Chapter 7 : The Sixth Star or Splendour of the Crown of Power of the MOTHER OF GOD
She rules and guides the Church
Continuing our translation of the 1845 reprint of Fr François Poiré's Triple Crown of the Mother of God (1643 French edition).
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| Notre Dame des Grâces, Cotignac.(Poggi, 2020) |
§ 2. The Holy Virgin truly rules and guides the Church
1 The diligent historian of the Eastern Empire, George Codinus (who is known by some as Curopalates[1], because of his responsibilities within the Imperial Palace), describes a remarkable custom which was kept at the Court of the Emperor of Constantinople.
He says that once the table had been cleared after dinner, two Officers would enter the room whereupon the Emperor would stand on a stool which was held steady by two pages. Then he would dutifully and respectfully carry out the ceremony which I am going to describe. One of the Officers would be carrying wine in a golden cup along with a napkin; the other would have in his hand a golden plate bearing a piece of bread, which they called Panagia[2]. As soon as they appeared before him, they would bow respectfully and the Emperor would himself bow before the mysterious offering. After this, all those present would cry out with one voice: Panagia, panagia! The Officer carrying the plate would then place it in the hands of the Equerry[3] who would pass it on to the Lord Great Chamberlain, who would present it to the Emperor. Once he had reverently taken and eaten the bread and had swallowed a mouthful of wine, he would signal his permission to the Lord Chamberlain (and those accompanying him) to take their leave, wishing them long years of life, in the same way as they had for him
Various researchers have tried to find the origin of this custom and it seems to me that a modern writer[4] has had the good fortune to discover it in a work called L’Horloge des Grecs[5]. There it is written that the tradition dates from the Apostles
who after the death of the Saviour, whether eating together or alone, would always leave the place of honour empty but supplied with a pillow and a place setting, out of respect for the memory of their beloved Master, with whom they had drunk and eaten so many times. At the end of the meal, after the breaking and distribution of the bread, they would chant the following words: Glory be to Thee, O God, glory to the Father, glory to the Son, and glory to the Holy Ghost. Great is the name of the most Holy Trinity. Lord Jesus, come unto our aid. From Easter until Pentecost, however, instead of the words: Great is the name of the most Holy Trinity, they would say[6]: The Lord has risen.Now it came to pass that all the Apostles journeyed to Jerusalem in order to be present for the funeral and procession of the glorious Virgin, their beloved Mother. On the third day after her death, having returned from Gethsemane, they were taking their meal at table together when, just as they had begun the ceremony, the Holy Virgin appeared above them, surrounded in light and glory. This caused them no less joy than astonishment, so that instead of chanting the words which would follow their customary thanksgiving, they all cried out with one voice: Panagia Deipara, adjuva nos: meaning, All holy Mother of God, come unto our aid; to which she replied, her face filled with gentleness and majesty : I am with you forever.
Most Holy Lady, with our hands joined in prayer and an open heart, we receive these thy auspicious words and we look forward in the hope of gathering fruits of wondrous sweetness from thy pleasing promise.
Footnotes
[1] Curopalates : Greek: κουροπαλάτης, from Latin: cura palatii, Byzantine official "in charge of the palace." Codinus is believed to have been active towards the end of the 15th century.
[2] Panagia : from Παναγία, the All-Holy, the Virgin Mary; holy bread (in the Eastern Church). See DMLBS.
[3] Equerry (in Fr. Écuyer): officer of the royal household, charged with the duty of occasional attendance on the sovereign.
[4] Gretser, Comment. in Codinum, c. 2. [Jacob Gretser S.J. (1562-1625) produced a version of Codinus. See footnote 5 below].
[5] Lit. The Clock (or “measuring the hours”) of the Greeks. Enquiries have so far failed to trace this work. A possible starting point for readers proficient in Greek and Latin may be : De officialibus palatii cpolitani et de officiis magnae ecclesiae liber, by Codinus, George, with a proemium by Jacob Gretser.
[6] Christus resurrexit (Christ has risen).
2 Having been crowned on high Queen of Heaven and Earth, and recognised as Lady and Mistress[1] over the whole of her Son’s Kingdom, it was in truth most fitting that the Holy Virgin should have brought this good news in person to the Holy Apostles before everyone else; especially since her most venerable Son had Himself granted them the very same favour. The Evangelist St Matthew bears witness as follows[2] to the kind heart of the Saviour who, just before He ascended into Heaven, reassured them that all power in Heaven and in earth had given to Him by His Father, and promising them that He would be with them and their successors all days, even to the consummation of the world.
In this I discern a great consolation for the children of the MOTHER OF GOD in particular and for the whole Church in general : namely, that she should have chosen to make use of the same words as her Son, and with the same meaning, promising them her help and assistance until the end of the world. She could not have done otherwise because her Son’s kingdom is her own, and they share the same subjects and the same power, even though this belongs to the Son by right of generation and to the Mother by virtue of her Son. This difference must always be recognised and yet it is nevertheless the will of the King of glory for His Mother to share absolute sovereignty over His Kingdom and over His subjects, that she should have the nomination of all its Officers, that she should watch over their behaviour and the way they carry out their duties, that she should be authorised to sign off graces and favours, to be responsible for laws and ordinances – in short : that she should as Queen and Ruler co-regnant with Him share in all His royal functions. These are the reasons which persuaded me to write that she truly rules and guides the Church, which is no less than the spiritual kingdom of the Saviour.
Footnotes
[1] Mistress: The female head of a family, household ... in conjunction with a male counterpart; e.g., (1413) She bare hyr seluen boldely, right as she were maystresse, and hadde alle the gouernement of the kyng, and his houshold. G. Deguileville, Pilgrimage of Soul.
[2] Matt. xxviii. 16-20.
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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.
The Virgin of Tenderness. >12th century.
Totus tuus ego sum
Et omnia mea tua sunt;
Tecum semper tutus sum:
Ad Jesum per Mariam.
© Peter Bloor 2025
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