Chapter 13 : The Twelfth Star or Splendour of the Crown of Goodness of the MOTHER OF GODn
She safeguards her children at the hour of death and provides them with their passport to HeavenContinuing 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)
It is truly said that we are always only one fatal step away from losing everything, but God in His mercy preserves us from the terrible risk of losing everything without any help or recourse. At this pivotal moment when we face two extreme alternatives – one leading to eternal happiness and the other to eternal petition – our loving Mother never abandons her children, as will be seen in the following discussion.
§ 1. The help given by the MOTHER OF GOD to her children at the hour of their death
1 Never is the gentle rain more welcome upon the earth than when the sun, beating down mercilessly with its scorching rays, has reduced it to sand and dust, making it the plaything of the winds. The rain at this point can bring relief to the parched ground, filling the cracks and fissures with healing moisture and restoring its capacity to bring forth every kind of fruit. This is the image employed by the wise Sirach[1] when explaining to us the value and importance of mercy in a time of tribulation. We never feel this more than at the hour of our death when we experience not just one tribulation but rather several at the same time, all capable of filling even the strongest spirit with fear and dread. Consider how we often see torrents pouring down mountainsides into rivers and overwhelming them with their turbulent and sludgy waters; that will give you some idea of what it is like when we approach death’s narrow defile, where all those things capable of filling a man’s heart with terror come surging together as though attaining their culminating point. St Gregory describes this most effectively when he says[2]:
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| Notre Dame des Grâces, Cotignac (Poggi, 2020) |
1 Never is the gentle rain more welcome upon the earth than when the sun, beating down mercilessly with its scorching rays, has reduced it to sand and dust, making it the plaything of the winds. The rain at this point can bring relief to the parched ground, filling the cracks and fissures with healing moisture and restoring its capacity to bring forth every kind of fruit. This is the image employed by the wise Sirach[1] when explaining to us the value and importance of mercy in a time of tribulation. We never feel this more than at the hour of our death when we experience not just one tribulation but rather several at the same time, all capable of filling even the strongest spirit with fear and dread. Consider how we often see torrents pouring down mountainsides into rivers and overwhelming them with their turbulent and sludgy waters; that will give you some idea of what it is like when we approach death’s narrow defile, where all those things capable of filling a man’s heart with terror come surging together as though attaining their culminating point. St Gregory describes this most effectively when he says[2]:
In order that men may know there is a condition of everlasting misery composed of every imaginable misfortune and this awaits the wicked after their death, God provides us with a foretaste in the final tribulation we suffer which is that of death, when all the tribulations of this life are brought together.
Truth to tell, if souls did not receive special help from Heaven in negotiating this dire strait, I do not know how they would manage to come through it. If the attacks are fierce, however, the help which Heaven dispenses is incomparably more powerful. All that is required is to accept the help and make use of it in an opportune manner. Footnotes[1] The mercy of God is beautiful in the time of affliction, as a cloud of rain in the time of drought. Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) xxxv. 26.[2] Hom. 35. in Evang.
2 I maintain that the Mother of Goodness is always ready to help us since, as the wise author of Proverbs says[1] the true and faithful friend loveth at all times. From this we can be confident that in the final battle she will work wonders to defend and protect her children. All the help, furthermore, that she had provided for them up until this point would serve them little if they were abandoned by her at this moment of trial. In my opinion, this is the main reason why she has been called the gate of Heaven by St Augustine[2], Saint Ildephonsus[3], Saint Andrew of Candia[4], Saint Methodius[5], Abbot Rupert[6] and several other writers, as well as the entire Catholic Church. A special Grace prompted St Antoninus to say[7]:
Just as she is called the gate of Heaven inasmuch as all the riches and gifts of God coming down from Heaven to earth pass through her hands, she is also the gate of Heaven in the sense that everyone from earth who manages to get to Heaven arrives there by means of her help, and especially by the aid she gives to men in their final moments.
This is also why St Richard (Bishop of Chichester in England)[8], when he was approaching death, firstly commended His soul to the Saviour using the same words that He had spoken He commended His own soul into the hands of His Eternal Father, but then followed this up with frequent repetitions of the hymn[9] which the church sings with such love and reverence:
Mary, Mother of grace,Mother of mercy,Do thou protect us from the foeAnd receive us at the hour of death.
