Red Scapular of the Passion of Jesus

Origin of the Scapular of the Passion

On July 26, 1846, the octave of the feast of St. Vincent, in the afternoon, Our Lord appeared to Sister Apolline Andriveau, a Daughter of Charity in Troyes, France. She told how she saw Our Lord clothed in a red tunic and a blue cloak.

His face was not shattered by the pains of the praetorium, but was beauty by essence. He held in His right hand a scapular suspended by two woolen ribbons, in which He was represented nailed to the cross, and at the foot of the cross were the instruments of the passion that made Him suffer most.

Around the crucifix was written: Holy Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ, save us. At the other end of the ribbons, in scarlet cloth, was the image of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary; one surrounded by thorns, and the other wounded by the lance, between the two hearts was a cross.

After a few days, Sister Apolline saw the same image again. Finally, Our Lord explained how the Scapular was to be worn.

A few months before the Passion Scapular was revealed to her, Sister Apolline had another vision. She was making the Stations of the Cross, when at the 13th station, Our Lady placed the inanimate body of the Master in her arms and said to her:

"The world is lost because it does not reflect on the Passion of Jesus Christ; do everything so that the world will reflect, do everything so that it will be saved."

The apparitions were repeated, and in all of them Our Lord emphasized His Infinite Mercy toward men and His desire for their salvation.

Ecclesiastical Approval

In 1847, Father Etienne, then Superior General, went to Rome, and having been received in audience by the Holy Father Pius IX, he took the opportunity to communicate the apparitions to him. Pius IX placed no obstacle to the approval of the Scapular.

The power to bless the Scapular of the Passion had been granted exclusively to the Fathers of the Mission, and so the diffusion was slow, since it was not possible for them to go to all the parishes.

Therefore, many requests were made to Father Etienne to obtain from the Holy See the faculty to delegate this privilege to the secular and regular priests who requested it.

The Holy Father not only granted the permission, but at the same time added to the indulgences previously granted, a plenary indulgence, every Friday of the year, to those who wear the Scapular constantly.

The Red Scapular of the Lord's Passion is widely advertised in the Shrine of Apparitions in Jacareí. Our Lady in several messages has expressed her delight in wearing this sacramental, and insistently asks her beloved children to wear it every day in order to obtain the graces promised by Her and Our Lord to Sister Apolline Andriveau.