Part II : The Crown of Power : Chapter 7 : § 3.1-3

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).

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

§ 3. The care taken by the MOTHER OF GOD in conserving and propagating the faith

 1   Fundamental law is to the temporal sphere what true faith and right belief are to the spiritual kingdom of Jesus Christ – which is to say, the Church. This is why it is no wonder that the Virgin has always taken most particular care in conserving and spreading the faith. To consider, for example, nothing more than what she has done since the death of her Son and her Assumption into Heaven, who could have any idea of the number of ways in which she has affirmed Catholic doctrine and extended the boundaries of the Empire of Jesus Christ? I shall not mention now the care that she has always had of the Pastors and Prelates, who are the Fathers of the Church and upon whom depends the well being of Religion (for that will be dealt with below). I will say only in passing what St Gregory of Nyssa tells us in the life of St Gregory Thaumaturgus, namely:

One day the MOTHER OF GOD appeared to this servant of hers, and she was accompanied by Saint John the Evangelist  who was wearing pontifical vestments. She asked him to explain to his friend Gregory the mystery of the most holy Trinity. The Holy Apostle fulfilled this request in such a worthy manner that as soon as the encounter had ended, St Gregory put down in writing everything that he had just heard. By means of this, he preserved his church in Neocaesarea from error, passing on to them the belief that they were to hold in terms written in his own hand.

Accordingly, I do not find it in the least strange that St Basil[1] was so proud of imbibing with his mother’s milk, so to speak, the faith that St Macrina[2] (his grandmother and his spiritual nurse) had taught him using the words of the same St Gregory. On the contrary, I honour this with all my heart, granted that the same belief was later presented to the fifth general synod, in the form that we now have it amongst the writings of St Gregory of Neocaesarea. The benefit this brought inestimable benefits to the Church over so many centuries.

Footnotes

[1] Epist. 64, 75, 79.

[2] The French text has Marine but this appears to be a reference to St Macrina the Elder, who was a disciple of Saint Gregory the Wonderworker and grandmother of Saint Basil the Great and Gregory of Nyssa. See: St Macrina the Elder in the Catholic Encyclopedia.

The Holy Virgin’s solicitude for supplying the Church with good Preachers

 2   Who cannot fail to be aware of how important good Preachers are for extending the boundaries of the Saviour’s kingdom, for supporting the faith where it has already been established, for reigniting it where it has been extinguished, and for spreading the word where it has yet to be heard? For in the end, Faith cometh by hearing[1], reaching the ears of the faithful and of the infidels by means of Preachers. It would not take long to explain how those Preachers who came to help the Church have been so many men commissioned by the MOTHER OF GOD who, apart from disposing them to this calling, took great pains to help them with her graces as well. Here is an example of this general point : who is there who has not heard how she was the one who brought into the world the Holy Order of Friars Preachers? Who cannot be aware of how many ways she helped them at the beginning to bring forth fruit worthy of the loving womb in which they had been conceived? Here is a particular example taken from the life of St Peter of Verona, commonly known as the Martyr, who was himself of the Dominican Order:

Pope Innocent IV, who had been in the same Order, sent Peter into the region of Lombardy to defend it against an invasion of ravenous wolves – namely, various heretics who were launching their attacks upon the faith with as much cunning as violence and arrogance. He warmly commended this mission to the Queen of Heaven, for he was in no doubt that he had received this commission from her. At one point, whilst he was transported with great fervour, he heard the voice of his beloved Mother who was reassuring him in the same way that the Saviour had spoken to Peter, his patron saint, telling him:

“Peter, I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not.”[2]

In the end, Peter showed such courage in holding to his faith that he sealed it with his own blood. On the same day that he was slain by the heretics a blessed soul, who was far distant from the place of the martyrdom, saw the MOTHER OF GOD between two saints and it was revealed to him that one of these was Peter of Verona of the Order of Friars Preachers who had just shed his blood in defence of the faith. This was verified by checking the date and the time of the Holy Martyr’s death which matched the deposition written by this soul beloved of God.

Footnotes

[1] Rom. x. 17.

[2] Luke xxii. 32.

 3   It is reported in the life of St Dominic that in a Cistercian monastery situated in Tuscany (known popularly as San Galgano):

there was a brother called James who was widely reputed for his holiness on account of his childlike simplicity and his numerous virtues. He would often listen to the sermons of a Dominican preacher, deriving great pleasure and satisfaction from them. The MOTHER OF GOD decided to reward the devotion of this good hearted brother by allowing him to witness the singular favours that she would communicate to the Preacher, her servant. As a result, whilst James was listening one day to the sermon as usual, he saw the Holy Virgin holding a book open in front of the Preacher who was reading word for word what he was teaching to his listeners. He also had an experience whilst he was present during the sermon of another Dominican preacher, when he saw the Mother of gentleness standing by the side of the Preacher, and whispering in his ear what he was to say and how he was to say it during the sermon. This caused such an explosion of devotion within James towards this holy Order that he wished everyone could join it so as to help in winning souls.

It has to be admitted that not everyone merits these extraordinary graces, but I for my part have no doubt that the majority of zealous preachers are able to benefit in ways that cannot be seen from this special assistance of the most Holy Virgin. This is without doubt the belief of the Church for it was not without reason that she directed those called to such an honourable ministry should at the beginning of their sermons always implore the Queen of Heaven for her help. Through this the Church wants them to realise that, just as the Virgin is the Mother of the eternal word of God, in the same way she administers the temporal word. It is her privilege to distribute this to all those who are proclaiming the word to others, filling them with strength and zeal so that they can penetrate and melt hearts that have grown hard and set on fire minds that have grown cold.

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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