Salus Populi Romani Icon

From Google Images

"Built by order of Paul V to house the image of the Madonna Salus Populi Romani [above], the [Borghese] chapel was designed by Flaminio Ponzio (1560-1618) between the years 1606 and 1612." [1]  "The icon of the Salus Populi Romani, recounted by pious tradition to have been painted by St. Luke the Evangelist, welcomes all who come before her with her maternal gaze." [2]  Her gaze has changed and it was not a miracle.  See the updated image below.

An article published by the University of Dayton, Ohio, stated that the:

Salus Populi Romani  is one of the so-called "Luke images." There are many throughout the world which are attributed to Saint Luke. The origin of "Luke images" is unknown, but a charming legend has prevailed through the ages. It reveals that after the Crucifixion, when Our Lady moved to the home of St. John, she took with her a few personal belongings – among which was a table built by the Redeemer in the workshop of St. Joseph. When pious virgins of Jerusalem prevailed upon St. Luke to paint a portrait of the Mother of God, it was the top of this table that was used to memorialize her image. While applying his brush and paints, St. Luke listened carefully as the Mother of Jesus spoke of the life of her son, facts which the Evangelist later recorded in his Gospel. [3]

As reported by La Stampa (as translated by Google), Bergoglio "will celebrate next Sunday, January 28th, at 9am, in the Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore for the celebration of the 'Salus Populi Romani' translation, the restored version of the Marian icon will be exhibited." [4]  This restored image bears no resemblance to the original, in particular the eyes of the Blessed Mother and Her Son, not to mention the colors on their faces which reminds this blogger of death:

"The restored version of the "Salus Populi Romani" (as translated by Google)

Death is what Bergoglio ought to be terrified of, for his eternity may not be what he looks forward to, and the Mass he plans to celebrate on "January 28th, at 9am, in the Papal Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore for the celebration of the 'Salus Populi Romani'" [5] may as well be a Requiem Mass for the death of the original icon, or perhaps a "black mass" for Satanists.

The restoration of this icon (one that could very possibly had been painted by the hands of Saint Luke the Evangelist in the presence of the Blessed Virgin Mary) ordered by this pope is nothing short of evil, in this blogger's opinion.

How crass can Bergoglio be?  One does not "restore" something that is original and turn it into something that looks rather ordinary, like a reproduction that had gone terribly wrong.  This is not a restoration, but more like an alteration, better yet, a change, and it is not better.  The direction of any change proceeding from what possibly could originate from holiness can only be toward unholiness.  Therefore, this restoration of the Salus Populi Romani icon is equivalent to the defacing of an image that could very well be holy.

Since the restoration of the Salus Populi Romani icon ordered by this crass pope cannot be undone, returning it to its original condition, it may as well be a desecration.  This desecration is symbolic of what this pope is doing to the Catholic Church systematically.  Therefore, true Catholics should not fear that certain extremists may wish to destroy the Catholic Church from without when already it is being taken apart, piece by piece, by the Destroyer within, and reformed into something hardly recognizable.  By the time the Destroyer completes its reformation of the Church, it will have been so corrupted that it will bear no resemblance to the Church Christ Himself had purchased with His blood.

This transformation has already begun and the end will arrive soon enough.  The anti-Christ will then reveal itself.  Its power to draw one's soul to the dark side will be nearly irresistible; its reasoning will be nearly flawless assisted by Satan's artful deceit that confounds the mind and troubles the heart; its palpable and seemingly infinite energy will be nearly unrepellable.

However, it is not a moment too soon for one to begin strengthening one's soul.  Like starting an exercise program that focuses on endurance training, one should try one's best to live an entire day with a clean conscience and in holiness, then as many consecutive days as possible until one can do so continuously.

Whenever one is unsure whether an action one chooses to perform strengthens or weakens the soul's defense against pure Evil, one could ask this simple question: does the action that is desired glorify God?  Alternatively, one could ask: if after completing the intended action, would one be in a state of grace before God?

Easy questions to ask, but not so easy admitting the unvarnished truth to oneself.  Even more difficult is to do what God expects, especially when Satan is interfering so that one is unable to think and see clearly.  This is especially true when what is so clearly wrong seems so clearly right, when the restoration of what could have been the work of Saint Luke the Evangelist seems to be an act out of love, even when the act actually defiles.  This is how deceitful Satan can be.  When one has fallen into its traps, one will no longer able to distinguish right from wrong and will always choose to do wrong believing it to be absolutely right with no sense of compunction.

Can this malady be healed?  Certainly.  Satan may be winning but it has not won so long as one still has enough breath to seek humility before God.  Bergoglio has not yet shown any sign of humility.  He seems to believe that he is infallible even though he might have said otherwise.

Pride is a sin so addictive so that whoever is addicted to it and who is standing at the precipice of eternity would continue to believe that the prospect of Hell is merely a scare tactic, thinking that God's mercy is a net that catches all the souls Satan has ruined successfully, preventing them from falling.  This imaginary net of mercy is Satan's creation that has been placed in the hearts of those that it has possessed, giving those who believe in its existence a false sense of security from which they, and those who would come to believe in the same, would not easily awaken.

For those who have not yet been ensnared by Satan's deceitful fantasies, imagining one's eternal destination, either Heaven or Hell, before exercising one's Free Will, may help with making the right choice, one which may appear difficult relative to Satan's temptations.  Can one choose not to do what is difficult?  Of course, but know that doing what is wholesome and holy, even though difficult, is for the salvation of one's soul.  When it comes to one's eternity, it is advisable to know Satan well and acknowledge its very real presence (perhaps with a greeting, a wave, if that helps) before acting.


[1] http://www.vatican.va/various/basiliche/sm_maggiore/en/storia/cappella_borghese.htm
[2] Ibid.
[3] https://udayton.edu/imri/mary/s/salus-populi-romani.php
[4] http://www.lastampa.it/2018/01/24/vaticaninsider/ita/news/a-santa-maria-maggiore-la-versione-restaurata-della-salus-populi-romani-4i6FEHOw9kRZp9BvFoJuPN/pagina.html
[5] Ibid.