession beforehand. Later in thanksgiving after receiving Holy Communion, Claire spent much time thanking the Divine Child. Despite her obvious shortcomings, Claire’s simple, trustful surrender to Divine providence had been marvellously rewarded!
The Divine Infant brokers a real estate deal
Let us now explore the second account. Several years ago, after attending Mass one Sunday morning at my habitual Latin Mass centre, Corpus Christi in Tynong, Victoria, Australia5, I walked into the church hall to get a much needed coffee; also to chat with other parishioners, as usual.
Arriving at the tea stall, I noticed a young couple, David and Amanda*, who appeared more despondent than usual. When I gently enquired about their mutual well-being, they told me about their unsuccessful attempts to sell their house in a nearby town, Drouin.
For the past two years, they had many promising offers, but no contract was ever signed. They were now in a dire financial situation and desperately needed an immediate sale. I asked whether they had sought the intercession of the Infant of Prague. They had not, so I suggested we should begin a novena to the Divine Child that evening. Over the next nine days, I would join them in prayer (not in person, but in spirit,) for an expeditious resolution. With expressions of sheer desperation, they thanked me for offering to participate.
The following morning, David and Amanda photographed every room in their house, including a street view and the backyard. Within an hour of uploading these photos on a real estate website, their agents rang, requesting an urgent meeting.
The agent was a rather patronising young woman who made no effort to conceal her intense disdain for Christianity in general and Catholicism, in particular. She promptly informed them she had immediately removed all their photos from the website. “We can’t have photos showing all that religious paraphernalia,” she stipulated haughtily. “Let us take the photos after you’ve removed all of the icons.”
Naturally, David and Amanda were deeply annoyed, but reluctantly agreed. Next day, Kylie’s* assistant, Derrick* helped remove several statues and wall pictures from the house. Finishing the task, Derrick then photographed every room. “The initial photos you provided would have been totally counter-productive,” he rather smugly announced.
However, Derrick’s iconoclastic zeal proved to be less thorough than he initially anticipated. To their intense amusement, David and Amanda soon discovered Derrick had inadvertently neglected to remove a small statue of the Infant of Prague which was placed on the fridge top, in the kitchen photo. As they would later discover, this oversight played a crucial role in securing the sale of their house.
On the same Sunday I spoke with David and Amanda, another couple from Corpus Christi (whom I will call Bill and Rose*,) began their own novena to the Infant of Prague. They had recently sold their house in Pakenham and wanted to find a suitable house for their young family in Drouin. They were totally unaware our novena also began that day.
After nine days, when both novenas had ended, Rose and her mother, Miriam* began searching real estate websites for houses in Drouin and nearby areas. Every house which appealed to Rose greatly exceeded their budget.
By midday, Rose was quite disheartened. “Don’t lose hope,” Miriam wisely told her daughter. “ The Infant of Prague never fails to help.” Continuing to scroll through the website, Rose suddenly paused. Perched on top of a fridge, in a kitchen photo, was a small statue of the Infant of Prague.
Miriam became very excited. “That’s a sign, Rose ! This must be the house you’re meant to buy.” Rose did not respond, intensely intrigued, nonetheless. She quickly appraised the entire house, noting it was close to the Drouin town centre.
Although the house was rather modest and the interior décor considerably dated, Rose had to admit it was priced very reasonably for its spacious rooms and very large backyard. “Well the vendors are probably decent people,” she remarked. “I’ll ring the agents immediately to arrange an inspection.”
Imagine the sheer amazement of the two couples when recognising each other ! Rose now felt certain this house was meant for her family.
The following Sunday, the two couples told me this amazing story. The sale proceeded very quickly. Everyone was relieved and delighted. “Well the Holy Infant virtually signed the deal with that kitchen photo,” I remarked auspiciously. Bill and Rose readily laughed, whilst Amanda permitted herself a rare smile.
The Infant of Prague marks a birthday
The third and final narrative is also a touching and inspiring testament to divine providence.
James*, who also attends Corpus Christi in Tynong, has nurtured a devotion to the Infant of Prague for most of his life.
About fifteen years ago, he became aware of a woman in the parish, Josephine*, who had recently lost her husband. After she told him she had no firewood, James delivered several loads of split firewood to her place. Given her impecunious situation, he resolved to give her the wood, without charging.
When he phoned to offer this, he immediately felt the relief in her voice. Josephine then acknowledged her awareness of his longstanding devotion to the Infant of Prague. “I’d like to give you my statue of the Infant of Prague,” she generously offered.
Having seen the two foot statue, James knew such statues were selling for six hundred dollars in Australia at that time. Considering Josephine had several young children, he warmly thanked her, but insisted he should pay six hundred dollars for it. “No, I won’t accept any money for it,” she told him firmly. “God told me to give it to you.”
