Leo Dupont - Holy Face Devotions

Holy Face Devotions

Apart from his other charitable activities, Dupont is perhaps best known for his impact on spreading the devotion to the Holy Face of Jesus. He is sometimes referred to as the Apostle of the Holy Face.

Dupont made frequent donations to the Carmelites in Tours and managed their business affairs. He thus heard of the reported visions of Jesus and Mary by the Carmelite nun Sister Marie of St Peter from 1844 to 1847. Based on this, Dupont started to burn a vigil lamp continuously before a picture of the Holy Face of Jesus based on the painted image on the Veil of Veronica. Dupont used that image because the existence of a clear image on the Shroud of Turin was not known to anyone at that time for the somewhat faded image of the face on the Shroud can not easily be seen with the naked eye and was only observed in May 1898 via the negative plate of Secondo Pia's first photograph.

During this time, Dupont also heavily promoted Vade Retro Satana and the "The Holy Face Protection Cross" which on the front bears the words "Sit Nomen Domini Benedictum" (Blessed Be the Name of God) and on the reverse Vade Retro Satana (Begone, Satan). The Crossbeam shows the Sacred Heart on the right and the Immaculate Heart on the left and in the center is the reproduction of Veronica’s Veil.

In 1851 Dupont formed the "Archconfraternity of the Holy Face" in Tours. He prayed for and promoted the case for a devotion to the Holy Face of Jesus for around 30 years. The documents pertaining to the life of Sister Marie of St Peter and the devotion were kept by the Church and not released. Yet Dupont persisted. Eventually, in the year 1874 Charles-Théodore Colet was appointed as the new Archbishop of Tours. Archbishop Colet examined the documents and in 1876 gave permission for them to be published and the devotion encouraged, shortly before Dupont died. Dupont's followers have attributed the release of the documents to the power of prayers of Dupont over the previous 30 years.