Part IV : How to give thanks to the Mother of God : Chapter 3 : § 1.1-5

Chapter 3 : Trust in the Mother of God – a second feature of the gratitude we owe

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)

I began this discussion of the gratitude we owe to the Holy Virgin on account of her great dignities and privileges with the high esteem in which we must hold her. This esteem properly corresponds to Faith and is the foundation for all the holy affections of our heart towards the Virgin. I am minded to continue with the theological virtues and accordingly we now come to Trust. Strictly speaking, Trust (or Hope) when considered as a divine virtue is like Faith and Charity for it has God as its first and principal object, in whom it seeks its joyful fulfilment and from whom it expects the necessary help to obtain this. 

Just as below this sovereign good, however, we hope for certain others which may serve as a means to attain thereto, so too we are permitted to seek the same favours through the intercession of friends of God who takes pleasure in honouring them by obliging us and in obliging us by honouring them. Notwithstanding that we may have recourse to them, God Himself remains always our final end and the first principle of all our hope. Now, since of all the friends of God the most sacred Virgin holds the highest position not only in power but also in the credit she enjoys, reason would require us to conclude we can have a very special trust in her. Here we see the wondrous generosity of Heaven at work, receiving by way of the gratitude we owe for various gifts acts of thanksgiving from which we will obtain new benefits. The result is that whenever we offer acts of gratitude, they always have the effect of increasing the graces we receive – as will be shown later in this discussion 

§ 1. The first sign of trust : not undertaking anything except with the Holy Mother’s help and guidance

 1   The first effect produced by this trust in the souls of the Virgin’s children is that they never undertake anything important without calling upon her to oversee it and help events turn out favourably. In ancient times when a pagan darkness hung over the earth, the Moon was invoked by all sorts of people : by hunters, under the name of Diana; by travellers, as Hegemone[1]; by Poets, as Hymnia[2]; by Sages, as  Aristobula[3]; by Virgins, as Parthenia[4]; and by pregnant women, as Lucina[5].  In the same way, now that Heaven has banished the infidel darkness with the light of truth, hardly any people can be found (no matter how little knowledge they have of the MOTHER OF GOD) who do not have recourse to her in all their undertakings and who do not think these would turn out very badly without her care and guidance.

Footnotes

[1] Hegemone : from Ancient Greek: Ἡγεμόνη  the feminine form of ἡγεμών, ‘leader, guide.’

[2] Hymnia : an epithet of the Greek goddess Artemis. Cf. Polyhymnia, the Muse of sacred poetry. 

[3] Aristobula : ἀριστόβουλος, best-advising.

[4] Parthenia: from παρθένος, (parthenos) meaning virgin.

[5] Lucina: a title given to Juno and Diana as goddesses of childbirth, linking them to the light (lux, lucis) of the moon.

Travellers

 2   Many travellers take the view that the success of their journey and the safety of those left behind depend on having chosen the Holy Virgin for their Guide and for the Protectress of their homes. The Patriarch Sophronius provides a thought-provoking example in the book entitled The Spiritual Meadow[1].    

There was once in Alexandria a very pious man whose house was a meeting point for the poor and especially for mendicants of Religious Orders. He had a wife similar in outlook to himself and just as charitable. She had great humility and lived a life of abstinence, fasting every day. Her husband was a merchant by trade and this led him to plan a journey one day to Constantinople. Just before he left, his wife said to him: 

“Dear husband, to whom wilt thou commend and entrust us in thine absence?”

“To the MOTHER OF GOD,” replied to the merchant, “she will take good care of you.”

His wife would in fact soon learn the truth of this since her husband had not been gone for long when the devil, envious of all the good that was being done in this household, persuaded a domestic servant (who was staying there alone with his mistress and a little girl aged about six), to kill them both, ransack the house and then flee with whatever he could carry. Determined to carry out this horrific plan he went into the kitchen, armed himself with a large knife and was then going to make his way straight to the bedroom where he knew that his mistress had retired with the little girl. But a strange thing happened! He had no sooner set foot outside the kitchen than the Holy Virgin struck him with sudden blindness so that he was unable to go to the bedroom or even return to the kitchen. He shouted out for his mistress but she told him to come and find her if he wanted her. He continued to insist that she should leave her bedroom and come to him but she held firm. The poor wretch, seeing now that his plan was not going to succeed and would in fact be discovered, plunged the knife he was carrying into his chest and at the same time uttered a great cry. This made the mistress come to see what had happened and, lifting her arms up to the heavens, she quickly ran to get help. Officers of the court arrived and the wretched servant was interrogated. By the grace of God he had enough life left in him to enable him to confess everything that had happened. This made all those present make a point of blessing God and of esteeming more highly than ever before the protection offered by His most holy Mother.  

