The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 12 : § 5.44-45

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

France

NOTRE DAME DE PARIS & OUR LADY-IN-THE-FIELDS

 44   We are now on our way to the Queen of cities, source of laws for the rest of France : the noble city of Paris, where we will find  traces everywhere of the ancient devotion this people had towards the Queen of Heaven. From antiquity the city has been dedicated to the Holy Virgin, as we learn from the monk Abbo in his description[1] of the siege of Paris by the Vikings. The great Church of Notre Dame stands higher than all the other buildings, just as the cedar of Lebanon is taller than other trees. 

The pious and inquisitive Benedictine monk, Jacques du Breul, wrote about the Church in his Antiquities of Paris. He reveals the beauty, the grandeur and the majesty of the site to all who are curious to read about it. Anybody taking the time to visit will see great crowds flocking there every day, for miracles frequently occurred here which although interrupted for a time have recently started to be reported once more. In the beginning, Notre Dame was built adjoining the Church St Denis du Pas and still occupies this site where the great St Denis, Apostle of France, was tortured on a gridiron. Building the Church was one of pious projects undertaken in 522 by Childebert I, son of Clovis and the Church was dedicated to the sacred Virgin MOTHER OF GOD. We have this from Venantius Fortunatus, poet and Bishop of Poitiers. Later, King Robert, son of Hugh Capet, took the plans forward and they were continued by Henry I, Robert’s son, and his successors Philip I, Louis le Gros, Louis le Jeune and the finishing touches were applied under the reign of Philippe-Auguste, also known as God-given and the Conqueror.

The Church known as Our Lady-in-the-Fields is more ancient than Notre Dame de Paris – at least in its first foundation. It is said to have originated on the site of a Temple to Mercury or, according to some, to Ceres[2]. St Denis performed a miracle there and cast out for ever the demons who had been infesting it. He dedicated the Church in honour of God and the glorious Virgin Mary. In his history of Navarre,  André Favin relates how St Denis came from the Gauls bringing with him the image of the Holy Virgin holding her Son who is seated on her lap. Over this portrait was another on a small square stone about a foot in width which was enamelled and had vivid colours. Set in another, larger stone, it may still be seen outside the Church of Our Lady-in-the-Fields on the southern side, near the little cemetery, and its history is explained by the inscription under the stone. Favin adds that this painting was the first to be copied from the original of St Denis and that another was made from this original in relief and later taken to the cathedral of Notre Dame which I have just described. There it was placed in the great nave where Our Lady is honoured to this day as the principal patroness of the noble city of Paris. This Church of Our Lady-in-the-Fields was rebuilt with underground chapels (known popularly as the cellar) under the blessed reign of Robert I. Today it is in the possession of the Carmelites who live in the Monastery of the Incarnation.

Footnotes

[1] Urbs id honore micat celsæ sacrata Mariæ.

[2] Du Breul, loc. cit.

THE SAINTE CHAPELLE (HOLY CHAPEL) IN PARIS & OUR LADY OF VAUVERT

 45   In the courtyard of the Palace, on the spot where the ancient chapel called Our Lady of the Star was located, King St Louis built in 1242 the beautiful Sainte Chapelle. The Holy Relics he had brought back from his trip overseas were carried here in a solemn procession and there can be no doubt that the Holy Virgin, to whom this site had been dedicated, retained the suzerainty she held in the beginning. 

In 1259 St Louis built the Charterhouse of Our Lady of Vauvert in the Saint-Germain quarter, site of the ancient palace of the French Kings. Here is the story.

There was formerly in this place an evil spirit called by everyone the devil of Vauvert which, with God’s permission, tormented and greatly afflicted people passing through the quarter. Apart from terrifying people with its dreadful cries, it did not allow anyone by without attacking them or wounding them. One result was that the entrance to the University was called the gate of Hell and we can still see today the road that leads from the University to Our Lady-in-the-Fields is called the street or passage of Hell. While people were looking for ways of dealing with this problem, a nun who was said to have the gift of prophecy told the Parisians that, if they wanted to be freed of this demonic infestation, they would have to build a house for the Carthusian Fathers on the same spot. When her advice reached the ears of King St Louis, he set about the project with his whole heart, and this was helped in no small way by the affection he had always felt for such a Holy Order. He wrote accordingly to this effect to the great Charterhouse and assigned the religious who were immediately despatched to a house in Gentilly not far from Paris. After a few days, Dom Joceran who had been named prior, sent a message to His Majesty requesting use of the his empty house in Vauvert, because this was well situated and had plenty of room. To begin with, the King was unwilling, explaining that he had already allocated this house to other religious who were unable to remain there because of all the trouble and distress caused to them by demons at that location. The prior replied to the King that by the grace of God and the assistance of His Holy Mother, under whose protection they had placed themselves, they were confident the evil spirits would have no power over them. The King, following the advice of his council, ratified their request and told them they were to go there in the name of God and the Virgin Mary in whom they had placed their trust and who was inspiring them with such great courage.

On the 21st of November 1251, the Prior entered the house at Vauvert with his religious. They spent three days and three nights in continual prayer, processing through all the rooms of the house and imploring Our Lord, through the intercession of His most holy Mother their patroness, to cast out this band of demons who had taken possession of the place, so that thenceforth He would be served and glorified there. During these three days, witnesses including a monk, some servants and some of the locals heard the sound of thunder and frightful noises, they saw fog and clouds of smoke filling and poisoning the air, they felt the earth quaking and some of the servants fell ill. This showed how furious the evil spirits were at having to leave this fine and secluded location. In the end, the religious held their nerve against everything the demons could do. The latter were obliged to leave and their departure was witnessed in the form of clouds of smoke which infected the air with an oppressive stench. All that remains is for me to speak of the acts of thanksgiving rendered unto God and the glorious Virgin, and the public rejoicing in which King St Louis took full part, tirelessly blessing and glorifying God.

Work then began on building the Church in a wise and diligent manner. The first service was held on the very day of the Assumption in 1324 in thanksgiving for the favours received from the most sacred MOTHER OF GOD. From that moment on, the people of Paris held that place in deep affection and several miracles were reported. 

Joinville writes in his history of St Louis that as their ships were returning from the Holy Land,

Argonnes, one of the most powerful lords in Provence, was trying to rest one morning but the sun was shining in his eyes, so he ordered one of his squires to block the porthole which was letting in the sunlight. The squire climbed down to the porthole so as to block it from the outside but he lost his footing and fell into the sea. The vessel, however, was under full sail and so no-one noticed what had happened. A short while afterwards, Joinville’s ship was approaching the scene of the accident and he was not a little surprised to see a man in the water who was floating but apparently without using either his hands or his feet, as though he were like a stone being held up. He immediately gave an order for the ship to be steered towards the man so as to rescue him. Once they had him safely on board their own vessel, Joinville heard the man say that when he fell into the sea, he had placed himself in the hands of Our Lady of Vauvert and the Queen of Heaven had immediately given him her support under the shoulder and had kept him afloat until they arrived. 

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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