Chapter 10 : The Ninth Star or Splendour of the Crown of Goodness of the MOTHER OF GOD
She is her children’s Teacher
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) |
§ 3. The Holy Virgin’s second office as Teacher : training her children how to put into practice what they learn
1 Saint Ambrose wrote about the action of Salome, mother of St John and St James, when she prayed the Saviour would respond favourably to her sons’ request (which she considered perfectly natural[1]).The Saint found the most obvious explanation of her presumption was the strength of her motherly love.
Just remember, he says, that it is a mother who is speaking here and take into account the maternal feelings which would be natural to her.
In truth, there is a great difference between the love of fathers and mothers, as the moral philosopher Seneca quite rightly observes ; for fathers get their children up early in the morning and they scarcely let them off even on feast days; they make them work until they are ready to drop and do not react unduly if they start to cry. Mothers, on the other hand, always want to have their children with them, cradling them on their laps; if it were up to them, they would never feel the wind or the sun; they simply cannot bear to see them looking sad or to hear them crying; and they are always anxious that they may be working too hard.
It is true that there are foolish mothers, perhaps a great number of them, but it is nevertheless possible to find wise ones and we are not wanting examples of many valiant ladies who have replaced weak feminine qualities with true and courageous traits aiming for the good of their children and who have not made a big issue of the effort they would have to make in order to acquire virtue. Indeed, they have gone so far as encouraging and exhorting them to scorn this passing and ephemeral life and exchange it for an eternal one, by means of various trials which are in fact quite short lived. These may be considered true mothers and also doubly mothers, in the sense that they are both physical and spiritual mothers. St Cyprian gives them salutary words of advice when he asks them to remember that:
Practice is hope’s custodian, providing a firm foundation for faith, a light for the path of salvation, food and upkeep for a good nature and proficiency in the virtues.
Clement of Alexandria says no less in the following wise words:
Those who seek only to make their children happy actually have little love for them. Those, on the contrary, who display a certain strictness do so in truth to obtain lasting benefits for them. God Himself has a tender love for us but does not hesitate to take away from us some fleeting pleasure in order to put us in possession of a happiness which is eternal.
Seneca, the philosopher whom I cited earlier , puts it very well when he says:
When it comes to his dearest children, God has the heart of a true father and loves them dearly. Just as he wants them to make excellent progress and acquire great accomplishment, so he does not hesitate to make them always work hard and be prepared to struggle to achieve their goals.
Footnotes
[1] Matt. xx. 20-28.
2 In imitation of the heavenly Father, the Holy Virgin shows herself to be a most perfect Mother when it comes to the training she gives to her true children. She prefers to see them working for a short period of time rather than suffering from hunger throughout eternity. She encourages them put up with tiredness in consideration of the rest and repose without end that may be theirs. The more she cherishes them, the more she urges them to work; the more she encourages them in the exercise of piety, the more she presents them with opportunities of suffering; the more she tests their courage, the more she sharpens their virtue – for she understands very well that through these means she will be doubling their crowns[1] and multiplying the treasures they are laying up for themselves in heaven[2]. This is what she revealed one day to blessed Saint Bridget by way of a simple comparison.
Just as Pharaoh’s daughter, Our Lady said, tenderly loved the child Moses whom she saw floating in his basket on the water[3], and the only thing that mattered was that he was not considered the son of that Princess and declared legitimate heir to the crown of Egypt; in the same way I am moved by feelings of care and concern towards those whom I see weeping bitter tears and in the midst of tribulations. These are the ones for whom I happily keep crowns in store and whom I advance in the favour of my beloved Son.
Just as it is true that Pharaoh’s daughter found this tiny child to be so beautiful and did not have the heart to leave him to the waters and the risks of storms, in the same way the Mother of fair love cannot contemplate her dear children in the midst of distress and affliction without immediately taking them up into her arms, pressing them against her heart and giving them a kiss of peace. It is simply impossible for her to allow them to be subject to lengthy trials without giving them some refreshment. She is not saddened to see them weep for she collects their tears in order to present them to her Son; she rejoices when they suffer through being put to the test but she wipes away their perspiration with wondrous tenderness; with her own hands she places the Saviour’s yoke on their neck, but she helps to support its weight for fear that they might be overburdened. It pleases her to see them take up their Crosses, but she offers them glances of consolation as she passes them by, uttering a few words of encouragement worth more than any earthly sweetness.
Footnotes
[1] 1 Cor. ix. 25.
[2] Matt. vi. 20.
[3] Exod. ii. 6-10.
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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
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