Part IV : How to give thanks to the Mother of God : Chapter 6 : § 2.1-3

Chapter 6 : Mercy – a fifth feature of the gratitude we owe the Mother of God

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)

§ 2. Various characteristics of Mercy

Good will and a desire to help the needy

 1   One feature of the Mercy which we are discussing is having a great desire to come to the aid of the needy for the love of God and His most holy Mother. It should be noted that no one is excluded from the practice of this virtue through lack of means. The poor have as much right as the wealthy and often they are more successful in practising compassion than those who have great fortunes. Their savings comprise their goodwill which never runs out unless through their own choice. If they do not have the wherewithal to put something into people’s purses or wallets, they cannot be prevented from putting good feelings in their hearts. They are able to pray for the indigent, commending them to the Mother of Mercy and begging her to come to their aid. Acts of charity such as these, although invisible, often produce great benefits for the poor and needy who find they have received comfort from sources they would never have expected.

Helping them in any way we can

 

 2   Another feature of mercy is to help the poor in any way we can, giving the little we are able with a cheerful face and a great desire to please God and the Virgin.  

St Elizabeth[1] was the daughter of the King of Hungary and whilst she was still very young did not have great treasures to share; but the devotion she had to the MOTHER OF GOD enabled her to find means in keeping with her age and state. She always used to put aside some of the spending money she was given and from these small sums saved she would give alms to the poor for the love of the Holy Virgin, asking from them in return an Ave Maria.

St Gregory describes how : 

Blessed Dieudonné, who was a shoemaker by trade, used to go every Saturday into St Peter’s in Rome where he would distribute the money he had earned in the previous week by way of alms to the poor, in honour of the Queen of Heaven. This act of charity was received so well by the Holy Mother that she revealed to one of her servants the builders who were working on a golden palace for Dieudonné; but nothing caused him so much astonishment, before he learned of this secret, as seeing that they worked only on Saturdays. 

St Catherine of Sienna[2] whilst she was still residing in the House of her father was carefully supervised and kept on a short leash, so to speak, so that she did not perform too many works of charity. One day she noticed that some old flour was about to be thrown away and she knew that there had been a poor wheat harvest that year. Accordingly, filled with a great confidence in God and His holy Mother, she set about using this flour to make bread for the poor. Then a most miraculous thing happened! The MOTHER OF GOD came and helped personally in making the bread and the assistance she gave Catherine with the dough produced a double blessing: not only did the old flour make most excellent bread but there was a miraculous multiplication of the loaves which meant that bread could be distributed over several weeks without emptying the bread basket. Her confessor, blessed Raymond, having heard people talking about this miracle, sought to learn from the Saint’s own lips what actually happened and this is what he has left us in his writings.

     

Footnotes

[1] In ejus Vita apud Surium, t. VI.

[2] Ibid., t. III.

Refusing nothing which is asked in honour of the Virgin

 3   It is not my wish to multiply the characteristics of Mercy here but there is one more worth mentioning which has been practised no less generously than assiduously by certain souls in honour of the Holy Virgin. It is a holy and unbreakable determination never to refuse anything they are able to do or give when it is asked of them for love of the Mother of Love.

One of the most remarkable instances of this was St Gerard, the first bishop and the first martyr in Hungary[1], from whom it was said anything could be obtained by appealing to the holy name of the MOTHER OF GOD. Even prisoners (who had come to hear about this custom of his) made use of it to gain their liberty; this he would grant them with tears in his eyes as soon as they mentioned the name of the most sacred Virgin.

It is, however, one thing for a person to share what he possesses but quite another thing for him to give of himself. I think that one of the most outstanding instances of this may be found in the case of the venerable Alexander of Hales. He was said to be a Doctor of St Thomas[2] and one of the first to raise the credit and reputation of the doctrine taught in the Order founded by the Seraphic St Francis.

He was a Doctor in Paris, says St Antoninus[3], where he earned the admiration of everyone not only for his fine mind but also for his encyclopædic knowledge. Now, he had such a tender love for the Holy Virgin that he had sworn a vow never to deny any reasonable thing which might be asked in her name. A Franciscan friar had heard about this and, inspired by God, went to find the Doctor. After an initial discussion, he formally requested Alexander, in the name of her whom he loved so much, to take the habit of St Francis. No one could have been more surprised to hear this request than Alexander who had never given a moment’s thought to anything like this before. Retaining his calm, however, he replied that he would take advice about the matter. As soon as he found himself alone, he prostrated himself before an image of the Queen of Heaven and, shedding many tears, he asked her to reveal the meaning of this invitation and what plans she had for him. In an instant, he felt himself touched so deeply that it was not possible for him to hold back the powerful movement of God’s grace which was calling upon him to take the best part[4]. He departed forthwith straight to the Convent of St Francis to seek admission (which he easily obtained) and the fruits of this decision were such as to show that this came from the MOTHER OF GOD herself. 

Footnotes

[1] In ejus Vita apud Surium, 2 Sept.

[2] Alexander of Hales (d. 1245 in Paris) is acknowledged by Gerson to have been a teacher of St Thomas (1225-1274), mainly through Alexander’s “Summa Universae Theologiae,” which St. Thomas followed very closely in the arrangement and method of his “Summa Theologica.”

[3] III p., tit. XXIV, c. 8, § 1.

[4] But one thing is necessary. Mary hath chosen the best part, which shall not be taken away from her. Luke x. 42.

© Peter Bloor 2025 

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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.

He that hearkeneth to me, shall not be confounded: and they that work by me, shall not sin. They that explain me shall have life everlasting. Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) xxiv. 30-31.