The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 8 : § 1. 61-62

Chapter 8 : The Seventh Star or Splendour in the Crown of Excellence of 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)

Mary’s soul was unique in being totally free of any sin

§ 1. The MOTHER OF GOD was exempt from original sin

RESPONSE TO THE THIRD OBJECTION

 61   In the third place, they quote from the Holy Fathers who with reference to Our Lady sometimes use words such as purified, cleansed or purged; from these they conclude that she must therefore once have been stained by sin. Response : They actually do not mean by this to say anything more than that she was completely free from the stain of sin as a result of the superabundance of grace she received. Lest you say this could not be so, the same Doctors explain that she received this favour when the Holy Ghost came upon her at the Conception of the divine Word. This is the teaching of St Ildephonsus[1], St John Damascene[2], St Ambrose[3] and several others. Now, are they saying that until that moment Mary would have been besmirched with the filth and stain of sin? This would be a manifest blasphemy and when they arrive at such a conclusion they would find their error condemned by the Messenger from Heaven who called Mary full of grace. Furthermore, the same Saints state that the Holy Virgin’s body was also purified in the same way. What.. was not this body already purer than rock crystal and the stars of Heaven? And if the Holy Fathers go further and say, as they are wont, that she was cleansed from actual sins, vices and the movements of concupiscence, should it then  be said that she was contaminated with all these? And if St Ambrose says as much of the Saviour, would they not want to put Him too in the ranks of sinners and send Him to be washed clean? Here are the words of this holy Doctor[4]:

Our Saviour’s flesh was cleansed so that He might be born in a body like unto that of Adam before he sinned.

Let it now be taken as settled that when the Saints say that Our Lady was cleansed and purified, they are not imputing any stain of sin; they are only allowing that she had grace so extraordinary that she had no part in any sin, any stain, any vice or any imperfection.

 

Footnotes

[1] Lib. de Virginitate B. Virg.

[2] Orat. 1 de Dormit. Deiparæ.

[3] In Lucam.

[4] In Epist. ad Rom., c. 8.

RESPONSE TO THE FOURTH OBJECTION

 62   In the fourth place, they bring to bear what they believe is a very powerful piece of their artillery : this is the argument they base on the Redemption of the Holy Virgin. If, they say, Mary was unaffected by original sin, then they are in error who preach she was redeemed by the precious blood of her Son, much more so if she was never under the obligation of contracting it. And yet the Holy Doctors are unanimous in stating that Our Lady was a not only beneficiary of the Redemption but also to a greater degree than all others. Indeed, in her Canticle[1] she clearly speaks of her Saviour. My reply to them is that it is indeed true not only that Our Lady was redeemed but that she was in truth the firstborn in her Son’s redemption, as St Bernardine calls her. I would maintain, however, that to enjoy this privilege it was not necessary for her to have contracted sin, nor even the associated obligation which bedevils the footsteps of those who are children of Adam the sinner. It is enough that by nature she was capable of contracting sin and this is what is called in the Schools a remote obligation, from which those who are human and not God cannot protect themselves. That response is well founded in Scripture, among the Fathers and in reason. David, Prophet and King[2], expressed this very well when he said that with God there is plentiful Redemption, not only because there are storehouses that cannot be exhausted but also because there are various offices and applications of redemption which enable the sharing out of His goods to whom He pleases and as He pleases. This is what the divine St Denys[3] recognized when he said that:

just as there is a grace of redemption which rescues a fallen soul from nothingness, i.e., from sin, in the same way there is another which prevents a future fall of those who have not fallen. God dispenses similar favours in accordance with His goodness and with the condition of those whom He wills to redeem.

This is a teaching said to be in accordance with the sense and intention of Scripture. St Augustine cites the following words of David: Thou hast delivered my soul from the depths of hell[4], and explains them in this context as follows : someone who has followed the advice of a wise doctor and has been saved from getting a dangerous illness can legitimately say to him : You have delivered me from the illness. Similarly, a debtor who has been saved from going to prison by another who paid off his debt can say to his benefactor : You have delivered me from prison. He goes further than this in the book of his Confessions[5] where he attributes to the grace of the Saviour’s Redemption his deliverance from all the sins he was capable of committing as a man and He makes no difficulty in concluding that he has been forgiven for them. He says as much[6] of all the sins committed by someone whose life God cut short early on for fear he would have committed more.

Footnotes

[1] Luc 1.

[2] Psal. CXXIX. 7.

[3] Cap. 8 de Divinis nominibus.

[4] Psal. XV. 10. 

[5] Lib. II, c. 7.

[6] Lib. de Bono perseverantiæ, explicans illud : Raptus est, ne malitia mutaret intellectum ejus, etc.

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The Vladimirskaya Icon. >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 2024