The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 9 : § 5.1-2

Chapter 9 : The Eighth 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)

She is singularly blessed

§ 5. On the source of all these blessings

 1   St Bernard discovers[1] this source and points it out to us when he explains the welcome St Elizabeth gave to her cousin, the MOTHER OF GOD, with her prophetic words : Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. 

Thou art truly blessed among women, says this holy Doctor, and the fruit of thy womb is blessed among all of creation. But the fruit of thy womb is not blessed as a result of thy blessings but because He Himself is uniquely blessed and thou truly hast the better part proportionately in His favours and blessings, more than all other persons.

There we have the true source, and it would be foolish to seek any other; for this is not only the origin of Mary’s blessings but also the basis of all the blessings in the world. It is the divine spring which was shown of old to the Patriarch Abraham when the Lord swore He would multiply his seed as the stars of heaven, and as the sand that is by the sea shore; and that in his seed would all the nations of the earth be blessed[2].  It is the heavenly source of living water that the great ancestor of the Messiah saw when he sang in his Psalm[3]: And in him shall all the tribes of the earth be blessed: all nations shall magnify him.  

The menorah or candlestick in Zach. iv., reconstructed
in the Bible Fillion (1888-1895).

It is the mysterious source that the Prophet Zacharias[4] saw in the  great candlestick all of gold, from which arose seven funnels or branches each bearing a light. The light in the centre was higher and more powerful than the others and it was seated on a reservoir or cup of gold, as though having its own spring. From this came a great abundance of oil which supplied the necessary fuel to the seven lights mentioned above.  According to the interpretation of St Jerome[5] and, as he declares, some of the most learned and best informed Doctors both Hebrew and Christian, this light was none other than the Saviour of the world. Of his fulness we all have received, according to the words of the beloved Disciple[6] and in Him, according to St Paul[7], we have all been blessed with spiritual blessings in heavenly places, in Christ. This is Jesus, the worthy fruit of Mary’s womb; Mary, whom He filled more than all others until she was overflowing with the choicest blessings that He brought down from Heaven.

Footnotes

[1] Homil. 4 in Missus. 

[2] Gen. xxii.

[3] Ps. LXXI. 17.

[4] Zach. iv.

[5] In cap. cit. Zachariæ.

[4] John. i. 16.

[5] Eph. i. 3.

 2   Let us end with the words of St Bonaventure, offered in honour of the Blessed Mother and the Blessed fruit of her womb[1]:

Blessed be Jesus, fruit not only of Mary’s womb but also of her spirit and her assent, fruit of wondrous nobility as having come forth from the Royal house of David; more noble still for being delivered from the sacred womb of Mary; most noble for coming from the adorable bosom of the Eternal Father; fruit which is delicious in the beauty of the faith, more delicious still in the scent of hope, and most delicious in the fervour of charity; fruit which is useful for the salvation of the world, more useful still for the numerous children of salvation it has produced, and most useful for the preservation of these precious pledges of eternal life; fruit which is abundant enough for all to be nourished therefrom, more abundant still in fully satisfying their hunger, most abundant in that it is inexhaustible; fruit of humility which vanquishes pride, fruit of charity that fights off envy, fruit of meekness that stifles anger, fruit of diligence that drives away laziness, fruit of generosity that casts out avarice, fruit of temperance that subdues greed, fruit of continence that drives out lust, fruit of life that wipes away old sins and expiates new sins, that heals the wound of original sin, that nourishes the soul, that placates the anger of the Judge, that delivers souls from punishments prepared for them, that fosters contempt for temporal things and desire for those which are eternal, that helps in the attainment of a spiritual life, that increases the ranks in the Church militant, that repairs the damage suffered by those in the Church triumphant, and that leads to partaking in eternal glory.

Blessed be forever the tree which hath borne fruit of such goodness, blessed be the fruit that hath been gathered from a tree of such goodness. Blessed be Jesus, fruit of life and blessed be Mary, tree of life, for as long as we shall say with her who is His Spouse[2]: I sat down under his shadow, whom I desired: and his fruit was sweet to my palate.

Footnotes

[1] Speculi B. Virg., c. 14, 15, 16.

[2] Cant. ii. 3.

👑       👑       👑

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