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The Annunciation, early 1460s; by Willem Vrelant.The Getty Museum, L.A. |
It is referred to in the French work by Fr François Poiré called The Triple Crown of the Holy Mother of God (1630) which I translated on this blog starting on the 1st of May 2024.
I offer this annotated edition of St Bonaventure’s work as a small gift to our gentle Queen and Mother in gratitude for all her graces and favours, requesting her continued help and protection for the author and his family.
The Latin text and references are based upon Speculum Beatae Mariae Virginis (1904). The English text is based upon that attributed to Sr Mary Emmanuel O.S.B. (published by Herder in 1932). Amazon's various editions ackowledge that this text is in the Public Domain worldwide, attributing it to the text of a Dublin edition (author unknown) published in 1849.
Chapter 8 : The gifts of the Lord are shared with Mary
When the Angel tells the Blessed Virgin Mary the Lord is with thee, the Lord in question is the universal Lord of all things, most powerful, most wise, most richly endowed and most unfailingly constant.
Ave Maria, gratia plena, Dominus tecum : Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. It has been shown above how Mary, because of her completely pure life, is rightly saluted by Ave. It has also been shown how, because of the plenitude of her overflowing graces, she is rightly called “full of grace.” We now aim to show how, because of a most special presence of God within her, it is rightly said the Lord is with her. Hence: The Lord is with thee. O great Gabriel! Great is the message thou bringest to this great Lady about the great Lord. Great is that which thou sayest to her: The Lord is with thee; but tell us in what measure, or how He is with her?
Listen to the words of St. Augustine answering this question, as it were in the person of Gabriel[1]:
“The Lord is with thee, but more than with me. The Lord is with thee, but not as He is with me. The Lord is in me for the Lord hath created me; but by thee the Lord is to be born.”
The Lord, therefore, is with thee O Mary; but who or how great is the Lord? He is the Lord of all things in general, the Lord of mankind in particular, and the Lord who is thine in a singular manner, O Mary. The Lord, I say, of all creatures in general, the Lord in a special manner of rational creatures and the Lord in a singular way of thy virginal court, O Mary.
We must consider, therefore, that this Lord of whom it is said the Lord is with thee, is in general the Lord of all creatures. Judith mentions[2]: “God of the heavens, creator of the waters, and Lord of the whole creation;” and it is also written that[3]: “The Lord of all things hath loved her.” He is indeed the Lord of all things universally, of all things visible and invisible. This universal Lord of all things was in Mary in such a manner that He made her the universal Lady of all things – the sovereign Lady, I say, of Heaven and of the world. St. Anselm saith[4]:
“O Queen of heaven, and sovereign Lady of the World, dearest Mother of Him who cleanseth the world, I confess that my body is exceedingly unclean[5] with worldly filth.”
But lo! This universal Lord of all things is Lord most powerful, Lord most wise, Lord most splendid and Lord most unfailingly constant. A Lord without power, without wisdom, without splendour or without constancy would be an imperfect Lord. A Lord who is feeble, foolish, impoverished or inconstant would be much less esteemed; but Our Lord is universal, most powerful in the exercise of His will, most wise in what pertains to truth, most rich in His endowments and most constant through all eternity.
Footnotes
[1] Serm. 195. (olim de Sanctis 18.) n. 2.
[2] Jud. ix. 17.
[3] Wisdom viii. 3.
[4] Orat. 52. in principio.
[5] unclean : immundus in Latin, following directly on from the reference to the one who cleanseth (mundat) the world (mundum).
Firstly, let us note that the universal Lord who is with Mary, is a Lord most powerful in His will and it is well said of Him[1]:
“All whatsoever the he hath willed, the Lord hath done, in heaven, in earth, in the sea, and in all the deeps.”
Therefore, neither in Heaven, nor on earth, nor in all the infernal abysses, can anyone resist the will of so powerful a Lord, as Mardochai testifies,saying[2]:
“O Lord, Lord, almighty king, all things are in thy power, and there is none that can resist thy will.”
Behold, Mary, how great and how powerful is the Lord who is with thee! And because the Lord most powerful is most powerfully with thee, thou art most powerfully with Him, near Him and in Him, so that thou canst truly say[3]: “My power was in Jerusalem.” Jerusalem signifies the Church triumphant in Heaven and also signifies the Church militant upon earth; for truly the Mother of the Creator has power both in Heaven and on earth. Her power is recognised by Anselm when he says[4]:
“O loving Virgin Mary, hear our prayers; may thou graciously be with us and do thou grant us thy most powerful help, so that our minds may be cleansed from their stains and our darkness illuminated.”
The Lord is with thee, therefore, O Mary most powerful.
Footnotes
[1] Psalm. cxxxiv. 6.
[2] Esther xiii. 9.
[3] Ecclesiasticus xxiv. 15.
[4] Loc. cit.