Footnotes

[1] Ch. 75. A Greek book generally attributed to John Moschus written in the late sixth to early seventh century. The text is composed of anecdotes from the travels of John during his travels with Sophronius. See Pratum Spirituale (English Translation by Cistercian Publications 1992).

Men of letters

 3   Men of letters frequently entrust their studies to her and summon her aid to deal with problems and difficulties they encounter in their work. 

We find evidence of this in what is recounted about St Edmund Archbishop of Canterbury. He had been invited by his mother (recently deceased) to abandon his study of Geometry and apply himself to Theology. He did this with a determination matched only by his diligence, but his studies were always carried out under the direction of the Blessed Virgin whose image he had continually before him whilst he was studying. Shortly afterwards, he began to deliver his lectures which not only met with an extraordinary reception but brought forth wondrous fruit in the way all his listeners were moved to change their way of life. From time to time, however, his dear Mother and Teacher provided signs of her satisfaction with his devotion. One night, for example, he fell asleep whilst he was reading the Bible and the candle he was using fell onto the pages. He woke up and immediately expected to find that the book had been damaged or lost but no sooner had he snuffed out the candle than he saw that the book had not been damaged at all. On another night, a rat caused the Saint's light to go out as he was waking up from his first sleep and he was upset by this ; but no sooner had he confided his distress to the Holy Virgin than she sent an Angel to him to relight it and to prove that his trust, in small as well as in big matters, would never be disappointed.

The Annals of our Society bear witness that Dr Francis Suarez undertook the study of Theology under the patronage of the MOTHER OF GOD and that he frequently had recourse to her when faced with doubts or difficulties. I think there is no need for me to explain how much he gained from this, since even the newest students in theology are aware of the reputation for sound teaching he acquired amongst even the most learned Doctors.

I have known of men who, before undertaking a particular course of public action when they were obliged to provide proof of their competence and qualifications, never failed to promise some particular devotion to the Holy Virgin so that she might lend a helping hand and bring about a successful outcome.

 4   For as long as the name Christian lasts and there are members of the faithful to keep it going, the memory of the great Church Historian, the celebrated Cardinal Baronius, will live on in their hearts. 

Around the year 1560, the first infamous volumes of the Centuriators of Magdeburg[1] began to appear from the depths of the abyss. These books looked fine on the outside and even bore the somewhat specious title of Ecclesiastical History but in reality they were nothing more than an inversion of history, a hotchpotch of deceptions and calumnies, a mishmash of all the old heresies – spewing out blasphemies against God, against the Virgin and against the Saints. Blessed Philip Neri, inflamed with zeal for the House of God which he saw being abused and insulted by this wicked pantomime, immediately resolved to construct a bastion for the defence of the Church and to vanquish these errors. With this in mind, out of all those in his holy Congregation whom he judged capable of implementing his plan he chose the young Cesare Baronius who was at that time only twenty-one. He commissioned him to stand alone against this ramshackle band who had resolved to construct the Tower of Babel, to storm Heaven and to bring about the collapse of the Church, which Saint Paul calls the pillar and ground of truth[2]. In order to help develop his knowledge and skill, he ordered him from that date onwards to give a lecture on Ecclesiastical History every afternoon in the Church of the Oratory in Rome. This was a practice which he continued for the space of twenty-five whole years during which he covered the history from beginning to end seven times over, following the succession of the centuries in chronological order. He then set to work on his Annals and took this remarkable project right up to the 12th century A.D. 

He realized that his was a gargantuan enterprise and since he had a low estimation of himself and his abilities, he would not contemplate starting work without the benefit of heavenly guidance and assistance. In order to offer himself the best chance of completing the work, he gave himself entirely into the arms of the Mother of Knowledge and the Protectress of the Church, telling her plainly that without her he would not be able to take one step nor pen one letter on paper. He refers to this at the beginning of each of the twelve volumes that he has bequeathed us and he frequently reiterates it at various points throughout the course of his History.

The learned Henri Spondanus, Bishop of Pamiers, produced a fine abridgement of the Annals of Baronius. In the résumé he wrote of his life, he states that certain letters may be discerned almost six hundred times in the Annals and in certain other writings by his hand which make up the following words showing his tender devotion : Cesare, servant of Mary ; servant of Mary, Cesare.

Footnotes

[1] Entitled "Ecclesiastica Historia . . . . . secundum singulas centurias . . . . . per aliquot studiosos et pios viros in Urbe Magdeburgicâ" (i.e. “A History of the Church . . . . . according to centuries, . . . . done at Magdeburg by some learned and pious men”). It was the work of a group of Lutheran scholars who had gathered at Magdeburg.

[2] 1 Tim. Iii. 15.

