Part IV : How to give thanks to the Mother of God : Chapter 9 : § 3.1-3

Chapter 9 : Devotion – an eighth 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)

§ 3. Third sign of devotion : to offer the Ave Maria frequently to the Blessed Virgin

 1   After the most holy and noble Sacrifice of the Mass and the Blessed Sacrament, we would seek in vain any devotion more pleasing to the MOTHER OF GOD than the Ave Maria. It is a form of words composed by the most adorable Trinity, uttered by one of the greatest Princes in Heaven, addressed to the foremost and most worthy of creatures, destined to conclude the most elevated and most divine undertaking, filled with mysteries in each one of its syllables and honoured by Heaven with countless miracles.

Each time someone says this prayer, says the pious Alain de la Roche[1], Heaven rejoices, the earth is filled with astonishment, Satan takes flight, Hell is made to tremble, all that is worldly suffers displeasure, the heart is enraptured with holy love, devotion grows stronger, hope rises, consolation is increased, the mind is refreshed and is strengthened in goodness.

Each time we repeat this prayer, says St Bridget[2], the Angel Gabriel receives a new ray of heavenly light. 

It may be taken as assured that this prayer never is never offered up to Heaven without bringing some new favour, either for the body or for the soul. The books[3] are full of the miracles associated with this short but most effective prayer and it is not my intention to dwell upon these but here are a few examples.

Let us remember that time when St Gertrude was ill in bed very upset at not being able to pray in the way she normally did[4]. She was only able to utter a few words from the Ave Maria, more in her heart than from her lips. During this time, however, she merited a vision of the MOTHER OF GOD clothed in a precious robe embroidered with several beautiful flowers in gold thread, showing the satisfaction and pleasure she derived from this prayer.

Let us remember too that lay Brother[5] in the Cistercian Order who had certain learning difficulties which meant that he was unable to learn any prayer apart from the following four words: Ave Maria, gratia plena; but he took such delight in saying them as often as he could that after his death a tree grew out of his tomb which had these same words written in letters of gold on its leaves. This tree was seen by countless people and the local Bishop eventually came to witness the miracle for himself. He ordered the tomb to be dug up and it was found that the tree came from the mouth of the lay brother. After this discovery, the tree immediately withered in the sight of all those present.

Let us also remember St Elzear, Count of Ariano, who used the Ave Maria as a golden key making it easy for him to open the door to mental prayer and to gain all that he asked for. 

Let us remember St Catherine of Sweden, daughter of St Bridget, who performed miracles with this prayer[6]: she restored health to the sick, she brought the wayward back onto the path of righteousness, she gave strength to the weak and encouraged the fervent still more. In short, with these few words she judged that nothing was impossible for her. This shows how she had truly imbibed the milk of her holy Mother, which is what Pope Urban VI repeated several times when he introduced the process for the canonisation of St Bridget[7].

Let us picture the almost infinite number of people[8] who, armed with these few words as though with the five pebbles of David, have vanquished the proud enemy of their salvation, rejecting his temptations and overcoming the obstacles he placed in their path.

Finally, let us consider the graces that these devout servants of the Virgin have obtained by this means.

 

Footnotes

[1] Alanus de Rupe, in Psalter. Beatæ Virg., c. 17.

[2] Lib. IV Revel., c. 12.

[3] Cæsar., lib. VII Exempl., c. 27, etc. ; Thomas Cantiprat., lib. II Apum.

[4] Speculum exempl., dist. 3, nº 32 ; Blosius, in Monitis.

[5] Thomas Cantiprat., lib. II Apum.

[6] Vitæ ipsius, c. 17, etc.

[7] Urban VI died in 1389 and Bridget was canonized on 7th October 1391 by Boniface IX, Urban’s successor.

[8] Cæsarius, lib. V, c. 45 ; lib. III, c. 13 ; lib. VII, c. 26 ; Speculi exemplorum., dist. 9, nº 107, et dist. 6, nº 60.

 2   It is important to remember that Heaven has on several occasions shown through miracles its delight at hearing this beautiful little prayer. This is clearly demonstrated in what happened to Fr Ignacio Martinez S.J.[1] who gave up his honourable position of preacher to Sebastian King of Portugal in order to devote himself entirely to Christian doctrine.

He was teaching one day in Coimbra and asked if there was any one who wanted to say the Ave Maria out loud but no one was willing to do so. Then a little infant aged six months who had been feeding at the breast of his mother sat up on her lap and said the prayer in a distinct voice, without making any mistakes and without any hesitation whatsoever. This astonished everyone present and led to many amongst them overcoming the effects of the shame that had prevented them from speaking in public. 

Footnotes

[1] Dontrem., in Annal., an. 1598.

 3   Here are some more examples of people moved to show their ardour in this devotion.  

I have already mentioned how this prayer was on the lips of St Catherine of Sienna even when she was a tiny infant; how Saint Albert, a monk in the monastery of St Crispin, used to recite it 150 times each day; St Margaret of Hungary would say it 1000 times every day of the Octave immediately preceding the principal feasts of the Holy Virgin; Blessed Romée of the Order of St Dominic would say it as many times as this every day throughout the year; the devout lay brother Renaud Aggel, a monk in the same Order, also recited this number, genuflecting each time; blessed Bienvenue, a nun in the same order, followed the same custom starting from the age of seven. Each Saturday she would double this number and on the feast of the Annunciation she would say up to three thousand because of the great devotion she had to this ineffable mystery. 

There is a most charming story told about her when she was small, namely that one day in Church she noticed a little infant who was extraordinarily handsome. She went over to speak to him as little children often do and she asked him if he knew the Ave Maria. The little boy replied that he did and he asked her whether she knew the prayer. When she said she did he asked her to recite it. She did this most willingly and when she came to the words : Benedictus fructus ventris tui, the little child said to her: “I am the fruit of this blessed womb.” So saying, He disappeared.

St Mary of Oignies used to say this prayer on certain days up to eleven hundred times and there are many other similar instances which we do not have time to recount here. 

This is why the Holy Fathers, the successors of St Peter, have opened the treasures of the Church so generously in favour of those who adopt this pious exercise. Pope Urban IV granted thirty days of indulgence to all those who would devoutly recite the Ave Maria and invoke the Holy Name of Jesus, a grace which John XXII doubled shortly afterwards. In our own day, we rarely see an indulgence granted to anyone where this prayer is not graced with some apostolic favour.  

© Peter Bloor 2026 

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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.