The Mirror of the Blessed Virgin Mary : Chapter 17 : To whom the fruit of the womb of the Blessed Mary belongs, and to whom it is due

The Annunciation, early 1460s; by

Willem Vrelant.The Getty Museum, L.A.

The following posts contain the text of a work by St Bonaventure (1221-1274) known as Speculum Beatæ Mariæ Virginis : The Mirror of the Blessed Virgin. 

It is referred to in the French work by Fr François Poiré called The Triple Crown of the Holy Mother of God (1630) which I translated on this blog starting on the 1st of May 2024.

I offer this annotated edition of St Bonaventure’s work as a small gift to our gentle Queen and Mother in gratitude for all her graces and favours, requesting her continued help and protection for the author and his family.

The Latin text and references are based upon Speculum Beatae Mariae Virginis (1904). The English text is based upon that attributed to Sr Mary Emmanuel O.S.B. (published by Herder in 1932). Amazon's various editions acknowledge that this text is in the Public Domain worldwide, attributing it to the text of a Dublin edition (author unknown) published in 1849.

Chapter 17 : To whom the fruit of the womb of the Blessed Mary belongs, and to whom it is due

Part 4

Sixthly, let us consider how the fruit of Mary belongs to those who are temperate, in rejection of gluttony; and on this point we must note what is written in Proverbs[1]: 

“Of the fruit of his own mouth shall a man be filled with good things.” 

The fruit of Mary can be said to be the fruit of the mouth not only because it is acquired by prayer and teaching from the mouth, but also by abstinence in food and drink. Anyone who abstains from good things physically for the sake of this fruit shall be filled with good things spiritually. Anyone who hungers and thirsts physically shall be satisfied with the good things of this fruit, but even more so he who hungers and thirsts spiritually. Therefore St. Bernard says[2]: 

“This is a good fruit, which is meat and drink to the souls who hunger and thirst after justice[3].” 

Blessed are they who thirst for this fruit in the world, because they shall be satisfied with it in Heaven, according to the words of our Saviour[4]: 

“Blessed are ye that hunger now: for you shall be filled.” 

Here will be blessed those who abstain for the sake of this fruit, there will they be blessed in eating of this fruit. Wherefore Isaias says[5]: 

“Say to the just man that it is well, for he shall eat of the fruits of his doings.” 

This blessed fruit, then, is of those who are temperate, rejecting gluttony; and therefore Mary above all human beings was most worthy of this fruit, for she was above all the most temperate in rejection of gluttony. Most fittingly, therefore, does St. John Chrysostom say[6]: 

“Mary was never a great one for food nor given to wine; she was not capricious, nor frivolous, nor a loud talker, nor a lover of scandalous gossip.” 

Such things tend to follow upon intemperance.

Footnotes

[1] Prov. xiii. 2.

[2] Homil. 3. super Missus est n. 6.

[3] Matt. v. 6.

[4] Luc. vi.21.

[5] Isaia. iii. 10.

[6] Loco pag. 64, nota 4. cit.

Seventhly, let us consider how the fruit of Mary’s womb belongs to the chaste and continent in their rejection of lust; for of this it is written[1]: 

“Happy is the barren; and the undefiled, that hath not known bed in sin, she shall have fruit in the visitation of holy souls;” 

In the visitation, I am saying, through grace but even more so in the visitation through glory; and truly the fruit of the most chaste womb, of the virginal womb, is rightly the special fruit of those who are chaste. When, therefore, by the blessed fruit of the Virgin all the faithful in general are blessed, rightly are the chaste specially Blessed by Him, by whom the blessed Queen of the chaste is also specially blessed above all, as St. Bernard says[2]: 

“Truly blessed is the fruit of thy womb, in whom all nations are blessed: of whose fullness thou, too, hast received with the rest, but also differently from the rest.” 

Woe to the lustful who have no part in the virginal fruit; and woe to the wretched who have no branch which can bear a virginal fruit. Therefore it is said of the adulterous woman[3]: 

“Her branches shall bring forth no fruit.” 

