Part III : The Crown of Goodness : Chapter 6 : § 4.3-5

Chapter 6 : The Fifth Star or Splendour of the Crown of Goodness of the MOTHER OF GOD

She is a true model of generosity towards her children

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)

§ 4. The generosity of the MOTHER OF GOD towards her children when it comes to the virtues

Hope

 3   Hope is the sister-german of Faith and is a sure anchorage for the Christian, a support for the soul, alleviating life’s labours and advancing the happiness of the Blessed. This helps to explain why we call the Holy Virgin our hope[1] and why she has a wondrous ability to bring on this virtue within our souls. I will be dealing later[2] with the way she re-awakens hope in those who have almost lost it but here I want us to consider something greater. When she has taken entire possession of a soul, she plants therein a certain confidence which is so solid that nothing can shake it, and it becomes like a rock which holds firm against even the greatest problems that come crashing upon it. I will cite only one example, that of Joseph Anchieta, a fellow Jesuit considered as the Thaumaturgus or miracle-worker of our day[3].   

At one point he found himself in the middle of Brazil amongst the Tamoios, as fierce and savage people as ever lived, but he treated them as though he were amongst his best friends. Although these Indians felt a certain respect towards him, they could not hold back their natural savagery and told him that on a particular day he would be killed, roasted and eaten in accordance with their cruel custom. He replied to them with a remarkable confidence that this would not come to pass and that his hour had not yet come. Without troubling himself further, he set to composing a poem in Latin[4] (a language he understood very well) about the MOTHER OF GOD and indeed it was she who had given him this remarkable hope and confidence.   

Footnotes

[1] Spes nostra, (as in the Salve Regina of Hermannus Contractus)

[2] Chap. 11, § 2.

[3] An. 1553 in Vita ipsius.

[4] See extracts in The “Poem to the Virgin” (By Francisco de Assis Silveira) with references cited. 

Charity towards God

 4   There would be good reason to wonder if the holy Virgin did not have a particular inclination to set the hearts of her children on fire with true Charity. In fact, when I consider all those whom she has cherished most tenderly, I find them all in this respect most worthy children of the Mother of fair love. Amongst those whom I said earlier[1] were led into the Society of her Son, I mentioned Stanislaus Kostka and Father Sebastian Barradas. 

The first was a true child of the MOTHER OF GOD and he seemed to have a furnace of love in his breast. People frequently had to cover his chest with cloths that had been soaked in cold water so as to cool the ardour of his heart which might otherwise have consumed him until he was no more. 

The second felt himself so frequently on fire within that on more than one occasion they had to send for Thomas Rodriguez, a most excellent physician, to diagnose what was wrong with Fr Sebastian as he seemed on the point of expiring as a result of the way his heavenly feelings of love were undermining and taking away his strength. After the physician had taken his pulse and listened to his chest, he said: 

“Would to God that I were suffering from this complaint;  his condition results from the love of God, and our Galen has nothing to say about it.” 

Footnotes

[1] Chap. 5, § ult.

Charity towards neighbours

 5   Since Love of one’s neighbour is inseparable from love of God, it is no wonder to find the Virgin who takes such care in promoting and advancing the one should not at the same time also be keen to plant the other in men’s hearts. Rigord, Physician and Chronicler under Philip Augustus, recounts the following story of love towards one’s neighbour.  

Under the reign of this great Monarch, in the year of Our Lord 1183, the King of Aragon and Count Raymond of Saint-Gilles fell out and developed such a state of animosity towards each other that they could not even bear to hear talk of reconciliation. The whole world seemed to divide into two camps, each supporting one or the other party in this terrible quarrel. At this point, the Queen of Heaven intervened to make peace and appeared to a poor and simple man called Durand, a resident in the town of Puy. She entrusted him with the Commission of reconciling these two embittered parties, something which was greatly desired by all men of goodwill. In confirmation of her commission, she gave Durand a painted image of the Virgin holding her Son in her arms and surrounding the image were the following words : Lamb of God who taketh away the sins of the world, grant us peace. This miracle spread quickly by word of mouth and reached the ears of the Bishop of Puy who promptly carried out a careful investigation of what had happened. He found Durand to be a straight forward man with notable strength of character and, using him as a mediator, he arranged a meeting between the two princes who had by chance both come to visit Notre-Dame-du-Puy. As soon as they heard the man of God speak, their hearts softened to such an extent that they became as gentle and meek as lambs, compared to the lions and tigers they had been previously. This miracle of a sudden change of heart was all that was required to discharge the commission that Durand had received from heaven. The example that it gave caused all the parties in the respective camps to make peace with one another. This in turn led to public rejoicing which was so extraordinary that, in order to preserve the memory in perpetuity they all put on white scapulars, on which could be seen an image replicating that which had been given to Durand.

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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