 5   The outcome was such as to show that the Queen of Heaven had not only approved of her faithful servant’s work but had herself inspired blessed St Philip with his plan and supplied Cesare with the best pieces of information he used in his books. Who has ever shown more light and learning on the Apostolic Traditions and the various customs at the time Jesus Christ was on earth? Who has provided more enlightenment and more solid information regarding the sacred councils? Who has refuted heresies more powerfully? Who has established more solidly the dogmas and truths of our faith? Who has portrayed with more glory and majesty the face of the Roman Church? Who has recorded more faithfully the heroic actions of the Saints in all the Orders of the Church Militant? Who has discovered more beautiful secrets from venerable antiquity? Who has written of holy things more devoutly, more soberly, more methodically, or more judiciously than he did? Who was ever blessed with greater resilience to face such a long and punishing workload? Who is there that, surrounded by every sort of estimable book, lived to a ripe old age enjoying these most pleasing fruits in a spirit of peace and with continual good health? Which works since the time of the Apostles have been received with more universal applause from all sorts of people than his? Which writings have been more profitable for the public, whether to  bring back those who have strayed into error, to support in their faith those on the right path, or to expand the frontiers of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ? In how many different ways have they been abridged and included in other works?  Into how many languages have they  been translated? What background and learning have the translators had who produced their versions? 

Francesco Panigarola (Panicarola), Bishop of Asti and a mind most highly esteemed in his day, introduced them to Italy; Markus Fugger, Baron of Kirberg and Imperial Councillor, introduced them to Germans in their mother tongue; Stanislaus Czarnków, Archbishop of Gniezno and Metropolitan of the Kingdom of Poland, was responsible for enabling the Polish to read his works; in short, the French, the Spanish and several other nationalities came to enjoy the fruit of his work through translations made by men of their own nation who were no less distinguished for their learning than noteworthy for their outstanding piety and for the affection they felt for the public good. This is a very clear sign of the extensive blessing that Heaven granted not only to the author but also to his writings through the mediation of her whom he had chosen to be his Guide and his Governess in such a praiseworthy undertaking.

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The Virgin of Tenderness. >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 2025 

Part IV : How to give thanks to the Mother of God : Chapter 2 : § 2.1-3

Chapter 2 : The high esteem in which the Mother of God is to be held – the first motive for showing our gratitude

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)

§ 2. Giving thanks to our Holy Mother : practice and effects

The first effect 

 1   If you are one of those who up until now has shared the commonly held view about the Greatness of this incomparable Princess, consider first of all whether you have been perhaps lacking in faith. Consider how you might not have been doing justice to her merits and how your position goes against the judgement of the Saints and even of God Himself who would not have been pleased with the way you honour her so little whom He honours so greatly. On hearing the fine tributes given to her by Catholic Doctors as well as the wonders they preach about her, perhaps you were one of those who secretly said in their hearts that these writers went too far and their praises were simply oratorical exaggerations; or perhaps you agreed with those who declared these were merely the childish devotions of people in bygone eras. Like them, you may accept that the Virgin is great in dignity, in holiness, and in the esteem with which is regarded by the Omnipotent, being indeed the MOTHER OF GOD – but you feel that we should be wary of going beyond this and great care should be taken since she is but a mere creature; attributing all manner of excellence to her goes beyond the bounds of reason and risks forgetting that glory and honour that are due to God alone. 

If this is your position, then you can be sure that your problem comes from a failure to recognise that the foundation of all her Greatness is her status as the MOTHER OF GOD. Accordingly, you need to correct your understanding so that henceforth it is firmly based upon the truth. In natural philosophy, once we have identified the accurate definition of something, we can then make a correct judgement about its properties and qualities. In the same way, once your mind is able to appreciate in the way it truly should the inestimable dignity of the MOTHER OF GOD, you will realise and be able to declare openly that, just as it would be a blasphemy to give to a creature that which belongs to God alone, so too it is a sacrilege to deny this incomparable Lady any perfection amongst those which are below God Himself. 

I feel confident that, once you have asked pardon for your past shortcomings, your heart and tongue will be united with  all the Saints in rapture, uttering with but slight modification the words which in Ecclesiasticus[1] were once spoken of the Greatness of God Himself : Blessing the Mother of God, exalt her as much as you can: for she is above all praise. When you exalt her put forth all your strength, and be not weary: for you can never go far enough, and you will never come close to offering the honour and glory that she merits.

Footnotes

[1] Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) xliii. 33-34.

The second effect 

 2   Secondly, this very esteem for her greatness will condemn irreverence – daughter of one of the sisters of infidelity – and by this I am referring to a bad habit, or something which may result from a loose and lifeless grasp of what we believe. From this it follows that in speaking or praying to the Holy Virgin we show scant respect, which may be worse the more frequently we have dealings with her at various times during the day. It is said that to find out how well a man is spiritually united with God you need only look at how he conducts himself in the least of his devotions and the care that he takes of various little duties as they arise during the day, even when subject to interruptions. If he carries these out diligently and with a devout heart, then this is a certain sign that he is living in the actual presence and love of God. In the same way I am telling you that we can appreciate the esteem in which someone holds the incomparable Virgin and the love he bears for her by the respect and feelings of affection with which he offers her in tribute the little services that he has promised. St Epiphanius writes of himself that one day he scaled the ladder of Faith and sacred Scripture up into Paradise and there he was transported into rapture by the way the denizens of Heaven honoured our glorious Princess. I dare to hope that if we had experienced something like this, our own colloquies with her would henceforth be quite different and we would be forced to imitate, with a propriety both interior and exterior, the respect held up as an example for us by the Blessed Spirits.      