Accordingly, this blessed fruit belongs to the chaste in their rejection of lust; and therefore Mary was above all worthy of this fruit because she was before all others most chaste, as St. Chrysostom well says[4]: 

“O ineffable praise of Mary! Joseph trusted more to her chastity than to her womb, and more to grace than to nature; he believed it was more possible for a woman to conceive without a man, than for Mary to sin.” 

O Mary most blessed art thou who, as the most virtuous one, wast truly most worthy of the divine fruit: help us, that by our virtues we may be worthy to attain this fruit, Our Lord Jesus Christ, thy Son. Amen.

Footnotes

[1] Sap. iii. 13.

[2] Homil. 3. super Missus est n. 5.

[3] Ecclesiasticus xxiii. 35.

[4] Loc. pag. 54, nota 4. cit., coL 633.

[End of Chapter 17]

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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. 30-31.30-31.

The Mirror of the Blessed Virgin Mary : Chapter 17 : To whom the fruit of the womb of the Blessed Mary belongs, and to whom it is due

The Annunciation, early 1460s; by

Willem Vrelant.The Getty Museum, L.A.

The following posts contain the text of a work by St Bonaventure (1221-1274) known as Speculum Beatæ Mariæ Virginis : The Mirror of the Blessed Virgin. 

It is referred to in the French work by Fr François Poiré called The Triple Crown of the Holy Mother of God (1630) which I translated on this blog starting on the 1st of May 2024.

I offer this annotated edition of St Bonaventure’s work as a small gift to our gentle Queen and Mother in gratitude for all her graces and favours, requesting her continued help and protection for the author and his family.

The Latin text and references are based upon Speculum Beatae Mariae Virginis (1904). The English text is based upon that attributed to Sr Mary Emmanuel O.S.B. (published by Herder in 1932). Amazon's various editions acknowledge that this text is in the Public Domain worldwide, attributing it to the text of a Dublin edition (author unknown) published in 1849.

Chapter 17 : To whom the fruit of the womb of the Blessed Mary belongs, and to whom it is due

Part 3

Fourthly, let us consider how the fruit of Mary is that of those who diligently labour in rejection of sloth. Of this it is said in the Book of Wisdom[1]: 

“The fruit of good labours is glorious.” 

This fruit, therefore, is to be sought by labour, just as the bee seeks the fruit of honey, that fruit of which Ecclesiasticus says[2]: 

“The bee is small among flying things, but her fruit hath the chiefest sweetness.” 

Consider how the bee flies from garden to garden, from flower to flower and from tree to tree in search of the fruit of honey; so must thou in meditations, in desires, and zealous imitation of virtues hasten after the examples of the just and especially of the perfect. Hasten, I am saying, from garden to garden, that is, from state to state; hasten from tree to tree, that is, from one just soul to another; hasten from flower to flower, that is, from one virtue to another, from one good example to another; but hasten especially to alight upon that flower in which you will find the whole fruit of the divine honey, upon that flower which is both flower and fruit, of which St. Ambrose says[3]: 

“The Flower of Mary is Christ who, like the fruit of a good tree, now flowers and now bears fruit in us for our progress in virtue.”  

Let us labour diligently for this fruit, because the fruit of good labours is glorious. This fruit is not that of any labours whatsoever, but only of good works; it is not the fruit of those labours referred to in the Book of Wisdom[4]: 

“He that rejecteth wisdom and discipline, is unhappy: and their hope is vain, and their labors without fruit, and their works unprofitable.” 

Thus is this blessed fruit that of those who labour to perform good works in rejection of sloth. Mary before all others was accordingly most worthy of this fruit, because more than any other she was most diligent in performing good works. Bede well shows this well when, in discoursing on the Magnificat, he puts these words into her mouth[5]: 

“I offer the whole affection of my soul in the praises of thanksgiving; I offer all my life, all that I feel, all that I discern in contemplating His magnitude; I offer all in observing His precepts.”

Footnotes

[1] Wisdom iii. 15.

[2] Ecclesiasticus xi. 3.

[3] II. in Luc. n. 2.

[4] Wisdom iii. 11.

