Part IV : How to give thanks to the Mother of God : Chapter 8 : § 1.29-32

Chapter 8 : Honour – a seventh feature of the gratitude we owe 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)

VARIOUS WAYS OF HONOURING THE BLESSED VIRGIN’S RELICS 

 29   The same love which impelled these Princes and Princesses to make such efforts in finding precious relics of the Holy Virgin[1], enclosing them in gold and silver chests and caskets, decorating them with their most precious gemstones, prompted others to undertake long journeys in order to venerate them, kneeling before these objects of holiness and rendering them every sort of honour. The same feelings of devotion prompted others to find ways of obtaining a small part of a relic which they could carry with them always like a heavenly brevet and a powerful defence against the wickedness and snares of the devil. There are some who felt they needed no other passport or letters of credit before setting off on long journeys or undertaking great things for the glory of God.  

Thus we read[2] that St Benedict sent his beloved disciple St Maur into France with a little ivory chest which contained several holy relics, including some of the glorious Virgin.

There are others who, possessing precious relics such as these, found they increased their confidence so much that they were able to cure illnesses and counteract the ravages of the elements.

St Gregory of Tours has written a personal account[3] of how one day on a journey he saw a man and a woman with their poor children weeping as they tried to save their little house which had caught fire. Moved with compassion and fortified with a strong faith, this holy Prelate took off a golden cross he wore around his neck and which contained relics of the Blessed Virgin Mary; raising it in front of the fire, he ordered the flames to halt and be gone, which they did at that very instant – to the great astonishment and relief of the peasant and his desperate family.

Footnotes

[1] Ferreolus Lucrius, Mariæ Augustæ, lib. V ; Spinellus, de B. Virg., c. 29, etc.

[2] In Vita S. Mauri, apud Surium, t. II.

[3] Lib. I de Gloria Martyrum, c. 10.

 30   It would be remiss of me not to mention amongst the people who in various ways honoured the relics of the Holy Virgin those learned writers who composed panegyrics for them. I have always greatly admired the eloquence and zeal of the great St Germanus[1], Patriarch of Constantinople, who on more than one occasion made solemn speeches celebrating the veneration due to the girdle of the MOTHER OF GOD about which I spoke earlier. In his writings he has left us evidence showing not only of his gentle nature but also his exceptional love for honouring the Queen of Heaven. He speaks of this Heavenly jewel no more nor less than as of a living creature. 

Most wondrous girdle, thou who wast wrapped around the body which bore God within and hast served by way of adornment and crown for the true Ark of the Covenant : how many times hast thou been sprinkled with sacred milk from the chaste breasts of the Virgin of Virgins! What sweet fragrance and what healing grace hast thou received through contact with this holy body, as though with divine balm? Thou girdle beyond compare, who dost strengthen some against weakness of the flesh and fortify others against vices in favour of the noblest virtues, who dost bind the hands of our enemies visible and invisible, who dost serve as a defensive wall for the City – meaning for the soul that knows how to invoke thee. Thou cincture most precious who didst enwrap the Word made flesh and wast present at His blessings; who didst receive the honour of touching the virginal body of the Saviour’s Mother and who hast put on a certain incorruption : do thou enclose our loins with power, justice and meekness; do thou preserve our bodies and our lives from the corruption of sin; and do thou serve as encircling wall and rampart against our enemies.

Here you see how this great man teaches us to esteem that which has the least connection to the MOTHER OF GOD and to honour her incomparable holiness in everything that she once used. I trust that the love which has caused many people to work wonders in offering homage to the Holy Virgin in such cases will easily make up for what I am unable to say on the subject.

Footnotes

[1] Orat. de Adoratione Zonæ Deip., apud Surium, 31 Augusti.

Venerating images of the Holy Virgin

 31   The devotion of the faithful has always been such as to venerate images of the MOTHER OF GOD : in Churches as signs and tokens of holiness, in Palaces and government buildings as sources of advice and guidance, in barracks as portents of victory, in places of education as providing keys to knowledge, at the entrances of cities as guardians, in streets and thoroughfares as blessed augurs, in public buildings, in private houses, in bedrooms and in studies as sources of help and refuge for all eventualities.

St Luke was the first[1] to oblige Christendom in this respect by producing not one but several portraits of this heavenly and adorable countenance. Apart from the city of Rome, there are other places which glory in possessing such a treasure such as Guadalupe in Spain and Częstochowa in Poland.

This great Saint consecrated his brush to portraying the Mother’s face just as he had dedicated his pen to recounting the life and actions of the Son. Following his example, all artists considered themselves blessed to represent her – painters with their colours, engravers with their burins, sculptors with their chisels – according to the ways in which each of them could conceive her perfect and majestic beauty.

Footnotes

[1] Metaphrast., in Vita S. Lucæ ; Nicephonis, lib. XIV, c. 2 ; lib. XV, c. 14.

 32   In a short while the world found itself populated by images of the MOTHER OF GOD and this may easily be verified through reading the histories written. I would, however, attribute a particular blessing to our own age when their use has become so common that you will not find even the meanest dwelling which does not have a mark of this devotion towards the Holy Virgin.

Posterity will be forever indebted to Blessed Francis Borgia, sometime Duke of Candia[1] and later third Superior General of our Society, for the great number of images of Our Lady that can be seen today all around the world. He was fired by an ardent wish to make copies of a true portrait of the most sacred Virgin and he applied for permission to have in his own lodgings St Luke’s portrait which is kept in Rome in the Church of St Mary Major. His request met with many difficulties because of the honour and reverence shown to this holy image but his devotion and perseverance overcame them all. He finally succeeded in having a number of copies made which he sent to various Princes and great Lords, as well as to various Jesuit houses. After this, the enjoyment of such portraits of Our Lady spread amongst the general public and became common.

St Charles[2], the very image of a great Prelate, spread devotion to the Virgin through her images in a wondrous manner. He issued a directive that at the entry of every parish Church there should be an image of Our Lady. He not only insisted this order should be followed to the letter but he also required all his diocesan clergy to carry an image of Our Lady with them at all times. He knew this would have great power against the wicked schemes of the enemy. 

Footnotes

[1] Onuphrius, lib. de Septem. Eccl.

[2] St. Charles Borromeo (1538–1584).

© Peter Bloor 2025 

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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.