The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 13 : § 5.3-6

Chapter 13 : The Eleventh Star or Splendour of the Crown of Excellence of 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)

How she is the honour of earth and of Heaven

§ 5. She is the Sun of the World

She is as the rising Sun in her birth and in the progression of her life 

 3    Her second state starts with her birth and includes her infancy and the period she spent being reared in the Temple. In this we can see that she bore a very close resemblance to the Sun rising and ascending with growing momentum above the horizon. In this second state, she gave off four rays of light, as before.

The first was a ray of beauty, a beauty of the body and a spiritual beauty, for which reason she was called completely beautiful: It was a signal beauty, attractive to those with a love of virtue and chastity; it was a signal beauty, in every aspect surpassing that of the morning stars. The second ray reflected her freedom from all sin, an exemption proceeding not only from the plenitude of grace that she had received but also from her spiritual peace which mastered disorderly passions and from the external perfection deriving from God and the Angels. The third ray was the contemplation of heavenly things, filling her with an indescribable sweetness and holding her attached by an unbreakable link to the principle and source of all satisfaction and fulfilment. The fourth ray reflected the example of her life, so clear and dazzling that henceforth she became lovable in the eyes of all who saw her and most worthy of admiration to those who considered carefully the beautiful signs of her royal virtues.

She is as the Sun at its noonday zenith, in the conception of the divine Word

 4    The third state was the conception of the divine Word which was the true noonday zenith of our mystical Sun, namely the Holy Virgin, with which she truly filled the world with rays of eternal splendour. The most excellent of these were the four that I am now going to mention.

The first was the plenitude of Grace that she received in an ineffable manner, of which she was henceforth to become a living source and principle conjointly with her son. The second ray removed everything that could stop or hinder however little the development of her most excellent virtues and a certain impeccability about which I have spoken earlier. The third ray was, an adhesion to the sovereign good by means of union with and transformation in Him who divinized all her actions and gave them and inestimable merit. The fourth was a spirit of calm and confidence that she enjoyed in her present state and would enjoy in the future, with reference to the abundant promises given to her from on high.

I have followed the Holy Fathers in calling this third state of the glorious Virgin the noonday zenith of our mystical Sun, by reason of the holy fervour which set her blessed soul on fire with flames of love. It seems to me that I hear this state referred to in chapter xliii of Ecclesiasticus where we read: At noon he burneth the earth, and who can abide his burning heat? As one keeping a furnace in the works of heat: The sun three times as much, burneth the mountains, breathing out fiery vapours, and shining with his beams, he blindeth the eyes.  Great is the Lord that made him, and He did this by breathing a simple word to set the Sun in a motion that has always been kept. 

A miracle unheard of then came to pass which would need the pen and the mind of an Angel to describe. This divine Sun, in the midst of her fervour and more than Seraphic rapture, produced another Sun which, according to King David the Prophet[1], arose as a bridegroom coming out of his bride's chamber; this was the incarnate Word, who is the true Sun of Justice, who enlighteneth every man that cometh into this world. To appreciate the beautiful thought of the Psalmist, you need to have contemplated the Sun rising in the morning from the sea, as though from the couch of his beloved Tethys, as the poets say. For indeed there is nothing in the world more beautiful or overwhelming than to see the Sun rising from the sea in the morning, causing the dissipation of the early mists which begin to rise. The Sun appears in the midst of these as in an embroidered tent, causing bejewelled sparks of light; drawing insensibly towards itself these morning vapours, the Sun seems to rise to the sound and rhythm of lutes and violins. Even having considered all that, it would still be as nothing, bearing in mind that what we have described is a material image of something supernatural : the rising of the Sun within our souls. Nevertheless, if the sight of a material object is capable of producing such delight in those who see it from the summit of mountain, what must the pleasure of the Angels be like when they are present at the rising of the unique Sun of the world, which they see emerge from the nuptial couch and from the womb of the blessed Virgin – who is both His Mother and His Spouse? Consider how those Saints who received an imaginary representation of this ineffable mystery were overwhelmed with sweet feelings they were never able to explain; what could conceivably be said of those who had the joy of contemplating the scene, not figuratively but in reality, not in their imagination but as it actually was?

