The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 12 : § 5.57

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

Lorraine

OUR LADY WITH THE SILVER FOOT, OUR LADY OF VERDUN, OUR LADY OF BEAUMONT & OUR LADY OF CHÂTILLON

 57  The Cathedral in Toul has a particular chapel where people go to offer their devotions to the Virgin and this chapel is called Our Lady with the Silver Foot. This name comes from something that happened on the vigil of St Matthew in 1284. While a group of traitors in the city were plotting to betray their people to the enemy, a devout woman was praying before the Altar of the Holy Virgin. She received a warning about their plans and she was told to go and warn a town councillor. To add credence to the message, the statue on the altar stretched a leg forward and the foot was suddenly covered in silver. This is the origin of the name: Our Lady with the Silver Foot.

The noble Cathedral of Our Lady in Verdun is one of the foremost places of devotion in that part of the country. St Pulchrome or Polychrome was the fifth Bishop of Verdun who attended the Council of Chalcedon along with six hundred and twenty-nine other Bishops. It is commonly believed that he dedicated Our Lady’s altar in this Church with a statue of her trampling a dragon beneath her feet. This was to represent the victories of Our Lady over the wretched heretics at the Council who argued in vain against the honours offered to her. Some of these are mentioned by Laurent of Liège (a monk of St Vanne), and William (a dean at Verdun), who compiled a history of the Bishops of this venerable Church. Richard de Vassebourg also put together a compilation and included a life of Ursio, Bishop of Verdun in which he says that the number of miracles when Rainaud (Count of Bar) was causing problems for the people and Clergy of Verdun was so great that a yearly feast was introduced on the 20th of October called the Commemoration of miracles performed in that Church through the intercession of the most glorious Virgin. Apart from the miraculous image next to the altar of the Holy Virgin, there is another on the roof of the Church in which the people of Verdun have no less confidence than in the other. Here is the story as recounted by the same historians.

In 1131, Albert of Chiny was elected Bishop of Verdun and Rainaud Count of Bar (whom I have already mentioned) was determined to avenge an injury he felt he had received at the hands of the inhabitants of Verdun. He went as far as Amblonville in company with Simon, Duke of Mozellane along with the majority of Dukes and Lords from the districts of Metz, Mozellane, Lorraine and Barrois. These were all related to him or allies of his and they were resolved to make the people of Verdun pay for the wrong they had done to Rainaud. This honourable company set out from Amblonville with the aim of laying siege to the city of Verdun. As soon as they left the hills and arrived on the plain where the city is located, they noticed what appeared to be divine phenomena on the roof of the Church of Our Lady. This filled them with fear and made them change their minds about the attack. The leaders conferred together and then Simon Duke of Mozellane spoke for all of them when he told Count Rainaud that they could see Heaven seemed to be against their plan and as far as they were concerned they would never wage war against God nor against the glorious Virgin. They offered their services in any other matter which might seem just and reasonable and which would not make them go against their conscience, as was the case here. Count Rainaud was greatly angered at seeing his plans frustrated but he was left with no other choice than to abandon them. From that moment on, the devout inhabitants of Verdun understood their preservation was thanks to the most sacred MOTHER OF GOD.

Ligny is about two leagues from Bar-le-Duc and there you will find an image of Our Lady which has seen several miracles and these continue to this day. They have tried to restore and to decorate it but it seems Our Lady does not wish to receive any paint or gilding. In the collegiate Church of this same city there is another image said by some to be the work of St Luke, or at least based on those that come from the hand of this holy Evangelist. This image is also of great renown, especially for the cases of still-born infants who, having been presented to the holy Mother, showed sufficient signs of life to receive Baptism.

Between Dompcevrin and Vaucouleurs we come to Our Lady of Beaumont which is where Joan of Arc, known as the Maid of Orleans, was accustomed to pray to God and to entrust the affairs of France to the glorious Virgin. It was here where she received the commandment from Heaven to take up arms for the good of the whole of France, as I shall explain more fully in Part III.

There is a beautiful and ancient Abbey of St Bernard on the frontier of Lorraine with the Duchy of Luxembourg. At the entrance to the choir of this Church is an image of Our Lady which attracts those who have a devotion for her and where she has often granted her help to those who come to pray in the hope of receiving her help.

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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