The Bishop had given express instructions to his chaplains for them to repeat these words frequently when he approached his agony. The holy writer using the pen-name Idiota included a commentary on the words of this hymn towards the end of the Contemplation he composed on the glorious Virgin:
She is called the Mother of Grace, he wrote, because of the loving care she shows to her children, who cling on to her grace to avoid the risk of losing it. She is called the Mother of Mercy because it is now more than ever that she causes sinners to experience her clemency, moving their hearts to feelings of penitence. She also strengthens us in readiness for combat, in which we need to be protected and defended by her against our enemies. In short, her motherly love accompanies us up into Heaven and this is why we pray that she may receive us into her arms at the hour of our death.
There is much consolation to be found in the writings of the pious St Ephrem who strives to win over the good graces of his loving Mother in readiness for that hour.
Most Holy and Immaculate Virgin, he writes in a certain place[10], do thou come unto our aid in all our necessities, and defend us from the wickedness and snares of the devil at the hour of our death, since we have no better advocate than thee.
Elsewhere he writes[11]:
Virgin Mother and Mother of Mercy, thou who art art the very personification of gentleness and kindness : prithee help and guide me throughout the course of my life and especially at the hour of my death ; do thou protect my poor soul from the hideous gaze of the raging demons and let them not come nigh unto me; prithee take up my case on the dread day of my Judgement, so that in the end I may come to partake in the glory thy dear Son hath acquired for me.
From this it is easy to see how Holy Church has very good reason for instructing us carefully to pray continually to Holy Mary, Mother of God, so that the loving and tender heart of the Blessed Virgin will come to help us in this hour of need, imploring her to pray for us now and at the hour of our death.
Footnotes
[1] The mercy of God is beautiful in the time of affliction, as a cloud of rain in the time of drought. Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) xxxv. 26.
[2] Hom. 35. in Evang.
2 I maintain that the Mother of Goodness is always ready to help us since, as the wise author of Proverbs says[1] the true and faithful friend loveth at all times. From this we can be confident that in the final battle she will work wonders to defend and protect her children. All the help, furthermore, that she had provided for them up until this point would serve them little if they were abandoned by her at this moment of trial. In my opinion, this is the main reason why she has been called the gate of Heaven by St Augustine[2], Saint Ildephonsus[3], Saint Andrew of Candia[4], Saint Methodius[5], Abbot Rupert[6] and several other writers, as well as the entire Catholic Church. A special Grace prompted St Antoninus to say[7]:
Just as she is called the gate of Heaven inasmuch as all the riches and gifts of God coming down from Heaven to earth pass through her hands, she is also the gate of Heaven in the sense that everyone from earth who manages to get to Heaven arrives there by means of her help, and especially by the aid she gives to men in their final moments.
This is also why St Richard (Bishop of Chichester in England)[8], when he was approaching death, firstly commended His soul to the Saviour using the same words that He had spoken He commended His own soul into the hands of His Eternal Father, but then followed this up with frequent repetitions of the hymn[9] which the church sings with such love and reverence:
Mary, Mother of grace,
Mother of mercy,
Do thou protect us from the foe
And receive us at the hour of death.
The Bishop had given express instructions to his chaplains for them to repeat these words frequently when he approached his agony. The holy writer using the pen-name Idiota included a commentary on the words of this hymn towards the end of the Contemplation he composed on the glorious Virgin:
She is called the Mother of Grace, he wrote, because of the loving care she shows to her children, who cling on to her grace to avoid the risk of losing it. She is called the Mother of Mercy because it is now more than ever that she causes sinners to experience her clemency, moving their hearts to feelings of penitence. She also strengthens us in readiness for combat, in which we need to be protected and defended by her against our enemies. In short, her motherly love accompanies us up into Heaven and this is why we pray that she may receive us into her arms at the hour of our death.
There is much consolation to be found in the writings of the pious St Ephrem who strives to win over the good graces of his loving Mother in readiness for that hour.
Most Holy and Immaculate Virgin, he writes in a certain place[10], do thou come unto our aid in all our necessities, and defend us from the wickedness and snares of the devil at the hour of our death, since we have no better advocate than thee.
Elsewhere he writes[11]:
Virgin Mother and Mother of Mercy, thou who art art the very personification of gentleness and kindness : prithee help and guide me throughout the course of my life and especially at the hour of my death ; do thou protect my poor soul from the hideous gaze of the raging demons and let them not come nigh unto me; prithee take up my case on the dread day of my Judgement, so that in the end I may come to partake in the glory thy dear Son hath acquired for me.
