Our Lady of Ransom — Devotional Titles — Marian Devotion Downloadable 8k Digital Illustration

"To proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed."
Matthew 4:18

In the 12th and 13th centuries of the Mediterranean world, Christians were frequently taken in raids and held for payment. The devotion takes shape in Barcelona in 1218, when Peter Nolasco, moved by the suffering of captives and guided by a vision of Mary, founds the Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy (Mercedarians) dedicated to their redemption and liberation. Members of the order not only raise funds to free prisoners, but vow to offer themselves in exchange if necessary. Rendered in gold thread embroidery with dense stitched surfaces, bordado en oro style of Lima, Peru.