Part III : The Crown of Goodness : Chapter 7 : § 4.12-14

Chapter 7 : The Sixth 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 gratitude of the MOTHER OF GOD towards certain Emperors and Empresses 

Basil

 12   Basil the Macedonian was a Prince known for his wisdom and his zeal for the advancement of God’s glory and the conversion of infidels. He received many graces from the Queen of Heaven and in return she gave him one of the most faithful servants ever to bear arms, namely his general called Andreas. 

In the year 886[1], the Emperor had received offensive letters which insulted not only his person but our Saviour, His Holy Mother and the Christian religion. The letters had been sent by the Prince of the Saracens who had established themselves in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia. These letters were read and the whole of the Emperor’s council  reacted in anger and indignation. Basil’s decision to go to Church and show these dreadful missives to Our Lady, saying: 

“Holy MOTHER OF GOD, thou seest how this barbarian has insulted the Majesty of thy Son, thine own and the honour of the Christian Religion.”

To the sound of the trumpet and the beating of drums, he then led his army against these sacrilegious miscreants, with the Blessed Virgin as his guide and such was his courage and determination that the Saracens were all routed. 

Footnotes

[1] Baron., eo anno ex Curopalate.

 

Leo the Wise

 13    It is now some time[1] since I first referred to the marks of piety his son Leo (known as the Wise or Purple-born[2]) showed towards the glorious Virgin and I am not going to repeat them here.  I would, however, like to make the point that I believe it was because of his goodwill towards her that she chose to place him on the Imperial throne despite his father’s objections. Here is what happened:

A sorcerer called Theodore of Santabar, through his feigned holiness and the false miracles he worked, had contrived to turn Basil against his son Leo with the claim that he was planning to kill his father. As a result of this, Leo Had been imprisoned for seven years On the orders of his father who had also removed any hope that he would ever succeed him as Emperor.   Heaven, however, had different ideas and wanted to show his innocence and make use of his services. There was a parrot in the Emperor’s Palace and either as a result of something it learned from someone by God’s unseen Providence, or directly from the same Providence, it would repeat the following words whenever it saw a gentleman enter the palace[3] :  

“Hey! Hey! Poor Lord Leo…”

The parrot uttered the words in such an elegant yet plaintiff tone that the gentlemen of the court who heard them were moved with pity and told the Emperor what was happening. He wanted to hear for himself and he was so affected by these words that Leo was released from prison, regained his father’s friendship and began to rule the Empire as an associate. Apart from these benefits, he felt a greater desire than ever to honour and serve the MOTHER OF GOD, giving clear proof of this once he had more power.  

 

Footnotes

[1] Part I, ch. 8, § 1 ; Baron., ex Curopalate, an. 879.

[2] Porphyrogenite: from Πορφυρογέννητος, Latinized as Porphyrogenitus. Originally: a member of the imperial family at Constantinople, reputedly born in a purple-hung or porphyry chamber. Later more generally: a child born after his or her father's accession to a throne. More generally: a member of an imperial or royal reigning family; one belonging to the highest or most privileged ranks.

[3] Baron., an. 886.

St Henry

 14    You would have to go a very long way to find someone comparable to St Henry I (or as some call him, Henry II) whom we have mentioned already as being in the ranks of those favoured by the MOTHER OF GOD[1]. 

Henry had sought refuge in her arms when he made the decision[2] that he and his wife the Empress Cunegund would observe perpetual continence in their marriage. This freed them from having to worry about producing children and meant that they would have God and the Holy Virgin as heirs to the greater part of their goods. They approached this so religiously that nearly a thousand Churches[3] were founded and endowed by these blessed Saints, including the beautiful and famous Cathedral in Speyer, altogether worthy of an Emperor’s munificence. It is true that it was unfinished at the time of Henry’s death and this provided an opportunity for Conrad, who succeeded him, to give witness of his own piety towards the Virgin by bringing the project to completion. I shall not speak at length here of poor girls who were able to marry through their support, or of the thousands of good works that they performed. It is enough to say that they never missed an opportunity to show forth their devotion towards the Queen of Heaven. I should also point out that this Prince received so many favours from her that, if we consider the holy works which he did, it seems that it would have been impossible for him to have spent time doing anything else. If you take the time to read about his noble undertakings, his conquests and his exploits, then you would swear he had occupied his mind exclusively on military matters and war. This gives you an idea of the fruits that come from devotion to the MOTHER OF GOD.       

Footnotes

[1] Chap. 4, § 3.

[2] Glicas, IV part. Annal.

[3] Sigebertus Gemblacensis, de Viris illustribus, c. 139 ; Adobaldus Ultrajectensis Episc., in Vita S. Henriri.

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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