Josephine was a decent and kind woman; genuinely pious and certainly not susceptible to imaginative flights of fancy. James certainly had no reason to doubt the veracity of her claim. Although he strongly desired to pay, he gratefully accepted the generous gift, nonetheless.
The statue was rather dirty and needed a thorough cleaning. No doubt, her young children had carried it about with infantile enthusiasm. He also noticed a few small chips in the plaster.
James mentioned the statue’s condition to Rachael, who has a Catholic book stall every Sunday after the 10 am Mass. To his amazement, she offered to clean and repair the statue for free, although again, he insisted in paying for the service. Being a decent, good woman, Rachael refused payment, only stipulating it would be several months before she would be able to undertake the task. “Bring the statue on Sunday”, Rachael requested.
Several months later, in the second week of October, Rachael told him the repairs had been completed. “If next Thursday is the anniversary of the Miracle of the Sun at Fatima, I’ll come to the 6.15 Mass. I’ll bring the statue with me.”
He affirmed it was in fact the anniversary and he would definitely also attend that Mass. Indeed, James always attended Mass on this important Marian anniversary, to honour Our Lady of Fatima. He was profoundly grateful his birthday occurred on that day.
That Thursday, before the start of Mass, Rachael placed the statue on the bench beside him. Next day, his sister, (who was totally unaware of the preceding details of this narrative,) rang him. She had returned from a recent trip to Europe in which she had visited the Czech Republic. She had visited the Church of Our Lady of Victory in Prague where the seventeenth century, original wax statue of the Infant of Prague still resides. There she had bought a small wax candle bearing an image of the statue. It was a birthday gift, since she knew he cherished a profound and longstanding devotion to the Holy Child. James thanked her with deep gratitude. He was, in fact, utterly amazed.
Rachael had returned the repaired statue on October 13, the previous day, totally unaware the anniversary of the Miracle of the Sun at Fatima was also his birthday. Now, his sister’s birthday gift complimented the statue’s return. This was no mere coincidence, he mused to himself. Rather, it was a marvellous synchronicity, guided, no doubt, by Divine intent.
It certainly appeared as if the Divine Child, Himself, had bestowed these two birthday gifts…
*NOTE: names marked with an asterisk are pseudonyms.
By Marc J de Castella
Marc de Castella holds an Honours Degree in academic Philosophy from Monash University, Melbourne, Australia. A former Secondary teacher, he lives on almost twenty-one acres near Yarra Junction, in the Upper Yarra Valley, Victoria, Australia. He is currently improving his property, establishing rental accommodation and a small-scale free range egg business. In his spare time, he writes creative fiction and occasional articles on contemporary Catholic issues.
ENDNOTES
- John 3:16 ↩︎
- Cf. Www.tanbooks.com Devotion to the Infant of Prague. ↩︎
- Pieta Prayer Booklet. Miraculous Lady of the Roses, 1186 Burlington Drive, Hickory Corners, Michigan 49060. ↩︎
- The Second Council of Nicaea (787 AD) condemned Iconoclasm as a Christological heresy. This heresy rejects the use and veneration of sacred images. The most fundamental theological error of Iconoclasm is its obvious repudiation of the reality of the Incarnation. In truly becoming man, God appropriated a visible, material form that can be depicted in art form (paintings, statues etc.). The Iconoclasts erroneously asserted Christ’s divine nature could not be limited or “circumscribed” by depiction in art form. On this basis, the Iconoclasts contended that depicting only Christ’s human nature would effectively promote the Nestorian heresy (separating Christ’s two natures, that is, His Divine nature and His human nature.)
The Catholic position (most effectively articulated by St John of Damascus and St Theodore, the Studite), contended that a rejection of Christ’s image implied His humanity was not truly tangible. This, they argued, would promote the heresy of Docetism (the belief that Christ only appeared human) or the heresy, Monophysitism, (where His humanity is absorbed by His Divinity.)
Catholic teaching explicitly states the honour shown to icons is relative, not absolute.“Latrina”, (Adoration) is the worship due to God exclusively. “Dulia” (Veneration) is the honour or reverence given to saints and holy objects.
Catholic teaching further refutes the claim that images (art forms) are idols by citing Old Testament precedents where God commanded the use of images for holy purposes. For example, God commands the making of golden Cherubim for the Ark of the Covenant (Exodus 25:18-20). God commands the creation of the bronze serpent which healed those who looked upon it. (Numbers 21:8-9). Finally, in the new testament, Paul refers to Jesus as the “image (icon) of the invisible God,” thereby validating the use of the term for the Divine. ↩︎ - The Society of St. Pius X, (SSPX) has a thriving mass centre here. Catering for approximately 850 people, the SSPX traditional Latin liturgy attracts an ever increasing number of people, eager to embrace this authentic liturgy. Young families are also drawn to the nearby SSPX school, St Thomas Aquinas, which offers all years of schooling, from Prep. To Year 12. ↩︎
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