Part II : The Crown of Power : Chapter 4 : § 2.2-6

Chapter 4 : The Third Star or Splendour of the Crown of Power of the MOTHER OF GOD

She was the one who nourished and brought up the divine Word

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. Concerning the care and affection with which the holy Virgin nourished, raised and served her beloved Son

 2   Those who are learned in the law1 have raised the question as to whether ladies of quality are personally obliged to breastfeed their children. On this question I will say firstly that if they are claiming in this regard a privilege, it is clear that it does not come from nature, which does not supply them with breasts and milk like other mothers for any other reason then to allow them to feed those with whom they shared their own blood when they were carrying them in their womb. 

Were I were pressed to speak further on this matter, I would tell them that if they study the Sages of antiquity or the Holy Doctors of the Church[2], they will assuredly receive a blunt reminder of their duty, and that they will never be judged worthy of being mothers unless they do so fully and not just in a partial manner. These great minds will give them examples of women such as: Hecuba, Queen of Asia, who felt privileged to breast feed her son Hector; such as the wise Sara and the virtuous Anna who were like Princesses in their time: the former breastfed her son Isaac and the latter her son Samuel; such as the noble Flaccilla, wife of Theodosius the Great, who would never trust anyone else when it came to feeding her little Honorious; and of a great number of others who understood that the titles of mother and wet nurse were not names and roles that could be shared. I leave the final reasoning in this question to those who are wiser: for my part, I will say only that I know very well there could be no sort of privilege which would dispense the Holy Virgin from this her duty, since God had expressly chosen her to fulfil it in relation to his son, and that, as the Church sings, Him ... only the Virgin suckled, breasts filled by heaven[3].

Footnotes

[1] Tiraquel., lib. de Nobilit., c. 20, nº 78.

[2] Ambros., lib. VII in Hexameron.

[3] From Nesciens Mater, by Jean Mouton (1459 – 1522) who was a French priest, canon and prolific composer.

 3   It is my opinion, however, that even if all the laws and customs in the world had provided an exemption for her, she could never have been persuaded to make use of it. How could she ever have found the courage to abandon so early this little Pilgrim from Heaven who had thrown Himself into her arms and who had chosen her with such love, in preference to every other woman? How could she have willingly given up the sweet feelings which thrilled her holy soul during the infancy of the Saviour? How could she have yielded to any other woman a portion of the right belonging to the MOTHER OF GOD, handing over freely and entirely the role and privilege of being wet nurse to the Creator? How could she think so little of the inestimable favour which was attached to this privilege? Did she not know that the milk she would provide to Him would be converted into the very substance of God, and joined to the divine Word in the unity of His person, no more nor less than the precious blood which she had supplied to Him when He was still enclosed within her womb? It is for this reason that the Holy Souls compare the gravity of this role and privilege of feeding God to that of the Sanctuary. If it was an incomparable favour for her to be the Mother of her Creator, it must be confessed that the one which comes nearest to it is the honour of being the Mother who feeds God. Granted that just as what is adored in Heaven and in the Holy Sacrament of the altar is the flesh formed from the most pure blood of Mary, then it follows that the object of the belief of the faithful is in Him who is nourished by the milk which she gave to Him. Who could ever describe the care the Holy Angels took to ensure that not one single drop was lost, and with what respect this chaste maid presented her breast to her God ; or the sense of obligation she judged herself as having to Him who had chosen her for such an elevated office; or what her feelings might have been at the thought this food would change into the very substance of her Creator!

