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) |
§ 4. The care that the Holy Virgin has for all the Orders in the Church
Her care for those in authority within the Church
1 St Paul most certainly had a very good reason for calling the Church a great house[1], since before him the Saviour had honoured it with this name[2]. If we pause to consider the extent of its vast domain, the number of its departments and the multiplicity of its offices, I am sure we will agree that it belongs to God alone to know everything that is done within the Church, to appoint each one to his position and task, and to show a particular care for everyone and everything. Now, in order to rule over a handful of people, so to speak, it was necessary for God to fill Moses with His spirit, but He did this so generously that when there arose a need to provide him with special Lieutenants[3], it was found that Moses had enough to share[4] with seventy of the ancients of the people, who were appointed to resolve differences and disagreements.
If this was the case with Moses, I leave you to imagine what He must have done for the blessed Virgin, to whom he entrusted the administration of all His Estates and responsibility for managing all the Orders of the Church. What capacity and what celestial strength of mind must she have received to know in detail the whole state of this great Monarchy, to provide for so many offices, to manage so many affairs and to make everything succeed according to the eternal designs of God? We find ourselves astonished to see St Paul under the pressure of his many tasks and projects; we can all agree he must have been an extraordinary man, or rather, a man specially selected and helped in an extraordinary manner by God so that he could visit so many countries, found so many Churches, consecrate so many Bishops – in a word, to do all this and at the same time be everything for everybody. In view of this, we should not wonder to see how the Holy Virgin prepares Apostles, chooses Monarchs, helps Prelates to become established, supports Martyrs in their trials, inspires Confessors, multiplies Virgins, and shows a special care for everyone and everything in the House of God. Her approach is calm and measured, but she has an eye for every significant detail. She is a most perfect imitation, insofar as this is possible for a simple creature, of the sovereign immutability and the infinite capacity of divine understanding.
Footnotes
[1] II Tim. ii. 20. See also: O Israel, how great is the house of God, and how vast is the place of his possession! Baruch iii. 24.
[2] In my Father's house there are many mansions. John xiv. 2.
[3] Num. xi.
[4] That I may come down and speak with thee: and I will take of thy spirit, and will give to them. Num. xi. 17.
Her care for the Martyrs
2 The poor Queen of Saba once found herself lost in astonishment when she saw the order of Solomon’s royal house and reflected on how everything about it was controlled in one man’s head. I prefer to follow his father David and lose myself in contemplation of the wonders of the Lord’s works and the honour that He showed to a simple creature by placing His domain and empire in her hands. To tell the truth, this is one of the sweetest and most sublime of all thoughts that can inspire the heart and the mind. Take a moment, if you will, to consider the state of the nascent Church after the death of the Redeemer. See how this good Mother busies herself in forming these Masters and Teachers of the world, polishing what her beloved Son had begun and the Holy Spirit had completed. The affection here is mutual for she cherishes these men as her own children and they offer to her the honour that a Mother deserves. She is the living Oracle that St Peter consults when encountering difficulties in the early Church, she is the star that St Paul follows on his voyages and the guide that accompanies him on his travels. St Matthew, Saint Mark, Saint Luke and St John all seek her enlightenment about several mysteries, notably the Incarnation, the infancy and childhood of the Saviour. St James, Bishop of Jerusalem undertakes nothing without consulting her, and her help is always readily available. The other St James keeps her informed about what is happening in Spain and of the limited progress that is being made there. She comes like a loving Mother, arriving on the spot in a miraculous manner to console him and to raise his spirits. All of them have recourse to her in their needs but this is especially true of the beloved Disciple. He was entrusted with caring for her and he has the honour of her company everywhere. As a result, he also has a greater share than the others in her holy opinions, in her divinely inspired instruction and in the heavenly example that she sets.
3 The Saviour had foretold that the beginnings of His church would be stormy and that all the powers of hell would conspire to overturn it. Was it not therefore expedient for Him to leave to His Church her who as Ruler and Guide would be most capable of foreseeing all the dangers that could threaten, who would be able to restrain and moderate some whilst supporting and encouraging others, and serving all with her advice and help? It is indeed consoling to see how some were fortified by her presence, others were consoled and inspired by the letters she sent, and in general everyone was helped and supported by the power of her continual prayer. Those who have written about the Holy Land insist that even today you can see the stone where the Virgin prayed on her two knees whilst St Stephen struggled with the hard-heartedness of the Jews who would stone him him to death. From this point on she took possession of his office and gave witness in the person of the first martyr of what she would do when she finally came to her place of rest, where she could devote all her time to thinking of others. This is why well instructed Christians have always believed that those who may face martyrdom should keep her as their close friend, knowing that she holds in her hands their palms and laurels. This was understood very well by St Theodore and St Theophones who were brothers reared from their childhood in the monastery of St Sabbas[1]. They had been sent into exile on the orders of the Emperor Leo the Armenian for defending holy images and icons. Following orders from Theophilos the Iconoclast, they were cruelly scourged and tortured in many ways but they never ceased to have recourse to the Queen of Martyrs, entreating her help. The same Theodore, who died in prison a short time afterwards, wrote of this in his own hand to John, Bishop of Cyzicus[2], in the region of Gallipoli, formerly known as the Hellespont.