The third effect 

 3   Finally, this gratitude to our Holy Mother will produce within us a great love and esteem for everything which concerns her service, and it will make us feel honoured to be included amongst the lowliest of her servants; we shall find more glory in the least title of her household than in any of the great dignities that are pursued by others with such ambition; we shall value being servants more highly than being high and mighty Lords over others; in short, we shall hold it a greater honour to serve in her Chapel or at her Altar than to have the privilege of entering the privy chamber of the greatest Monarch in the world. This is something we shall understand in an incomparably clearer way when the bright day of Eternity dawns for each of us and sweeps away the darkness in our lives. Our new, lived reality will then reveal wondrous secrets which we would never have discovered through our speculation. 

I will have more to say about this in Chapter 8 where I intend to deal more fully with the issues of gratitude and honour.

[End of Chapter 2]

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The Virgin of Tenderness. >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 2025 

Part IV : How to give thanks to the Mother of God : Chapter 2 : § 1.7-8

Chapter 2 : The high esteem in which the Mother of God is to be held – the first motive for showing our gratitude

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)

§ 1. The high esteem in which the Saints and God Himself hold the most sacred Virgin 

 1   These perfections have been shown as flowing from the inestimable Greatness of the Queen of Angels and they have all been supported by writings of Holy Doctors in Parts I-III. Readers will not have failed to note, however, that there is a perfection which is much higher than these and which the Doctors take as the principal and essential basis for the esteem due to this great Lady. Thou art Christ, the Son of the living God[1], the Prince of the Apostles said to Jesus Christ and with these words he believed he had said everything. In the same way, do you want to understand in a few words everything that can be conceived about the greatness and sublimity of the glorious Virgin? Simply say to her: Thou art Mary, the Mother of the living God. This dignity of being Mother is the just measure and matrix[2] of all her great dignities and privileges. Once this is perceived, you will see it is impossible to go any higher since you will have arrived by this means at the throne of the Divinity. As the Blessed Methodius[3] says: 

You will see her processing alongside God under one and the same imperial canopy by reason of the privilege she enjoys of her maternal relationship with Him. 

In our own day an optical device has been invented[4] which incorporates refraction and reflection using glass and mirrors, enabling the eye to see different parts of an image with an adjusted perspective which permits a true and more perfect representation. I would invite readers to recall the thoughts concerning the blessed Virgin which may be found throughout Parts I-III of this work and now view them through the optics represented by the words Mary and MOTHER OF GOD. If you contemplate her in majesty and glory, try to conceive the majesty and glory of the MOTHER OF GOD. If you look at her from the perspective of how holy she is, how admirable, how powerful, how good-natured and loving – then try to remember that what you are seeing is the holiness, the power, the goodness, the wonders and the privileges of the MOTHER OF GOD. By seeing things in this way you will find that everything about her causes you to be transported by astonishing ecstasies and raptures of love. Let us take satisfaction from what was said earlier on two occasions[5] and for anything more than that let us worship in silence that which it is better to revere in holy simplicity rather than to analyse with presumptuous curiosity.

Footnotes

[1] Matt. xvi. 16.

[2] matrix : a mould, form, die, etc. (see OED II.6). Etym. From Latin matrix with meaning of mother and by transf. womb, source, origin, cause.

[3] Orat. de Hypapante.

[4] See e.g., La Perspective Curieuse (Curious Perspectives) by Jean-François Niceron (1613-46) who was a French mathematician, Minim friar and painter of anamorphic art.

[5] Part I, ch. 2, & Part II, ch. 3.

 8   Consider how frequently it happens that when people visiting collections in galleries think that they have seen everything and are just on the point of leaving, they suddenly start to see new things and are slowly drawn back to look once more at what they had already seen – but in a new light and with a new perspective. I have found myself in this very position and with the same frame of mind. I felt I had said (at least in general terms) everything I thought was relevant to forming a high estimation of the glorious Virgin but then a certain idea occurred to me which caused me to revisit my thinking. 

