Part III : The Crown of Goodness : Chapter 7 : § 5.17-19

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)

§ 5. The Gratitude of the Mother of God towards certain Kings, Queens and other Rulers

Philip III

 17   Philip III did just as much work as any of his predecessors to advance the honour of the most sacred Virgin. I shall speak here only of the zeal he showed concerning the question of the Immaculate Conception, in which it cannot be denied that he performed a great service to Christendom. This issue, which would later be pursued with such energy, started very modestly.  

In the year 1614, certain individuals in Seville had spoken out publicly in a most disrespectful manner against the honour of the Immaculate Conception. This provoked a reaction amongst a number of men who were zealous supporters of the idea. Among these were Matthew Vasquez and Bernard de Toro, Prebends of the Church in Seville, and they deserve eternal gratitude for having worked tirelessly over several years, both in Rome and elsewhere, to promote acceptance of this doctrine. The first seeds to be sown were no more than certain little hymns composed in honour of the Immaculate Conception. Printed at the beginning of the year 1613, they were distributed to children in an attempt to counteract the effects of a number of profane songs which had been heard not only in private houses but also in the streets. It did not take long, however, for them to become popular with adults and eventually it was scarcely possible to find a single house in Spain which did not have printed copies and where people did not sing these sacred Odes. 

There was some opposition to this devotion by people who claimed that it was an innovation but this was like throwing oil on the fire and it caused support to spread. Soon all the talk was of organising processions to honour the mystery, going to hear preachers inspiring people’s love for this teaching, acts of public rejoicing and celebration where cities, societies and guilds vied with each other in showing their devotion. The more this fervour grew and spread, the stronger the emotions that came into play on both sides of the question. In the end, a number of Prelates reported this to the King and he was asked to find a way of avoiding a deterioration of the situation – which is what people feared might happen if the issue did not receive some clarification.  

The King was himself keen to promote the honour of the MOTHER OF GOD and his first step was to convene a conference which sat from June to September. The question was debated in a lively manner and ways of resolving the question were explored over twenty sessions which were presided over by Antonio Cajetan (Archbishop of Capua and Apostolic Nuncio in Spain), assisted by the Archbishop of Santiago in Galicia, the Bishop of Cuenca and some of the Kingdom’s most distinguished Prelates. The unanimous view was that the King could not wish for a better opportunity to give proof of his own and his Royal predecessors’ love and piety towards the MOTHER OF GOD than by laying the matter officially before His Holiness so that, in his capacity as tribunal of last resort, he might resolve this issue concerning the Immaculate Conception. The King gave his full support to this proposal but Pope Paul V did not judge it appropriate to do anything more than to renew the Constitutions of Sixtus IV and Pius V which had left people free to follow either opinion on the question, but which expressly prohibited condemnations of the contrary view.  

 18   Experience soon showed, however, that this Papal response was not sufficient to deal with the difficulties which seemed to arise every day. Accordingly, the King despatched an extraordinary Ambassador to Rome, bearing letters for His Holiness and all the Cardinals of the Congregation of the Inquisition, in which he earnestly entreated them to bring an end to the disputes which were growing every day not only in Spain but also in various other countries in Christendom, by issuing an explicit resolution of this question concerning the Immaculate Conception, since there was no other way of satisfying all those minds thirsting for an answer. This request was echoed by Madame Margaret of Austria, by the King’s aunt, by the Archbishops of Toledo and Seville along with their Chapters, the Bishops of Cuenca, Valladolid and Osma, followed soon after by Anne the Queen of France (the King’s own daughter). The King felt so fervently about the Queen of Heaven’s honour that he wrote further letters to the Pope and to the Cardinals which finally moved His Holiness to issue a second Bull in which he imposed strict penalties on anyone advancing an opinion contrary to the Immaculate Conception – whether in Sermons, Lectures or in any other public act whatsoever. The Bull was issued on the 31st  of August in the year 1617.  

I simply cannot describe to you the feelings of joy experienced throughout Spain when news of this arrived. I will say only that a feeling of great freedom and relief was experienced throughout the Kingdom. From the 6th of October (when the news arrived in Madrid) until the 8th of December – the date on which the church solemnly celebrates the feast of the Immaculate Conception – all over Spain you would have noticed the peeling of bells, hymns of thanksgiving in the Churches, processions through towns and villages, fireworks being set off from the clock towers and in public squares, jousts and tournaments at Court, plays and dramas in the theatres, gatherings of family and friends in private houses : in short, everything you could possibly imagine by way a public rejoicing. All the universities, the majority of the Chapters, Colleges, Confraternities and other associations vowed solemnly to maintain this article of belief ; and the number of private individuals who did so alone was almost infinite.

 19   Amidst so many signs of joy, the King alone, together with a few of the most senior Prelates in his Kingdom, took the view that the question had not been resolved with sufficient finality. The King did not let up in his attempts to persuade His Holiness to issued a declaration settling the issue once and for all. He offered his humble thanks to the Pope and the Cardinals but he did not conceal from them that he was expecting something more and that he trusted her whose honour was at stake to lead the matter to a final resolution. He then made another sally in an attempt to move the mind of His Holiness. This consisted of a new diplomatic mission led by the Bishop of Cartagena along with the Duke of Albuquerque, Viceroy of Barcelona, to whom he entrusted letters written to the Pope and to the Cardinals not only by himself but also by all the Prelates, Lords, Chapters, Universities, Colleges and nearly all the religious Orders in his Realms. This was to demonstrate to His Holiness what the general feeling of the Church was throughout his Kingdom.     

Once the Ambassadors were in Rome the King, who wanted to serve the Queen of Heaven in every way he could so that she might smile upon his undertakings, wrote a letter to Don Santiago de Guzman, Patriarch of the Indies, asking him to send him the rules of the Confraternity of the Immaculate Conception that his ancestor Charles V had established in Seville. Philip wanted to set up just such an association in Madrid where he had built a magnificent Chapel in the Royal Monastery of Santa Clara. It was there that his aunt, the Infanta Margaret, had consecrated herself to God’s service. The Patriarch was prompt to obey the King’s request.     

Once all the arrangements have been made, the King, his two Princesses, the Infantas and every member of the royal household, all the Grandees in Spain, the Viceroys, the Dukes, the Marquesses, the Counts and other nobles of distinction, several Colleges and Universities, 180 monasteries (of both men and women) and more than 20,000 individuals of all ages and conditions enrolled in the Confraternity. They swore an oath before God  that they would always believe and accept the Immaculate Conception which Holy Church permitted them to embrace, being favourably inclined thereto.

Whilst these glorious events were taking place, God called Paul V to leave this world and Philip too was invited to enter into possession of a higher Kingdom on the last day of May in the year 1621. He had made it well known to everyone how sad he was that he had been unable to bring to a conclusion this matter so dear to his heart. He feared he had not shown sufficient diligence and love, promising a thousand times over to make the journey to Rome on foot if God were to restore his health and if this might advance his cause. We may assume that the Mother of fair love – who had prospered so many of his undertakings during his life and had made known to him in so many ways how pleasing to her the love and fervour he had shown – would not fail to reward his faithful services, not only in his lifetime but also after death, granting him in Heaven the honour that he had always striven to offer her on earth. 

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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