Mary, Undoer of Knots
Painting by Johann Georg Schmidtner
“I feel stuck.”
Those were the words I spoke to my spiritual director in the early fall of 2024, to which she replied: “Have you ever heard of Mary, Untier of Knots?”
It was truly as if a knot was loosened.
I had not. Thus began a journey down a rabbit hole, and let me tell you, I jumped down it of my own free will and I regret nothing. September 28th is the Feast Day for Mary the Untier of Knots, so if you haven’t ever heard of this particular Marian Devotion, or if you’ve ever wanted to learn more, now is the perfect time to do it.
The term Mary Untier (or Undoer) of Knots comes from an early 1700s painting by Johann Georg Schmidtner. In this complex piece of art, Mary, the Mother of God, is shown untying knots in a long ribbon, while an array of images surrounds her.
The theological concept behind this image comes from the second century “church father” Irenaeus, where in his work “Against Heresies,” he wrote that Mary’s obedience untied the knot of Eve’s disobedience.
This painting was donated to the Catholic Church in Augsburg, Germany, where it remains.
The first chapel dedicated to Mary Untier of Knots was built in Austria in 1989, which means for centuries, this particular Marian Devotion was not widely known nor celebrated. Sometime in the mid-nineties, a German nun sent a postcard with Schmidtner’s painting to then-Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio in Argentina, and the image intrigued him. He began sharing this image with seminarians as a source of strength and prayer as they went to serve the poor. He commissioned an artist to create a copy of the original painting in Augsburg, and the devotion to this particular Mary began to take hold.
When Cardinal Bergoglio became Pope Francis in 2013, Mary Untier of Knots became known more widely as one of his preferred devotions.
Which brings us back to my spiritual director. I was raised in the Catholic Church and had maintained my own devotion to Mary more generally, but I had never heard of Mary, Untier of Knots.
“Maybe if you pray to Mary to help you untie the knots that are keeping you stuck, something might happen?”
Let me tell you all, don’t pray to Mary to get you unstuck unless you’re prepared to face the consequences!
Within three weeks, I had a new job. Three. Weeks.
It was truly as if a knot was loosened.
I know. Maybe it was just a coincidence.
But I believe Mary untied a knot for me, just like I asked her to.
Maybe she’ll do the same for you.