It was at that moment, and not before, that I thought I had come across the true rule for understanding the great dignities and privileges of the MOTHER OF GOD. This is how my reasoning went : Since it is only in God’s eyes that a person may in truth be seen as that which he is, and since Eternal Wisdom cannot err when judging the value of things, where might we find a more just and fitting conception of the great dignities and privileges of the MOTHER OF GOD than in the divine understanding, for there may be found the true images and substantial ideas of the works He has produced? The Philosophers and Theologians teach with St Thomas[1] that the truth of each thing cannot be better perceived than in its conformity with the first understanding, which is that of God. Perhaps another comparison will make this clearer : artists maintain that images look better in the mirror than in their own body, and this is why they make use of them in portraits. In the light of this, consider how the understanding of God is the essential mirror of all the works He has created, a mirror in which their perfection appears much more perfectly than in themselves. One consequence of this is the Blessed Spirits look into this mirror rather than elsewhere when they want to form a true judgement of someone. From this it follows that often they make very little of things which we admire to distraction and, conversely, they highly esteem some things which we do not rate very much at all. 

I am well aware that it is not given to us to penetrate the secret of this light inaccessible in a way that would enable us to see things with clarity, but can we not discover some little rays of light coming through an opening somewhere? We can in fact have an idea of the esteem in which God holds people through the work He gives them and the office to which He appoints them. In view of this, are we not forced to agree that, since He judged the most sacred Virgin worthy of being the Mother of His only-begotten Son (the highest dignity that could be communicated to a simple creature), He must have esteemed her more highly than any other creature? What can I say of the honour that He wanted to be shown her as a result of the role and status He gave her and the signs he gave in confirmation of these? Who does not see in this just how highly we are to venerate this beautiful vessel of honour whom He set aside for such an excellent purpose and whom he did not cease to adorn and enrich until he saw her worthy and supremely suited to receive the Eternal Word taking human flesh and nature? Who would not judge but that our thinking and our conceptions are too primitive and coarse to form an idea that even comes close to all this? Accordingly, let us practise what we are obliged to do in several other mysteries of our faith : let us believe in that which we cannot comprehend and, through the esteem in which we hold God, let us value that which He Himself values even though we might not fully understand.

Footnotes

[1] Opusc. XLIV, c. 2, in fine.

  

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The Virgin of Tenderness. >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 2025 

Part IV : How to give thanks to the Mother of God : Chapter 2 : § 1.1-6

Chapter 2 : The high esteem in which the Mother of God is to be held – the first motive for showing our gratitude

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)

When speaking of the Gratitude which is due to the Queen of Heaven, I am going to name the first motive as being the high esteem in which we must hold her, this being a rule and measure for the rest. Just as gratitude is what causes the faculties of our soul to spring into action, it is the esteem we hold for something which governs the affection we bear towards it. It is not difficult for us to love and honour that which we highly esteem; on the contrary, in such cases we often need to be reined in rather than spurred on, so to speak. To show passion, however, for something we hold in little esteem seems to be in many ways beyond men’s capacity. This is why God, desirous of binding our hearts and affections to Himself with bonds of love and hope, has before everything else shone a ray of His celestial light into our minds. We call this light Faith and it has the property of revealing to us the greatness of His infinite perfections, prompting within us sublime thoughts of His divine Majesty. By means of these thoughts, He attracts our hearts and influences the movements of our wills according to His good pleasure. 

The principal aim of everything written so far in this work about the great dignities and privileges of the MOTHER OF GOD was to provide our minds with an elevated conception of her outstanding qualities. This notwithstanding, I feel obliged to present them again in the form of an abridged summary here in Part IV which I offer as an aide-mémoire for those desirous of learning to show their gratitude to our Holy Mother.

§ 1. The high esteem in which the Saints and God Himself hold the most sacred Virgin 

 1   Whom do men say that I am? the Saviour asked his disciples[1] one day in a private conversation with them. Some John the Baptist, they replied, and other some Elias, and others Jeremias, or one of the prophets. The Saviour then asked them: But whom do you say that I am? Then St Peter, acting as spokesman for all, made his oracular response which deserves to be written in letters of gold : Thou art Christ, the Son of the living God.   

Behold, says Victor of Antioch[2], the difference in judgement between the common people and the disciples concerning the Son of man. Although they all held Him in great esteem, it was natural enough that those who had been a longer time in His company and knew Him better than the others should have a higher opinion of him.

This is why the Saviour, according to St Jerome’s commentary[3], differentiated between His disciples and the ordinary people when it came to asking this question, as though they were more than men when it came to this judgement, and were not following mere external appearances but the Eternal Father’s revelation. 

In my opinion we would find a similar response if we were able to ask the majority of Christians how they felt about the Holy Virgin. Even though they all might have a high opinion, experience would nevertheless show that only those would form an estimation worthy of her greatness who, because they had showed more devotion towards her, had also received special enlightenment from Heaven. 

Footnotes

[1] Matth. xvi & Mark viii.

[2] In Comment. in hunc locum.

[3] In Comment. in hunc locum.

 2   There are some whose custom it is to measure greatness by external dignities and splendour. They picture her to themselves as a Princess resplendent with glory and majesty, seated on the throne of honour at the side of her beloved Son, surrounded by thousands of courtiers who acknowledge her as Queen of Heaven and earth, offering her every honour. This is a noble thought and it helps them to show respect when they are speaking to her or performing services for her.

