The devotion to Mary, Undoer (or Untier) of Knots is about 300 years old, but became more widely known as Pope Francis spoke about and promoted it throughout his papacy, and while he was Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Argentina.
German Nobleman Wolfgang Langenmantel and his wife, Sophie, had marital problems and were on the brink of a divorce. Wolfgang was very distraught, and went to Jesuit priest Fr. Jakob Rem for counseling.
The two prayed together to the Blessed Virgin Mary for Wolfgang’s marriage each time they met.
While meeting for the last time on Sept. 28th, 1615, Wolfgang provided Fr. Rem with his wedding ribbon, which was used during his wedding ceremony to tie the couple together as a symbol of unity.
Fr. Rem then took the ribbon, lifted it up next to an image of Our Lady of the Snows, and asked Mary if she would “untie the knots” of Wolfgang’s marriage. The ribbon then loosened, completely untied, and became extremely white.
Even though precise details were not given, Wolfgang and Sophie reconciled after this happened.
(This is the primary story behind the painting, but referring to Mary as an untier of knots goes back to St. Irenaeus, in the second century.
St. Irenaeus said, “The knot of Eve’s disobedience was untied by the obedience of Mary; what the virgin Eve bound by her unbelief, the Virgin Mary loosened by her faith.”)