 4   What shall I say concerning the education of this little Prince from Heaven, and the care with which the holy Virgin brought Him up and served Him during his tender years? In profane history we are told the remarkable story of two noble Roman brothers called the Gracchi, of the care taken of them by Cornelia their valiant mother, and of the effort she put into their upbringing. We are also told that there was no one to compare with these two children whom this lady considered to represent all her jewels, riches and treasure. Solomon has left for posterity two references in Sacred Scripture[1] to the incomparable love and wisdom shown by his beloved mother Bethsabee, wanting us to appreciate the exceptional education she gave him when he was young, and to know how she would mix her teaching with affection, and how she moderated the gravity of her position as regent with the tenderness of a mother, calling him her little Lamuel[2], meaning, 'he who has God with him', because of the natural goodness which she always saw in him. If our Saviour, however, had allowed His own holy childhood to be described in detail, and the Evangelists had presented us with all the instances of the wondrous wisdom of His most holy Mother, as well as those showing her humility, devout souls studying such sweet revelations would never want to cease their contemplation. I firmly believe that just as in all things He wanted to be made like unto his brethren, as St Paul declares[3], so too He submitted Himself to the teachings of His holy Mother, so that by this means He might fulfil all justice[4], as He said to His humble Precursor. And why would He not have done this whilst He was still a child, and towards His venerable Mother, since at the age of twelve He was happy to find Himself amidst the Doctors, listening to them and questioning them like a little schoolboy?

Footnotes

[1] Proverb. c. iv. &  xxxi.

[2] Prov. xxxi. 1 & 4. The French text has Samuel but the Vulgate, Douay-Rheims & Fillion translations have Lamuel, which the latter's commentary states was commonly regarded by the Fathers as referring to Solomon. 

[3] Hebr. ii. 17.

[4] Matt. iii. 15.

 5   Who will find it strange that He should have learned from His beloved mother how to walk, how to babble and then begin to speak, and to do all the other things that go with this tender age? Just as the Holy Virgin was altogether in tune with the divine dispensation, so too she understood very well what God wanted from her. Her profound humility which was wedded to her peerless obedience, enabled her to overcome all the difficulties her mind might conceive with regard to teaching Wisdom incarnate. Once she had consented to be MOTHER OF GOD, she told herself that here she was dealing with a mystery where she would have to proceed without being able to see everything that was involved. She would just have to try and accomplish everything that depended upon it and which God desired of her, with no other consideration than conforming to the good pleasure of His Majesty. Her humility brought her down to earth and kept her feet on the ground, so to speak, whilst her obedience made it possible for her to rise up to the challenge of fulfilling the divine will within the time available. 

Dear God of love: how pleasing a thing to see and to hear the teaching that this wise Mother gave to her little Jesus! And the sweet activity of a soul such as His, behaving just like any other child, and willing to accept these little lessons with a humility that delighted Heaven; whilst she for her part was content to lose herself amidst the wondrous mysteries of the divine judgments, pondering them in her heart!

 6   But it was in the least of the services that she was called upon to perform during the little Saviour’s infancy that she busied herself with the particular sweetness and concern. In these, as was the case with another Martha, she was careful not to miss any opportunity to put herself at His service. What am I saying, like another Martha? The care shown by Martha was as nothing compared to what Mary did and in fact all the love of the Blessed Spirits could not stand comparison. The learned Rupert commented on the following words from the Canticle : the sweet smell of thy ointments is above all aromatical spices[1] and applied them to the Holy Virgin, saying:

There is no comparison between the works of mercy performed by other Saints and the services that the Queen of Heaven offered to her beloved Son. 

St Anselm[2] takes this idea further in the following terms:

Think about the difference which between the Holy Virgin and all those who undertake the office of a Martha. The others provide shelter for any ordinary passer-by but the Virgin provided an abode, not in her house, but in her womb, for the only begotten Son of God who had not where to lay his precious head[3]. The others provide a poor person with a covering of linen or wool, but the Holy Virgin clothed the word Incarnate with her own flesh. The others distributed surplus foodstuffs from their house, but the Virgin changed her own blood into milk to provide nourishment for her Son.

Footnotes

[1] Cant. iv. 10.

[2] Serm. de Assumptione.

[3] Matt. viii. 20; Luke ix. 58.

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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