 3   Others consider simply that Holiness alone matters and, following the image of the Sanctuary[1], their idea is that she has the purest of all the interior perfections possible in a soul. Their conception is of a plenitude of grace and blessings from Heaven surpassing anything that can be found in mere creatures. This idea, apart from imbuing them with feelings of respect and honour, imperceptibly draws into their souls through love and imitation the virtues which they most highly esteem and which they find embodied in the Queen of virtues to perfection. 

Footnotes

[1] Sanctuary : Lat. Sacrarium. See e.g., templum domini, sacrarium spiritus sancti : “The temple of the Lord, the sanctuary of the Holy Spirit,” [Benedictus antiphon from the Little Office of Blessed Virgin], quoted in The Angelic Salutation by Thomas Aquinas (tr. 1939).

 

 4   There are others who are struck more by the dazzling splendour of the great privileges flowing from her Excellence – as set forth in Part I of this work. They contemplate her as the first-born of simple creatures in the order of eternal predestination; as a true creation of grace, formed with her Son and untouched by any of Adam’s corruption; conceived that she might be included in his descent in order to sanctify the line; becoming the hope of Patriarchs, the object of prophecies, the one who was prefigured of old and the treasury of Heavenly graces. They never cease to marvel at her fruitful Virginity, her virginal Motherhood and at thousands of other miracles of nature, grace and glory. They use these like so many precious gemstones to conceive of her as the pearl of great price, the wonder of all wonders and the foremost prodigy in all the world. 

 5   Some may be found who base their high esteem for her on the Greatness of her Power. They look upon her as the Princess and Sovereign Lady of the Universe, whose domain incorporates the whole order of nature and of grace; as being All-Powerful (after her Son) and as one who works great miracles; as Ruler over the Church, as Commander of God’s armies, as source of strength for Princes, as protecting people, bringing victory and triumph for Christians, casting Satan into confusion and terror. They never cease to praise her power of vanquishing death, penetrating hell, healing the sick and and injured, appeasing divine Justice and providing effective intercession and mediation so that all those she has taken under her protection may attain salvation.

 6   Those who have had particular experience of her mercy and her gentle heart have higher thoughts and more tender feelings about her goodness. They would like there to be no one who did not know that she is in truth the Mother of fair love and of eternal mercy; that she is a bottomless fountain of love and affection for everyone, at all times and in all their necessities; that there is no sinner so great he will not find in her a safe refuge, nor so desperate that he will not find consolation with her; that she has never turned anyone away and never ceases to do good; but that most especially that there is no one like her when it comes to looking after her children, even in the smallest of things; that she draws them out of the snares of sin and misery in despite of hell; that she rears them, teaches them and guides them to perfection in an altogether wonderful way; that she comes to offer them protection, consolation and reassurance at the hour of their death; finally, that she leads them into Heaven with her own hands. 

Praise be to God! How blessed these souls are with thoughts so gentle as these, not only filling their hearts with consolation but also helping them to honour with such worthy esteem the privileges and gifts of the most sacred Virgin’s Greatness! It seems that, just as amongst the attributes of God it is His goodness which best expresses for us the perfection of His nature, in the same way the Virgin and the Saints feel a special desire for us to esteem in them the goodness and the charity that God has communicated to them.

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The Virgin of Tenderness. >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 2025 

Part IV : How to give thanks to the Mother of God : Chapter 1 : § 1.2-5

Chapter 1 : Understanding the basis of Part IV

The reasons we have for offering thanksgiving to 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)

The merits of the Holy Virgin : second reason 

 2   Secondly, we are drawn towards gratitude by the sweet fragrance of her Greatness from which her numerous gifts drop down from Heaven like dew. It has been fittingly said in this connection that the task of gathering in the beautiful harvest of divine blessings belongs to the Graces, the daughters of Heaven, and that a simple feeling of heartfelt thanks within us is all that is required to compensate for our inability to satisfy our debt of gratitude. There was once a Temple built by the ancients to honour Jupiter in the city of Cyzicus, near the Straits of Gallipoli. The Temple was covered all over with precious stones but they were set and arranged with such skill and artistry that there was not one which did not reflect light upon the statue of the God being adored. By this they wished to convey the idea that the blessings of heaven are as good as lost if there is no return to the source of their origin, and God would be enriching us with his gifts in vain if he did not receive in return some tribute of glory. Consider how vessels laden with precious cargoes arriving from foreign lands are stopped and required to pay tolls. In much the same way, souls who have received the most beautiful graces from God are also those most obliged to make a faithful payment of Heaven’s dues. I have to confess, however, that if there were an attempt to draw from from all the powers of our souls a distillation of the gratitude found therein, this would not amount to the least drop of the sweetness coming from the loving heart of the Mother of Grace. Does this mean then that we should lose heart at being unable to do everything we might like to do? Are we to abandon everything because our own feelings will never rise to the heights of the benefits we have received? On the contrary, it must for us be a source of singular satisfaction that she should be so incomparably higher than our human powers can reach and that we should be so far from being able to attain the greatness of her merits. What is needed is for us to pay our debt of gratitude as much with what we cannot do as with what we can; since here what is willed is accepted for what has been done, and what the will desires to do is valued as much as what it can actually offer in practice.   

