Part IV : How to give thanks to the Mother of God : Chapter 11 : § 11.10-11

Chapter 11 : Imitation – tenth 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)

§ 11. How she should be imitated by Virgins in particular

Sobriety : third companion of the virginity of the MOTHER OF GOD

 10   The third companion of the MOTHER OF GOD’s virginal purity was sobriety and abstinence. With regard to this abstinence :

    • St Ambrose[1] claimed it was so great that she barely ate what was necessary to keep her alive;  

    • St John Chrysostom[2] described it as exceeding and superior to all the forces of nature, and noted it had moved the King of glory to make her the Mother of His only-begotten Son; and

    • St Jerome[3] wrote that it was so disciplined that an Angel brought her a small morsel of food each day so that she would not exceed in any way the limits of necessity. 

It is not to be thought that she resorted to abstinence in order to overcome the disordered motions of sensuality (which were in her most perfectly subject to reason) but to obey this same reason which teaches that:

Food must only be taken to sustain a person’s body and to grant wings to his soul, as St John Chrysostom wrote[4], so that it may rise heavenwards through contemplation, making it immune to all the temptations of the a person’s earthly or lower part, meaning his body.

I might also add that although she herself had no need to put a brake upon the inclinations of her flesh by this means since in her it followed the spirit in each and every way, she nevertheless had to demonstrate to Virgins their need of this virtue. They in particular have need for temperance and sobriety to come to the aid of their chastity by weakening the internal threats and preventing these from being reinforced by external ones. The Ancients[5] understood this point very well and when speaking of wine they called it the milk of the Goddess of debauchery, expressing in this way what they had learned from the Holy Books which teach that wine is the stimulus and nourishment for this vice. It is strange to hear the words of the Holy Fathers on this subject and their way of speaking, particularly when they are addressing their words to Virgins. 

If I can offer any advice, says St Jerome, and if my experience is worth listening to, then the first thing I would say and the first prayer I would make is that a Bride of Christ should avoid wine no less than poison. The demons, like the arsonists they are, use this to set our bodies on fire so as to inflame us when we are young. Avarice, pride, and ambition do not normally cause such immense damage forasmuch as it is much easier to defend against external enemies than against one that is within us and which accompanies us everywhere. Wine and youth when mixed are like two bonfires. Are we willingly going to pour oil on these fires and feed the vices which inflame our bodies and ruin our souls?

St John Chrysostom is brief and to the point[6], maintaining that:  

A woman who governs herself wisely will never willingly drink wine.

The other authorities say no less and it seems to me this is more than enough to teach Virgins the rule they should keep and the moderation they should exercise in their lives if they wish to preserve the most pleasing flower of their chastity so that its pure fragrance may spread everywhere. 

 

Footnotes

[1] Lib. II de Virg.

[2] Orat. de Hypapante.

[3] Apud S. Bonavent., meditat. de Vita Christi, c. 3, et apud Vincent. Bellovac., lib. VI Speculi., c. 6.

[4] Homil. 1 in Gen.

[5] Athen., lib. X Dipnos., c. 15 ; Prov. xx. 1 : Luxuriosa res vinum / Wine is a luxurious thing. 

[6] In c. 1 Matth.

Keeping occupied : fourth companion of the virginity of the MOTHER OF GOD

 11    The fourth companion for the Holy Virgin’s virginity was always keeping busy. She knew only too well that vice flourishes in idleness and inactivity, no more nor less than over-indulgence in food and lack of exercise[1] make the strong weak and the wise lose their wisdom. This may be seen in the cases of Sampson and Solomon who thrived when active but whose bodies, minds and honour were ruined as soon as they abandoned themselves to idleness. 

I am pleased to present here for the benefit of Virgins what the Saints have passed on to us about the spiritual and physical activities of the MOTHER OF GOD so as to furnish them with a perfect idea of a spiritual day. St Bonaventure[2] compiled the following details partly from the memoirs of St Jerome and partly from the revelations made to St Elizabeth, daughter of Andrew King of Hungary, by the same Virgin. He says:

She would normally rise at midnight and then, prostrating herself before the place where the Ark which was the throne of God once rested, she would spend a considerable period of time in prayer. Without mentioning the thanks she offered to His Majesty, the praise and blessings she gave Him, as well as acts of Faith, Hope, Charity and Religion, she was in the habit of asking seven things from God.

The first was the grace to love Him with her whole heart, soul, mind and strength. The second was the favour of loving her neighbour in the way God commands, and everything else that He wants us to love for the love of Him. The third was the strength to hate everything which is displeasing to Him. The fourth was the humility, the patience, the kind-heartedness and other virtues which would make her lovable to her heart’s Spouse. The fifth was the blessing and honour of seeing with her eyes, hearing with her ears, and serving her hands the one who was so blessed as to be the Mother of her Creator, as she had learned from the Sacred Scriptures. The sixth was the necessary help to fulfil with all diligence the will of her Superiors. In the seventh, she commended to God the sanctuary He had chosen, the officers and ministers of the Temple and His chosen people in general, praying that He would preserve them all and make them grow in His holy service.

After this first exercise she rested, albeit briefly, and then returned early in the morning to prayer again until 9:00 o’clock. From then until midday she occupied herself in manual work according to what she had been told to do, working for example in silk or wool as a service to the Temple, for which she had a perfect understanding. After midday, she betook herself to spiritual exercises, reading and prayer until the Angel brought her little meal. After this, she offered blessings and adoration to God and, according to what several Saints have said, she spent some time in conversation with the Blessed Spirits who came to see her. Then she would sleep for a while but this did not interrupt her sweet and affectionate colloquies with God, as I have written elsewhere following a goodly number of Holy Doctors. 

What I have written so far comes from St Bonaventure but it is in miraculous agreement with what was written by St Gregory of Nyssa[3], St Jerome[4], blessed Sophronius[5], Andrew of Crete[6], St John Damascene[7], Saint Germanus (Patriarch of Constantinople)[8], Epiphanius (Priest of the same Church)[9], George Archbishop of Nicomedia[10], Cedrenus[11], Nicephorus[12], Peter Damian[13] and many others.

What a blessed way she shows of managing her time! What days she spent, filled in a way envied by the Saints, following David[14]! What an array of actions worthy of being presented to God’s Majesty! What colloquies going beyond what might be expected when considering the demands and needs of bodies both corruptible and mortal! I know full well that other Virgins will never attain this way of filling each day but that does not mean that they are dispensed from becoming part of the company of young maidens who follow the chosen Bride. She indeed goes forth, she soars, she crosses over mountains and flies over valleys, hastening to her Beloved; as for the Virgins, let them remember that they will advance in Virtue only so far as they follow closely in the footsteps of the Queen who is leading them. 

 

Footnotes

[1] Aug., Serm. 16 ad fratres in eremo.

[2] Medit. vitæ Christi, c. 3.

[3] Orat. de Nativit. Dom.

[4] In Hist. Deiparæ.

[5] In Epist. de Assumpt.

[6] Orat. 1 de Assumpt.

[7] Lib. IV Fide Orth.

[8] In Encom. Deip.

[9] In Vita Virg.

[10] Orat. de Deiparæ oblatione.

[11] In Compendio historiæ.

[12] Lib. I Hist., c. 7.

[13] Serm. 1 de Nativit. Mariæ ; Christophorus a Castro, Hist. Deiparæ, c. 3.

[14] Evening and morning, and at noon I will speak and declare: and he shall hear my voice: Ps. LIV. 18; Seven times a day I have given praise to thee, for the judgments of thy justice: Ps. CXVIII. 164.

© 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.