From this it is easy to see how Holy Church has very good reason for instructing us carefully to pray continually to Holy Mary, Mother of God, so that the loving and tender heart of the Blessed Virgin will come to help us in this hour of need, imploring her to pray for us now and at the hour of our death.
Footnotes[1] He that is a friend loveth at all times: Prov. xvii. 17.[2] Serm. 14 de Nativit. Domini.[3] Serm. 4 de Assumpt.[4] Orat. 2 de Dormitione B. Virg.[5] Orat. in Hipapante.[6] Lib. III de Divinis officiis.[7] IV p., tit. XV, cap. 20, § 2.[8] Surius, Tomo 2 Aprilis.[9] The French text quotes here the Latin: Maria mater gratiæ, / Mater misericordiæ, / Tu nos ab hoste protege, / Et hora mortis suscipe. The following verse translation is by Fr. Edward Caswall (1814-1878): “Mother of grace, O Mary blest, / to thee, sweet fount of love, we fly; / shield us through life, and take us hence / to thy dear bosom when we die.” For more, see Memento, salutis Auctor. [10] In Lamentatione.[11] In Orat. ad Virg.
Footnotes
[1] He that is a friend loveth at all times: Prov. xvii. 17.
[2] Serm. 14 de Nativit. Domini.
[3] Serm. 4 de Assumpt.
[4] Orat. 2 de Dormitione B. Virg.
[5] Orat. in Hipapante.
[6] Lib. III de Divinis officiis.
[7] IV p., tit. XV, cap. 20, § 2.
[8] Surius, Tomo 2 Aprilis.
[9] The French text quotes here the Latin: Maria mater gratiæ, / Mater misericordiæ, / Tu nos ab hoste protege, / Et hora mortis suscipe. The following verse translation is by Fr. Edward Caswall (1814-1878): “Mother of grace, O Mary blest, / to thee, sweet fount of love, we fly; / shield us through life, and take us hence / to thy dear bosom when we die.” For more, see Memento, salutis Auctor.
[10] In Lamentatione.
[11] In Orat. ad Virg.
3 Let us concentrate now on the particular services that the Holy Virgin performs for her children at this moment. It is worth noting that the fear we experience at the approach of death arises principally from five things which are encountered at this moment. The first is death itself, inasmuch as it is a violent separation of the soul from the body, accompanied by several side effects which are contrary to our inclinations and our natural feelings. The second is the uncertainty of when exactly it will take place, contrasting with the certainty we have of its inevitability. The third is the violent war that our invincible enemies are going to wage against us, knowing very well that this is the point when all will be won or lost. The fourth is the strict and rigorous inquiry into our lives which takes place immediately after death and which is followed by a definitive sentence leading either to our eternal happiness or our eternal perdition. The fifth is the all-consuming fire where our souls are sent in order to burn away the imperfections of sin which have not been sufficiently purged in this life through penitence. Very few people escape these fires, even amongst the most virtuous and the most holy. I believe that after I have revealed the wondrous and loving gentleness of the MOTHER OF GOD in respect of each of these, I shall have gone some way to alleviate the concerns people have.
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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 sumEt omnia mea tua sunt;Tecum semper tutus sum:Ad Jesum per Mariam.
© Peter Bloor 2025
3 Let us concentrate now on the particular services that the Holy Virgin performs for her children at this moment. It is worth noting that the fear we experience at the approach of death arises principally from five things which are encountered at this moment. The first is death itself, inasmuch as it is a violent separation of the soul from the body, accompanied by several side effects which are contrary to our inclinations and our natural feelings. The second is the uncertainty of when exactly it will take place, contrasting with the certainty we have of its inevitability. The third is the violent war that our invincible enemies are going to wage against us, knowing very well that this is the point when all will be won or lost. The fourth is the strict and rigorous inquiry into our lives which takes place immediately after death and which is followed by a definitive sentence leading either to our eternal happiness or our eternal perdition. The fifth is the all-consuming fire where our souls are sent in order to burn away the imperfections of sin which have not been sufficiently purged in this life through penitence. Very few people escape these fires, even amongst the most virtuous and the most holy. I believe that after I have revealed the wondrous and loving gentleness of the MOTHER OF GOD in respect of each of these, I shall have gone some way to alleviate the concerns people have.
 |
| 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
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