Who is 'the Black Madonna' and why is she so important?

Rome, Italy, Jul 19, 2016 / 03:02 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Our Lady of Czestochowa, also known as the “Black Madonna,” will be one of Pope Francis' primary stops during his visit to Poland at the end of this month for the global World Youth Day gathering.

The image, which has been crowned the “Queen of Poland” and is highly venerated throughout Europe, is almost a given stop for any Pope who visits the country.

Located in southern Poland, Czestochowa was the location of the 1991 global WYD gathering – the first major world event after the fall of the Iron Curtain, and which also marked the first time youth from Eastern European countries were able to set foot in the Western half.

In comments made to CNA in March, Cardinal Stanisalw Dziwisz, Archbishop of Krakow, noted how the WYD celebration this year falls on the 25th anniversary of the 1991 WYD at the Our Lady of Czestochowa shrine, which was a key year for the end of Cold War tensions.

“For the first time in history, young people coming from the Eastern countries, from beyond the Iron Curtain, took part in World Youth Day. It was the first time World Youth Day was a really a worldwide event,” Cardinal Dziwisz said.

Now, 25 years later, Pope Francis will follow in his predecessors' footsteps, and will go to venerate the image during his July 27-31 visit to Poland.

He is set to visit the monastery of Jasna Gora, which houses the image, July 28, where he will offer Mass for the 1,050 anniversary of the baptism of Poland.

But while the image holds significant meaning for Europe and for Poles in particular, what is the story behind the Black Madonna?

Legend has it the image dates back to the time of the Twelve Apostles, and was painted by the hand of St. Luke the Evangelist, who is believed to have used a tabletop from a table built by Jesus during his time as a carpenter.

According to the legend, it was while Luke was painting Mary that she recounted to him the events in the life of Jesus that would eventually be used in his Gospel.

The same legend states that when St. Helen came to Jerusalem in 326 AD to look for the true Cross, she also happened to find this image of Our Lady. She then gave it as a gift to her son Constantine, who built a shrine to venerate it.

In a major battle with the Saracens, the image was displayed from the walls of Constantinople and the Saracen army was subsequently defeated, leading many to credit the portrait with saving the city.

The image eventually fell to the care of Charlemagne, who presented it to Price Leo of Ruthenia (northwest Hungary). It was placed in the Ruthenian palace where it remained until an invasion in the 11th century.

Fearful for the fate of his city, the king prayed to Our Lady to assist his small army. The result, according to legend, was that a darkness overshadowed enemy troops, leading them to attack one another.

In the 14th century the image was transferred to Jasna Gora in Poland as an answer to a request made in a dream of Prince Ladislaus of Opola. The history of the image is better documented in while in his care.

In 1382 Tartars invaded the Prince’s fortress at Belz, and during the attack one of the Tartar arrows struck the painting and lodged in the neck of the Madonna. The prince, fearful that the image would fall into the enemy’s hands, fled during the night and stopped in the town of Czestochowa.

The painting was placed inside a small church, and the prince later had a Pauline monastery and church built at the location to ensure the painting’s safety.

However, in 1430 the Hussites overran the monastery, attempting to take the image. In the process one of the looters took the painting and put it into a wagon and tried to drive away. But when the horses refused to move, he struck the painting twice with his sword. As he raised his hand to strike it again, he suddenly fell over writhing in pain and died.

Despite previous attempts to repair the scars from the arrow and the blows from the sword, restorers had trouble in covering them up since the painting was done with tempera infused with diluted wax. The marks remain visible to this day.

Later, in 1655 when Poland was almost entirely overrun by King Charles X of Sweden, only the area surrounding the monastery remained unconquered. Miraculously, the monks who lived there were somehow able to defend the portrait throughout a 40 day siege, and Poland was eventually able to drive out the invaders.

After the miraculous event, King John II Casimir Vasa crowned the image of Our Lady of Czestochowa as Queen of Poland, placing the entire country under her care and protection.

More recent stories surrounding the image involve the Russian invasion of Poland in 1920, holding that when the Russian army was gathering on the banks of the Vistula River and threatening Warsaw, they saw an image of Our Lady in the clouds over the city, prompting them to withdraw.