Secondly, note that the universal Lord who is with Mary, is a Lord most wise in truth; for He is the Lord of whom it is said in the Psalm[1],
“Great is our Lord, and great is his power: and of his wisdom there is no number.”
Most wise is the Lord, whose wisdom nothing can deceive and from which nothing can be concealed, because He knows all things both visible and hidden. The Lord knows all our works both good and bad, all our words, our thoughts and all our desires, both good and bad; whence St. Peter says[2]: “Lord, Thou knowest all things.” Behold, Mary, what kind of a Lord and what a most wise Lord is He who is with thee; and because the most wise Lord is most wisely with thee, therefore thou too art most wise with Him and through Him. Thou art typified by that Abigail, of whom it was said[3]: “And she was a prudent and very comely woman.” Mary was so prudent and so comely that St. Anselm does not hesitate to say of her[4]:
“All the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are in Mary.”
The Lord is with thee, therefore, O Mary most prudent.
Footnotes
[1] Psalm. cxlvi. 5.
[2] Ioan. xxi. 17.
[3] 1 Kings (1 Samuel) xxv. 3.
[4] Homil. 9. circa finem.
Thirdly, consider how the universal Lord, who is with Mary, is most wealthy in His possessions, as the Prophet testifies, saying[1]:
“The earth is the Lord’s and the fulness thereof: the world, and all they that dwell therein.”
Not only is the earth and the fulness thereof the Lord’s, but also the Heavens and their fullness; for thine, O Lord, are the Heavens, and thine is the earth[2], because “the heaven of heaven is the Lord’s.”[3] Everything is the property of this Lord, Heaven and earth, bodies and spirits, all nature, all grace, all heavenly glory, all is properly the Lord’s own. Therefore, the Lord is most rich, as the Apostle says[4]:
“the same is Lord over all, rich unto all that call upon him.”
Behold, Mary, how rich, how great is He who is with thee ! And because the most rich lord is with thee so richly, therefore art thou most rich together with Him and because of Him, so that it can be truly said of thee[5]:
“Many daughters have gathered together riches, thou hast surpassed them all.”
Those daughters Agnes, Cæcilia, Lucia, Agatha, Catherine and many other holy virgins and just souls, gathered together riches of virtue and grace, of merits and rewards; but thou, O Mary, by thy universal riches hast surpassed them all in a most excellent manner. Oh, how rich is Mary in glory, who was so rich amidst misery! Oh, how rich is she in Heaven, who was so rich in this world! Oh, how rich is she in her soul, who was so rich in her body that even St. Bernard exclaims:
“O Mary, rich in all and above all, of whose substance a small part having being taken was enough to pay the debt of the whole world!”
The Lord is with thee, therefore, O Mary most richly endowed.
Footnotes
[1] Psalm. xxiii. 1.
[2] Psalm. lxxxviii. 12.
[3] Psalm. cxiii. 24.
[4] Rom. x. 12.
[5] Prov. xxxi. 29.
Fourthly, consider how the universal Lord, who is with Mary, is Lord unfailing through all eternity. Whence we read in Exodus[1]: “The Lord shall reign for ever and ever.” And in the Psalm it is said[2]: “But thou, O Lord, endurest for ever.” Behold, O Mary, how great a Lord, how unfailing a Lord is He who is with thee! And because unfailing He is unfailingly with thee, therefore thou also art unfailing with Him in eternity. For thou art that unfailing throne, that everlasting throne, the throne of the Son of God, of whom the Father saith by the Prophet[3]:
“And his throne as the sun before me: and as the moon perfect for ever, and a faithful witness in heaven.”
In truth, for ever; hence, we cannot only say with truth: “Thou, O Lord, endurest for ever,” but we can also truly say: “Thou, O Lady, endurest for ever.” What wonder is it if Mary, in her Son, remains forever, when even the benefits of Mary in her servants remain forever? For St. Bernard says[4]:
“In thee, O Mary, the Angels find joy, the just grace and repentant sinners find pardon forever.”
The Lord is with thee, therefore, O Mary most unfailing and constant!
Rejoice, O Mary, rejoice! Behold the Lord most powerful is with thee in such a manner that thou art most powerful with Him; The Lord most wise is with thee in such a way that thou art most wise with Him; the Lord most rich is with thee in such wise that thou art most richly endowed through Him; and the Lord most unfailingly constant is with thee in such wise that thou, together with Him, shalt never be found failing or wanting.
Now, therefore, dear Lady most powerful, be a helper to us who are so impotent! Dear Lady most prudent, be to us who are foolish a Lady of good counsel! Dear Lady so richly endowed, be to us who are poor a benefactress! O Lady most unfailing and constant, be to us feeble, failing creatures a perpetual support in all our works!
Footnotes
[1] Exod. xv. 18.
[2] Psalm. ci. 13.
[3] Psalm. lxxxviii. 38.
[4] Serm. 2. in Pentec. n. 4.
[End of Chapter 8]
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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.
The Virgin of Tenderness. >12th century.
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. 30-31.30-31.
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