The claims of the Holy Virgin : third reason 

 3   Thirdly, we are obliged to show gratitude by reason of the just claims of the Holy Virgin who chose us for her beloved children only on condition that her love for us should be matched by love and appreciation on our part. Just as God made a promise in connection with David’s son Solomon as follows : I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son[1] , in the same way she promises us that she will always be a most dear, loving and faithful Mother provided that we behave like true children towards her. This means that we will not simply accept the favours she sends us, but that we will respond with love, returning our grateful affection as best we can to her who is the source of these blessings. Any child who does not feel in this way is not really a child but more like a moving statue or an animated rock; or if he is a child, then he cannot be legitimate; or if he passes himself off as such, then all he can expect in the end is to miss out on all the hopes of those who are true children by adoption. It would be better for them to die than to than to place themselves in such a state as to practise deception by falsely claiming the honourable title of children of the MOTHER OF GOD. We pray that in her goodness she will protect us from such a fate and we pray too that, amongst all the other obligations we may have towards her, we remember this one : to show esteem and gratitude for the blessings that come to us through her hands in every way that she might want us to.  

Footnotes

[1] 2 Kings (2 Samuel) vii. 14.

The fruits of gratitude : fourth reason 

 4   Finally, we are obliged by the affection we have for ourselves since the only way of remaining in her good grace and of enabling a continual growth in her favours is to show that the ones we have received are deeply rooted in our memory. In his consideration of Hebrew tradition, St Jerome[1] notes that :

 

The terrible illness with which Ezechias was sick even to death[2] was a just punishment for his ingratitude. He had gained a great victory over the Assyrians in which Heaven had appeared on his side but he had made no effort whatsoever to offer songs of praise and thanksgiving to God –  as Moses had done after seeing Pharaoh drowned in the waters of the Red Sea, or Deborah after defeating the Captain Sisara, or Anna the wife of Elcana after having received as a gift from God her little baby Samuel, fruit of prayers and of blessings.

The author of Wisdom expresses this idea very effectively when he says that the hope of the unthankful shall melt away as the winter’s ice, and shall run off as unprofitable water[3] without penetrating the ground.

St Bernard[4] declares that:

Ungratefulness is the mortal enemy of the soul and any progress that it might make. It erases merits, ruins virtues and withdraws benefits; it is like a wind causing the fount of goodness to run dry and the dew of mercy to evaporate. It causes the flow of graces from Heaven to be blocked off. 

St John Chrystostom[5] contrasts this with: 

gratitude, which is a treasure of inestimable value and a source of blessings that can never be exhausted. 

This is why the great St Basil[6] weighs most wisely the following words from Psalm 115: What shall I render to the Lord, for all the things he hath rendered unto me? In his commentary, he says that:

Our offerings of gratitude oblige God to confer new benefits upon us and even if he receives from us only that which is due to him as interest on what he has given us, He is nevertheless so generous towards us that He deposits it in our savings so that it forms part of our capital held with Him. This means that there can be no movement of our heart which does not result in profit with Him.

All this must also be understood of the Queen of Heaven insofar as she partakes of the goodness and generosity of God. From this it follows that in proportion as we love ourselves and seek our own interest, then we should to the same extent apply ourselves to multiplying whatever talents[7] we receive from Heavenly graces in the holy and divine bank. The Queen Mother, who holds the keys to her Son’s savings bank, calls upon us ; our own personal interests urge us; God Himself wills this; and if the voice of conscience may be heard, it would say not to let slip these wondrous occasions available for the profit of souls. What is there which could possibly frustrate our affections or paralyse our wishes?

Footnotes

[1] Lib. II, Commentar. in Isaiam.

[2] Isai. xxxviii.

[3] Wisdom xvi. 29.

[4] Serm. 52 in Cant.

[5] Homil. 1 ad pop. Antioch.

[6] Homil. 5 in Martyrem Julittam.

[7] Cf. Matt. xxv. 15 et seq. 

 5   Since we have seen all sorts of holy considerations which oblige us to show our gratitude towards the MOTHER OF GOD, I believe the time has now come to examine the means we have available to us for putting this royal virtue into practice.