[5] I. in Luc. c. 1.

Fifthly, let us consider how the fruit of Mary is that of the generous in rejection of avarice, especially of those generous souls who for the sake of this fruit renounce all temporal things, as it is written in the Canticle of Canticles[1]: 

“Every man bringeth for the fruit thereof a thousand pieces of silver.”

The Commentator adds[2], “by leaving all things.” The Glossa says: 

“By a thousand is meant perfection and by silver is meant every worldly thing.” 

When a person leaves all worldly things for Christ, it is as if he is giving a thousand pieces of silver for this fruit; but he who is unwilling to give a thousand by leaving all things, let him at least give something for this fruit by helping the poor, that he may be as the fruit-bearing olive-tree by bearing the fruit of mercy. Because the highest fruit of mercy is the highest mercy, which is God; therefore Mary, who bore this fruit of mercy most abundantly, was most fittingly said to be like a fruitful olive-tree, a fair olive-tree in the plains[3]. St. John Damascene well says[4]: 

“Mary, planted in the house of the Lord and nourished by the Holy Ghost like a fruitful olive-tree, became the dwelling-place of every virtue.” 

Alas, how far from this fruit of the merciful and of those detached from the love of earthly things, are the souls of the avaricious, of whom it is said that they are[5]: 

“going their way they are choked with the cares and the riches and pleasures of this life, and yield no fruit.” 

It is also said in Ecclesiastes[6]: 

“He that loveth riches, shall reap no fruit from them.” 

We have seen above how this blessed fruit is of the generous and of those who despise earthly things; Mary was therefore above all most worthy of this fruit, because she was in her contempt for temporal things most generous above all others, as St. Bernard says[7]: 

“Whatever honour Mary had among her people, whatever she could have had of the riches of her father’s house, she chose to count all things as dung, that she might gain Christ[8].”

Footnotes

[1] Cant. viii. 11.

[2] Nicholas of Lyra (1270-1349) who wrote the Postillae (Addenda) which were bound with the Glossa Ordinaria (12th. Century).

[3] Eccli. xxiv. 19.

[4] IV. de Fide orthod. c. 14.

[5] Luc. viii. 14.

[6] Eccles. v. 9.

[7] Homil. 3. super Missus est n. 3.

[8] Phil. iii. 8.

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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. 30-31.30-31.

The Mirror of the Blessed Virgin Mary : Chapter 17 : To whom the fruit of the womb of the Blessed Mary belongs, and to whom it is due

The Annunciation, early 1460s; by

Willem Vrelant.The Getty Museum, L.A.

The following posts contain the text of a work by St Bonaventure (1221-1274) known as Speculum Beatæ Mariæ Virginis : The Mirror of the Blessed Virgin. 

It is referred to in the French work by Fr François Poiré called The Triple Crown of the Holy Mother of God (1630) which I translated on this blog starting on the 1st of May 2024.

I offer this annotated edition of St Bonaventure’s work as a small gift to our gentle Queen and Mother in gratitude for all her graces and favours, requesting her continued help and protection for the author and his family.

The Latin text and references are based upon Speculum Beatae Mariae Virginis (1904). The English text is based upon that attributed to Sr Mary Emmanuel O.S.B. (published by Herder in 1932). Amazon's various editions acknowledge that this text is in the Public Domain worldwide, attributing it to the text of a Dublin edition (author unknown) published in 1849.

Chapter 17 : To whom the fruit of the womb of the Blessed Mary belongs, and to whom it is due

Part 2

Secondly, let us consider how this blessed fruit is that of those who love God and their neighbour, in rejection of envy. Concerning this we can understand the words of the Psalmist[1]: 

“Behold the inheritance of the Lord are children: the reward, the fruit of the womb.” 

Commenting on this passage, St. Ambrose says[2]: 

“The inheritance of the Lord are children who are the reward of the fruit of Him who came forth from Mary’s womb.” 

