The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 12 : § 5. 19-23

Chapter 12 : The Eleventh Star or Splendour of the Crown of Excellence of the Mother of God

Continuing our translation of the 1845 reprint of Fr François Poiré's Triple Crown of the Mother of God (1643 French edition).

Notre Dame des Grâces, Cotignac.(Poggi, 2020)

She has been and is still recognized and called blessed by all generations in the world

§ 5. She was recognized  and honoured by all Nations everywhere in the world

Portugal cont'd.

OUR LADY OF THE GROTTO

 19  In the diocese of Lamego[1], there is nothing more famous than the Church of Our Lady of the Grotto, where God has worked so many miracles that they would fill a whole book. The Grotto which gives its name to the Church can still be seen, together with the image of Our Lady that was found there. It is made from four large rocks that form a vault in a remarkable manner. What seems unbelievable is that although the centre of the vault is so low that it touches the celebrant’s head at Mass, the keystone is higher and allows enough space for the elevation of the Host after the consecration. What makes the miracle even more striking is that this stone is very heavy and seems to be unsupported by the others. It remains stable and solid in such a way that everyone is convinced there is an invisible hand holding it in place.

Footnotes

[1] Vasconcellius.

OUR LADY OF THE SLAIN

 20   On the banks of the river Mondego in the diocese of Coimbra, not far from a Cistercian monastery at Lorban, we shall find a Chapel called Our Lady of the Slain which has a miraculous origin. I shall present its story as it is found written in the archives of the monastery and in the reports by Doctor Bernard the Breton[1] and by Portuguese chroniclers[2]:

During the time the Moors occupied Spain, there were only certain places where Christians were permitted to practise their religion, provided they paid the necessary tribute. Included among these was Lorban, a very ancient monastery founded in the time of St Benedict, where people would withdraw from life to attend to their salvation. Among others who bade farewell to the world in this manner was Prince Juan, uncle of Alfonso and Ramiro, Kings of Leon. Before making this holy resolution, he had been involved in military exploits and had won many famous victories. After a certain time, he was made abbot of the Monastery and King Alfonso his nephew gave him Montemayor as a source of food supplies not only for his monks but also for the upkeep of soldiers whose presence was needed as this site was an important defensive stronghold. 

The devil was greatly displeased by the Prince’s holy undertaking and started to provoke him and awaken the warrior’s instinct in him. This is what happened. A certain man had become a Christian in Montemayor and been treated with remarkable acts of friendship and kindness by Abbot Juan. Despite this, the man took himself off to Abderamexès, a Moor who claimed to be King of Cordoba, and he obtained from him a company of soldiers to attack Montemayor where he knew the layout of the defences and where he knew the Abbot happened to be. This renegade Christian had the worse of several encounters but finally resolved to starve the besieged into surrender. In fact, he reduced them to such an extremity that he made them take an unheard of decision : they decided to kill all the women and children who were inside the besieged fort so as to spare them the cruelties of the Mahometans; after that, they would set fire to all that was most beautiful and most precious.

If their decision was a severe one, the way they put it into execution was no less so, for the Abbot was constrained to kill a sister and his little nephews that he had with him. After this, filled with rage and fury, they poured out of the fort and hurled themselves upon the Saracens until they were exhausted and could kill no more. They spent that night in the open air, surveying the booty they had acquired but also grieving and lamenting their misfortune and the excesses they had committed. 

At the sounding of reveille next morning, two well-mounted horsemen approached them so wild with excitement and happiness that the plain resounded to their cries. They explained that by a miracle God had brought back to life all those of their own whom they had slain the previous day. Nobody would believe this without seeing them with their own eyes, but when they finally saw those whom they had put to death and when they had seen the red marks where they had struck them, their sadness was transformed into joy and everywhere all that could be heard were their prayers of thanksgiving and the blessings they offered up to His divine Majesty. 

As far as the Abbot was concerned, he had no doubts but that this was favour from the Queen of Angels, to whom he felt a great devotion and to whom he was indebted in a thousand ways. This made him resolve to build for her a chapel on the exact spot where the horsemen had brought the good news. It would have a little Hermitage where he would thenceforth consecrate himself to the service of God and His holy Mother. To this end, he commissioned a wooden image of the Holy Virgin with a red line on the neck to commemorate the blessing he had received from her. There are some who are convinced that the image was sent to him from Heaven marked in this manner, as may seen to this day. The Abbot lived a holy life for the space of several years before falling very ill. During this illness, he received every sort of service and help from his monks who wanted to convey him to the monastery so that he might be interred there more honourably than where he was. They were unable to put their plan into action, however, and they came to realize that the Holy Virgin wanted him close to herself in death as in life. Accordingly, they laid him to rest in the chapel that he had built. His remains have been preserved and it can be seen that they are massive, indicating he was a giant of a man.