 [End of Chapter 1]

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The Virgin of Tenderness. >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 2025 

Part IV : How to give thanks to the Mother of God : Chapter 1 : § 1.1

Part IV : How to give thanks to the Mother of God for her qualities of Greatness in terms of the Excellence, Power and Goodness we have set forth

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)

Introduction

If that which St John Damascene[1] and St Andrew of Jerusalem[2] teach – namely that what the Catholic Church tells us is true when explaining that the Blessed Virgin was prefigured of old by the mysterious ladder that Jacob saw – then it seems to me that I would have good reason for saying that the Holy Spirit’s beautiful image is meant to reveal that just as the Angels come down to us unceasingly with their hands full of graces granted to the Holy Virgin for our benefit, in the same way they must return to Heaven laden with our acts of thanksgiving and our feelings of gratitude for the many gifts received through her mediation. It is this consideration which has made me add this supplement to our early discussions (in Parts I-III) about the Blessed Virgin’s Great Splendours which she enjoys as MOTHER OF GOD. Accordingly, in Part IV my aim is to present how we should offer thanksgiving, considering all she is for us and what we are for her, both in a general and in a particular sense. 

Footnotes

[1] Orat. de Nativit. B. Virg.

[2] Orat. 1 de Dormit. B. Virg.

Chapter 1 : Understanding the basis of Part IV

The reasons we have for offering thanksgiving to the MOTHER OF GOD

The propriety and seemliness[1] of thanksgiving : first reason 

In the first place, we are called to offer thanksgiving because it is proper and seemly to do so. I have to admit that I have never understood the subtleness of a rejoinder made by a certain Furnius, even though several writers have chosen to place it among the great witticisms from antiquity. This worthy Roman thought he had paid a fine compliment to Caesar (who had given him help in a most important matter) when he complained to him that this had burdened him with the necessity of living and dying ungrateful. Let others make of this what they will but as far as I am concerned it seems this riposte was strikingly cool, since there is nothing that can make us guilty of ingratitude except ill will on our part. Anyone who has no wish to be ungrateful cannot incur its reproach and to maintain the opposite is to show complete ignorance of the essence of this vice. The great moral philosopher Seneca says in this connection[2]:

The only person who deserves to be called ungrateful is someone who denies the fact that he has incurred this duty through a gift he has been given, who misrepresents or hides the benefit he has received, who has not the least desire to offer thanks when he can, and above all, who erases from his memory the benefit he is received. 

This means that whoever makes an effort to remember such things, and who is willing to give proof of his gratitude for being showered with benefits when occasion presents itself, cannot be considered an ingrate – particularly since this word is one of the most offensive that can be pronounced amongst men. Seneca writes on this as follows[3]:  

I certainly agree that it is indeed a terrible thing to be considered a murderer, a robber or an adulterer; it is however far worse to have the reputation of being an ingrate, for a person cannot be said to bear the stain of the former crimes without having first been blackened by the latter.

This vice, says Saint Anselm[4], is at the root of every spiritual evil. There is nothing more iniquitous in the world, writes St Ambrose[5]. You will not be able to find any sort of evil which does not flow from this, says the Roman Orator Cicero[6]. 

Apart from this, being in a state of ingratitude and being thankful for what has been given are just as different from one another as earth and Heaven. It may come to pass (indeed it happens every day) that someone may be so indebted to another that he will find it impossible to discharge the debt of gratitude he owes. He will, however, not be ungrateful unless he acts contrary to nature and allows his mind to lose sight of his memory of the benefits he has received, so that his will no longer feels the love which would cause him to show his gratitude for them. It is quite beyond our power to repay our parents all that we owe them, and much less to match with our services the benefits and favours received from His divine Majesty. The same is true in a proportionate sense regarding what the Queen of Heaven has given us, always remembering that no one will be ungrateful towards her who does himself not choose to be so. She looks into our hearts and is pleased by the recognition we show for her gifts and by even the least little service we perform to show our gratitude. 

From this I conclude that those who are able to give her such satisfaction at so little cost to themselves are criminally responsible when they harden their hearts to any gentle feelings of gratitude for the great gifts they have received. Their minds are utterly unworthy of seeing the light and even more so of experiencing the tender affection of the generous heart of the MOTHER OF GOD. 

May her dear children be protected from such a wretched vice, from feelings so little befitting their condition and from such dreadful baseness of the mind! May their hearts be suffused with gratitude and bring forth fruits worthy of being wondered at by men and Angels, of pleasing the Queen of Heaven and of attracting finally the favourable gaze of Him in whom all loving generosity and gratitude have their ultimate end!

Footnotes

[1] The French text here has honnêteté, derived from the Latin honestas which includes senses of morality, integrity and seemliness: see DMLBS in Logeion. This sense of the word honesty existed in English but became obsolete in the 18th century: see OED 1.2. 

[2] Senec., lib. III de Benefic., c. 1.

[3] Lib. I de Benefic., c. 10.

[4] Soliloquium, c. 18.

[5] Præfat. in Psal. 35.

[6] Ad Attic., lib. VIII.

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The Virgin of Tenderness. >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 2025