Accordingly, many children are the reward of that only Son who is the fruit of thy blessed womb. But where or when did He merit that reward? Without doubt He merited it in being born, in lying in the manger and in suffering Himself to be circumcised; He merited it in teaching, in doing the works of our salvation and in dying; He merited it, I am saying, in serving us for thirty-three years. Because of this, He most justly claims this reward, saying[3]: 

“If it be good in your eyes, bring hither my reward.” 

But without doubt it is not only children who are the reward of the Fruit of the womb; but this Fruit of the most holy womb is Himself the reward of every adoptive child. Who then are these children? Listen : It belongs to children to love their father, and to the father to love his children. Those, therefore, are children of God and of the Church who love God and their neighbour. Accordingly, the Apostle says to the Ephesians[4]: 

“Be ye imitators of God, as most dear children, and walk in love.” 

In St. Matthew it is said[5]: 

“Love your enemies, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them that persecute and calumniate you, that you may be the children of your Father, who is in Heaven.” 

Such children as these, who are lovers of God and of men, are the reward of this blessed Fruit, and the reward of children such as these is this same blessed Fruit. Thus, therefore, is this Fruit that of those who love; and Mary above all men was most worthy of this Fruit because she was the most affectionate in charity. Well, therefore, does St. Augustine say[6]: 

“Who can doubt that Mary had been perfused entirely with the love of charity, since that charity which is God rested within her physically for nine months?”

Footnotes

[1] Psalm. cxxvi. 3.

[2] II. in Luc. n. 24.

[3] Zach. xi. 12.

[4] Eph. v. 1-2.

[5] Matt. v. 44.

[6] Potius Bernard., Serm. 1. in Assumt. B. M. V. n. 2.

Thirdly, let us see how this fruit of Mary is that of those who are meek and patient in rejection of anger. It is said in the Book of Job[1]: 

“Submit thyself then to him, and be at peace, and thereby thou shalt have the best fruits.” 

To submit and to be at peace belongs to the meek and to the patient; and those who are meek and patient shall have the best fruits. The best fruits, however, are two: one is of virtue and the other is of the womb. 

The best fruit of virtue is charity, of which the Apostle says[2]:

“But the fruit of the Spirit is, charity, joy, peace, patience, benignity, goodness, longanimity, mildness, faith, modesty, continency, chastity.” 

The fruits which are here enumerated include some, which are indeed good, and others which are in truth better; but the first is best, namely charity, by which all the others, as St. Augustine says[3], are good. 

The best fruit of the womb is Christ: for whoever is sanctified in the womb is a good fruit of the womb. Accordingly, the fruit of Elizabeth’s womb is good: John; the fruit of Anne’s womb is even better: Mary; but the Fruit of Mary’s womb is best of all: Jesus. Consider carefully this fruit and the earth from which it came forth, and you will understand that it is the best. Hearken to the words of St. Jerome who says[4]: 

“This fruit is a Virgin from a Virgin, the Lord from a handmaid, God from man, the Son from the Mother, fruit from the earth” 

How blessed are they who in the demands of every sort of trial have a soul so patient and so recollected that because of this they most justly reap the fruit of patience and the fruit of recollection which St. Paul mentions in the Epistle to the Hebrews[5]: 

“Now all chastisement for the present indeed seemeth not to bring with it joy, but sorrow; but afterwards it will yield, to them that are exercised by it, the most peaceable fruit of justice.” 

Having had their patience tested, they reap the best fruit, according to St. Luke[6] who says they “bring forth fruit in patience.” Thus is this blessed fruit that of the patient and the meek; accordingly Mary was most worthy of this fruit above all men because she was above all most meek, so that neither in looks, nor in word, nor in deed did she ever show the very slightest sign of impatience, but was most patient, as St. Ambrose says[7]: 

“There was nothing harsh in the looks of Mary, nothing importunate in her words and nothing unbecoming in her deeds.”

Footnotes

[1] Job xxii. 21.

[2] Gal. v. 22.

[3] Tract. 87. in loan. Evang. n. 1.

[4] Breviar. in Psalm., Ps. 6

[5] Hebr. xii. 11.

[6] Luc. viii. 15.

[7] II, de Virginib. c. 2. n. 7.

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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. 30-31.30-31.