Footnotes

[1] II parte, Monarch. et Chronici Cister., lib. VI, c. 27 et 28.

[2] Vasconcellius, in Descriptione Regni Lusitanici, etc.

OUR LADY OF THE FORESTS

 21   I would rightly be criticised if I were to pass over in silence the city of Oporto since it belongs to the MOTHER OF GOD. The great Church here, called Our Lady of the Forests, is especially dedicated to her and the pilgrims who flock here from all parts attest to the pleasure she derives from being thus honoured. Queen Mafalda, wife of King Alfonso, could not visit this Church enough and offer her reverence not only because of the majestic beauty of her image but also because it was she herself who had found the image in a forest where it is believed to have been hidden at the time of the Gothic invasion of Spain and Portugal. The Church occupies the  highest point of the city where there had once been a fort.

 

👆[ GNU Free Documentation License.]  This inspired the citizens of Oporto to choose for their coat of arms the Queen of Heaven between two towers, signifying that they regarded her as their tower, their citadel and their fort, providing them with their only defence and protection after God Himself.

Because I need to keep this discussion brief, I will have to pass over Churches such as Our Lady of the Sierra and of the River, near Braganza; Our Lady of the Remedies near Algazilla; Our Lady La Blanca and Our Lady of Branquiera in Braga, and many others. This means I can say a word or two about Our Lady of Jerusalem and Our Lady of Light.

OUR LADY OF JERUSALEM

 22   Our Lady of Jerusalem is not far from Montecorvo and it takes its name from the fact that it was built as a copy of a chapel dedicated to the Virgin which was in Jerusalem but which was totally destroyed by the Mahometans.

The Holy Virgin herself provided the plan because of the sadness she felt at seeing the ruin of her chapel. She appeared to a mute women who was watching over cattle and told her to find a certain priest and show him by signs that he was to build a Chapel on the spot shown to him. She also told her that once her commission had been carried out, she would regain her speech. Once the priest had understood what the good lady was trying to communicate to him, he set out obediently to follow her to the place where the Virgin wanted the Chapel to be built. Without being seen by the priest, the MOTHER OF GOD then guided the steps of the mute woman and she traced out the plan of the Chapel. Once this had been done, the woman recovered her power of speech and immediately began to speak. This inspired the priest to complete the work that had been started.

The strongest proof that this story of Our Lady’s appearance is the endless succession of miracles which then started to occur there.

OUR LADY OF LIGHT

 23   The Chapel of Our Lady of Light is near Cos in the Diocese of Leiria. Its history is linked to what I have just recounted and everywhere it seems that Heaven appreciates simple and open natures.

There was once a woman called Catherine who went out to gather wood in a nearby forest and who was favoured with a visitation by the MOTHER OF GOD, who said to her:

“Catherine, dost thou want me to help thee?”

The old woman did not take much notice of the Virgin’s words, but as she was making ready to leave, the gentle Mother came forward a second time to help show her the way. But the woman’s reaction was the same as before and she said she knew the way well enough. Then the Virgin approached her a third time and wanted to give her a key that the woman had lost in the wood. Catherine’s response was the same as before. The MOTHER OF GOD accompanied by St Martha then approached for a fourth time, surrounded by light. She returned the key to her and taking her by the hand told her she was the Queen of Heaven. Then, she told Catherine to put down her bundle and to help dig in the soil to find a spring. Very soon after they had started to do this, they found a wondrous spring of crystal clear water. This reassured the old woman and she began to have faith in what the Holy Virgin had been telling her. The Virgin asked her to tell everyone about this miracle but Catherine was most unwilling, saying she would just earn their mockery. In fact, the exact opposite occurred, for the news reached the ears of the Bishop of Leiria. He wanted to make contact with the poor woman when he learned that a cripple she had led to the spring and washed with its waters had been immediately cured. This gave credence to what she had been telling everyone and after that countless sick people recovered their health. The old woman was supported until she died thanks to the charity of some devout Ladies and she was laid to rest in front of the altar of the exceedingly beautiful and magnificent chapel that was built on the site.

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The Vladimirskaya Icon. >12th century.

SUB tuum præsidium confugimus, Sancta Dei Genitrix. Nostras deprecationes ne despicias in necessitatibus, sed a periculis cunctis libera nos semper, Virgo gloriosa et benedicta. Amen.

 

 

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam. 

© Peter Bloor 2024