Footnotes
[1] One of the oldest monasteries in the world: Mar Saba in Palestine’s West Bank. Named after St. Sabbas the Sanctified (“Savva” among Slavic Christians).
[2] The French text has Cycico which appears to be Cyzicus, a Mysian town in the Propontis. The closest modern village is Aşağıyapıcı & the nearest modern city is Erdek.
4 The memory of the Blessed Martyr Andrew of Chios will live eternally and, for as long as he is remembered, people will never forget the help that he received from the MOTHER OF GOD.
This indomitable hero died on the 29th of May in the year 1463. He was a native of the isle and town of Chios where from his childhood onwards he had offered himself up to the Queen of Heaven. He had later made a formal vow consecrating his virginity through her to God. He was captured by the Muhammadans and, since he refused to give up his faith, he was taken to Constantinople where he would be given a fine stage on which to demonstrate to the enemies of the faith what Christian courage can achieve when strengthened by the grace of God and the protection of His holy Mother.
He was tortured in various ways for nine consecutive days, during which he displayed an invincible patience which shone like a diamond through all the cruelties that these barbarians inflicted upon him. On the first day, he was beaten with rods and scourged so ferociously that at first he was seized by a great trembling from head to toe; but he calmly folded his arms on his chest and as soon as he had uttered these words: Holy Virgin, come unto mine aid, he immediately felt so comforted that he stayed with his feet together on the same spot and in the same posture until sunset. On the following day, they ripped his flesh with iron nails; on the third day, they dislocated all his joints; on the fourth, they stripped the flesh from his shoulders. To sum up : from then until the ninth day, they exposed bone in every part of his body. At the beginning of each of these torments, he would summon the Holy Virgin’s help, and during this long martyrdom he kept her constantly in his heart and in his thoughts. On the evening of the ninth day, she healed him miraculously from all his wounds. On the following day he was beheaded and at that instant he surrendered his spirit into the hands of this tender-hearted Mother who had obtained for him such constancy and fortitude. With permission from the grand Sultan, the Christians took possession of his body and gave it an honourable burial. After several months had elapsed, the sepulchre was opened and his sacred remains were found to be as fresh and incorrupt as if he were still alive and full of health.
All these details are described by Gregory of Trebizond[1], a serious minded author whose account is worthy of belief. He was present at the opening of the tomb when the sacred body of this blessed martyr could be seen. He was able to verify what I have just written by speaking to countless eyewitnesses of what happened. All this is just a sample of the evidence which could be adduced to prove the love shown by the Blessed Virgin towards those whom she cherishes and honours to the point of obtaining for them the grace of being able to shed their blood and offer their life to her most beloved Son in return for the blood and life that He Himself offered for men.
Footnotes
[1] Trebizond: Modern Trabzon, a city on the Black Sea coast of north-eastern Turkey. The Empire of Trebizond, based in the city, was one of the three successor states to the Byzantine Empire, lasting from 1204 to 1461.
5 Whilst we are on the subject of Martyrs, I cannot allow myself to pass over in silence the sufferings of the Japanese martyrs, twenty six of whom were crucified in the year 1597 in sight of the city of Nagasaki[1] on a small hill bearing a strong likeness to Calvary. These blessed soldiers of Christ included six members of the Discalced Observant Order and three members of the Society of Jesus, whilst the majority of the others were servants or close friends of the aforementioned Franciscan Fathers. They showed miraculous fortitude in their struggle to stand up for their beloved Master, having appealed to the most sacred Virgin to provide them with protection and constancy in their time of trial. In thanksgiving, the Christians promised God that as soon as the time came when they would be allowed to practise their religion in peace, they would build a Church on the site of the martyrdom, in honour of the MOTHER OF GOD and they would call the Church Our Lady of the Martyrs.
Footnotes
[1] For a short article on the persecution of Catholics in Japan, culminating in the bombing of Nagasaki in 1945, see: The Bombing of Japanese Catholicism, by James Bogle (2024).
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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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