Devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary under the title Lady of Help can be traced back to the fourteenth century and to the Church of Saint Augustine in Palermo, Italy. From this Augustinian Church, it spread throughout the Order.
The title is derived from biblical references to the enmity between "the woman" and the serpent. (cf. Genesis 3 and Revelation 12)
Our Lady of Help is pictured holding a child in her arms, protecting the child from a dragon or serpent which she is casting out.