The image of Our Lady of Czestochowa gets its nickname “Black Madonna” from the soot residue which discolors the painting as a result of centuries of votive lights and candles burned in front of it.

Since the fall of communism in Poland, pilgrimages to the image have significantly increased.

As many as 2.5 million pilgrims expected to gather in Krakow for this year’s WYD event. While not all of them will join Pope Francis in Czestochowa, his visit will surely attract more pilgrims to the spot.

In his comments to CNA, Cardinal Dziwisz said that given the history of WYD and the Czestochowa image, this year’s gathering is particularly significant for European countries, such as Ukraine, who are facing dramatic conflicts.

“We mustn’t forget that the World Youth Day which took place in Czestochowa 25 years ago was the first with youth who came from the countries of the east. There were around 200,000, coming from Ukraine, from Russia and Belarus,” he noted.

“For the first time, that event was truly global. We must help youth from the Eastern countries to come…above all from Belarus and Ukraine,” he said, adding that while the Ukraine conflict makes travel in the region difficult, “we don’t exclude anyone.”

Madonna keeps on pushing her tweets over the borderline.

The pop diva fomented outrage on social media after tweeting out condolences to the victims of the Orlando massacre that included photos of herself.

The memes — one of which features her famous kiss with Britney Spears at the 2003 MTV VMAs and the slogan, "Gay or Straight, no hate" -- were slammed by detractors who felt the singer was hung up on herself during a time of mourning in the gay community.

"@Madonna are you serious right now? This isn't about you and your fake ass kiss for publicity," fumed one commentator. "I would think you'd know better."

Another Twitter user replied, "Really? 50 people died and you want to make this about you?!"

In the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history, 49 patrons were shot dead and more than 50 others were wounded early Sunday morning during a rampage inside Orlando's Pulse, a popular gay club.

Police shot and killed the gunman — identified as Omar Mateen — after storming the club after a three-hour hostage standoff.

Madonna has had her struggles with a reputation for using social media for blatant self-promotion.

In early 2015, critics slammed The Material Girl for posting altered photos ofdeceased civil rights leaders Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela and Bob Marley to hawk her album, "Rebel Heart."

Madonna's naked flesh has taught me a lesson I'll never forget

Bare bum cheeks, taped-up nipples, leather... when it comes to Madonna, we’ve seen it all before. So when the singer arrived at the Met Gala, this week, wearing scraps of lace and PVC patched together to make a gown - one with her bum and boobs on show - I barely batted an eyelid.

Her outfit looked like it was designed to shock and be as revolutionary as her conical bra in the 80s. But to my Millennial eyes, it all just looked tired and, dare I say it, unfashionable. Compared to red carpet pros Alexa Chung and Lea Seydoux, Madonna looked like a hippie mum gone mad .

The critics agreed. Headlines called it a “fashion fail,” while commentators said she was “truly undignified”, “utterly classless” and plain “desperate.”

But Madonna has had the last word. In an Instagram post that can only be described as a massive ‘f*** you’, she explained that her dress was “a political statement as well as a fashion statement.”

“When it comes to women’s rights, we are still in the dark ages,” she wrote. “The fact that people actually believe a woman is not allowed to express her sexuality and be adventurous past a certain age is proof that we still live in an age-ist and sexist society.

“I have never thought in a limited way and I’m not going to start.”

In other words – all the haters sitting at home and wondering why she couldn’t just put on a structured Balmain gown and look chic - are ‘limited’. While Madonna most certainly is not.

If that wasn’t painful enough to hear from the original Queen of Pop, she continued to spell it out: “If you have a problem with the way I dress, it is simply a reflection of your prejudice.”

I’ve officially been schooled by Madonna.

Because she’s right. As much as we critics pretended we were against her outfit - rather than the woman inside it - it’s not the truth. If Madonna had worn the exact same garb in the 80s, when she was in her early 20s, would we have been so judgmental?

It hurts to admit it, but if Madonna had worn her lace get-up in a scene from Desperately Seeking Susan, I'd probably have thought it was an admirable statement, and wished I were her (as much I do during every other scene in that film).

But because she was wearing it a few decades on, I found it embarrassing. I'm  guilty of the very ageism and sexism that Madonna describes.

Of course, I am not the only one. As a society we’ve created a world where people over the age of 40 are only ‘cool’ if they fit certain models. Nonagenarian Iris Apfel rocks because she has amazing fashion sense and statement glasses; Mary Beard has her #greyhairdontcare; Mary Berry wears bomber jackets.

Yet when an older woman makes a choice we don’t understand, like Madonna’s matador outfit and this recent bum-flashing number, we react with disgust so strong that they feel the need to call us out.

Sarah Jessica Parker schools a fan

Sarah Jessica Parker did the same thing. After her Met ball outfit was slammed this week, she replied to a critic on Instagram: “Perhaps you didn’t like what I wore which is completely fine but you can’t accuse me not paying close attention and adhering to the theme [Manus x Machina].”

Both SJP and Madge have responded in the best way possible. They’ve used social media to get their voices heard and provide context for their outfits, in a thought-provoking way. They’ve changed people’s minds - including my own.

But they shouldn’t have had to.

We, the public, shouldn't have judged them so harshly based on their appearances alone. We’ve started to recognise that when an actress is on the red carpet we should #AskHerMore than which designer her dress is by. So why do we keep shoving women into ‘best dressed’ and ‘worst dressed’ galleries every time they walk out of the house?

As Madonna said in her post: “We cannot effect change unless we are willing to take risks, by being fearless and by taking the road less travelled by. That’s how we change history.”

Madonna continues her reign as Queen of Pop and highest-grossing solo touring artist

AFTER wrapping up her Rebel Heart Tour earlier this week, figures have confirmed that Madonna still holds the record as the highest-grossing solo touring artist, taking in a total of $1.31 billion reports Billboard.

According to Billboard's Boxscore figures, which go back to 1990, the star's recent Rebel Heart Tour earned $170 million and sold more than 1 million tickets, earning her the title of the highest-grossing solo touring artist in Billboard Boxscore history, a position she had lost to Bruce Springsteen between 2012 and 2014.

Overall, the singer now ranks third on the all-time top-grossing Billboard Boxscore list, behind only the Rolling Stones ($1.84 billion) and U2 ($1.67 billion).

She is also one of only six artists who have surpassed the $1 billion mark since 1990, and is the only woman to do so, with Elton John raking in $1.05 billion and Bon Jovi $1.03 billion, all as of March 23, 2016.

Madonna became the highest-grossing female touring artist in 2004, a record she has held continuously for the past 12 years.

Madonna and Guy Ritchie's Custody Battle over Son Rocco: 'He Should Have Been Home Already,' Says Source

Madonna and Guy Ritchie's custody battle over their 15-year-old son Rocco continues. 

After the teenager spent time on the road with his mom, traveling for her recent Rebel Heart tour, he went to the U.K. to spend time with his father and reportedly refused to return to the U.S. 

On Dec. 23, the "Living For Love" singer appeared in a New York City courtroom, where a judge ordered that Rocco return to the U.S. to sort out his living situation, the New York Daily News reported at the time. 

But according to a source close to the singer, Rocco has yet to return home. Indeed, he spent Christmas and rang in the new year with Ritchie, 47, in England. Meanwhile in N.Y.C., Madonna, 57, spent Dec. 25 sharing festive photos of her other three kids – Lourdes, 19, David, 10, and Mercy, 9 – on Instagram. (She shared a throwback shot of Rocco as well, captioning it: "Merry X-mas to the Sun-shine of my Life.") 

Keep up with your favorite celebs in the pages of PEOPLE Magazine by subscribing now.

Madonna and son Rocco Ritchie

MADONNA INSTAGRAM

"He should have been home already," says the source, who alleges that Rocco has missed some school. "Madonna is a devoted mother, and a big priority is her children's education." 

As for why the teen left his mom's tour, an industry insider says he "got tired of it and wanted to be home with his dad." 

For more on Madonna and Guy Ritchie's ongoing custody battle, pick up the latest issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands Friday.

Up next, Madonna and Ritchie – who finalized their contentious divorce in 2008 – are due in court Feb. 3 for a second hearing in New York. 

Lawyers for Madonna and Ritchie declined to comment. 

Madonna's Singapore concert is for adults only

Singapore (AFP) - The Singapore leg of pop superstar Madonna's global Rebel Heart Tour has been restricted to fans aged 18 and above, the concert's local coordinator said Wednesday.

The one-night-only event on February 28, Madonna's first-ever concert in the city-state, will be held at the 55,000-seat National Stadium, entertainment firm MediaCorp Vizpro said.

"Please note that this concert is rated 'R18' with the consumer advisory on 'Sexual References'. Only those above 18 years of age will be permitted into the venue," it said on its Facebook page.

Concerts and other forms of public entertainment are classified by the Media Development Authority, which also regulates the film and broadcast industries.

The Straits Times newspaper noted that Madonna's concert tour setlist includes a segment involving dancers dressed as scantily-clad nuns pole-dancing on cross-shaped stripper poles.

Affluent Singapore, often ridiculed as a "nanny state" for its tradition of social control, has eased censorship in recent years and become an Asian entertainment hub. But the authorities say its population is still largely conservative.

St. Paul ties bring dancer back for 'B Madonna's' regional premiere

Dancer Maureen Fleming was born on an American Navy base in Japan where her father was a lieutenant commander, but she has plenty of history in St. Paul. Her grandmother immigrated to St. Paul from Ireland in 1910 and her uncle was a local monsignor -- Father Francis Fleming of St. Olaf Church.

From mid-elementary school through college, Fleming went to Minnesota schools such as Our Lady of Peace High School in St. Paul and the now-defunct College of St. Teresa in Winona.

Fleming lives and works in New York where she puts on workshops at New York University and is a guest artist at the Juilliard School. The regional premiere of her new piece, "B Madonna," which Fleming calls "the best of her work," is Saturday at the O'Shaughnessy at St.

Catherine University.

Her dancing almost ended before it began. When Fleming was 2 years old, she was in a car accident that caused her to lose the disc between her fourth and fifth vertebrae. It could have paralyzed her, but it inspired her to begin dancing -- twisting and untwisting her joints to increase blood flow and flexibility.

Fleming hopes "B Madonna" is as much a spiritual journey for the audience as it is for her. The choreography focuses on aligning the body's spiritual center through a series of drawn-out movements and three-dimensional video projects designed by Christopher Odo, one of Fleming's longtime collaborators.

"I'm performing one image and the same image is reflected in front and behind me," she said.

Her work with performing images is heavily influenced by her formative years spent in Japan, specifically by "Butoh," a contemplative Japanese dance developed in postwar Japan. "(Butoh) begins with an image. Instead of lifting your arm, you would imagine that a smoke ring moves up your spine and off your arm," she said. "Each movement is connected to an image. That's how I create.""You get a sense of things happening simultaneously. It becomes like a visual theater."

Butoh is more improvisational, however, while Fleming's work revolves around making choices and then assembling them to create a theme. "I record a lot of my improvisations on video and then choose moments that look like two things are happening at the same time," she said. "For example, a moment that looks like I'm being born and dying, or a moment that looks painful and pleasant."

"B Madonna" is part of the O'Shaughnessy's 19th annual Women of Substance series, which Fleming says has always interested her.

"I like the value of the Women of Substance series that you see things from different perspectives," she said. The performance also has a companion gallery exhibition called "O Black Maddona" at Wisdom Ways Center for Spirituality, 1890 Randolph Ave.

, St. Paul, running through Sunday.

Fleming's performance will feature text by David Henry Hwang and music by Philip Glass performed live by pianist Bruce Brubaker, accordionist Guy Klucevsek and Taiko drummer Kaoru Watanabe.

IF YOU GO

What: "B Madonna," a performance by Maureen Fleming

When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday

Where: The O'Shaughnessy, 2004 Randolph Ave., St. Paul.