Footnotes

[1] Ps. XVIII. 6.

.

She is as a setting Sun at her death

 5    If it was possible for me to add something on my own to the rich ideas of Saint Bernardine, I would add a fourth and supplementary state of the Virgin: namely her glorious decease which with good reason I would call the setting of this divine Sun. Following the model of this great servant of the MOTHER OF GOD, I would say that this state gave off four rays of a most adorable brightness. The first was a heartfelt desire to see God and to be united with her beloved; this ray was so powerful and so penetrating that it reached God’s heart and won from Him a holy agreement to grant the most just desires of His most beloved daughter. The second ray was courageous resignation to everything willed by Heaven; this was a resignation very different from that of Saint Martin and other Saints who, desiring death, accepted life as a penance. The third ray was an indescribable ecstasy of love which could find no rest except through an end to her beating heart, and a loss of her life, allowing thereby passage to her blessed soul so that it could bury itself in immortality. The fourth ray was a more than maternal tenderness and care for all the children of the Church; this has continued and increased in the Divine flames of the love of her most holy Spouse, whose fire is in Sion and his furnace is in Jerusalem[1]. There is no question here of the desperate desire of the ancient Eudoxus who, to satisfy the vain curiosity of his eyes and his mind, agreed to be reduced to ashes were he only allowed the time to survey the Sun which is the source of our light and to take all the measurements. Here we are speaking of very different Sun, worthy of being a subject of eternal contemplation. For my part, I proclaim that not only would I not begrudge my life for this, but it would be a privilege to see my soul detached from its body as a result of a similar desire, and through the powerful attractions of such an excellent object of desire, attain the happiness of never being distracted therefrom ever afterwards and focusing my eyes thereon for all eternity.

Footnotes

[1] Isai. xxxi. 9.

 6    If you have found the above thoughts uplifting, I would ask you to keep them in focus whilst I bring this discussion to an end with the words of the pious Saint Bernard, who expresses a beautiful notion which has touched my heart.

Take away the visible Sun from the world, he says[1], and who will bring us the day? Take away Mary from men, and what will they have left other than murky shadows and a darkness like unto the shadow of death?

The Philosophers seek to demonstrate that if there were no longer any Sun in the world, there would be a number of consequences: 

    • the pleasing changes of the seasons which we all appreciate would come to an end; 

    • more than that, there would be a cessation (as though under a general interdict) of all sublunary activities;

    • there would in consequence be a universal overthrow of the beautiful order that God established for His creatures; and 

    • there would be sudden death for those who are alive and terrible harm suffered by those who survive this. 

We may choose to leave the Philosophers to continue their debate about these propositions; for my part, I believe there is not a single created mind capable of imagining what would become of our world were we to be deprived of Mary, the honour of earth and Heaven. There is no need to explain that if she were not there, there would be no Jesus Christ, for He was the only or main reason that she was made, as I will show at the beginning of Part II of this work. 

Were she to be taken from us, in whom would sinners place their trust and to whom would they look for help when they have sinned against the Saviour in their souls and have trampled His precious blood under their feet? What sanctuary and what city of refuge would be left for poor sinners? Who would be the Advocate for those whose desperate causes lead them to fear the extreme consequences of Justice? Who would awaken those who have fallen asleep? Who would animate the languid? Who would stir into action the lukewarm? Who would encourage the fervent to increase their fervour still more? Who would protect the Church? Who would defend her against enemies visible and invisible? What would become of those whose fear of God paralyzes their hearts, and who can be helped only through gentleness and mercy? Who would comfort the afflicted? Who would be a help unto the dying? Who would accompany them after their death to the dread judgement of God? 

I pray that these considerations will help us to understand how deeply indebted we are to our God for having given us this wondrous Sun who confers so many graces and favours upon us; I pray too that they may re-awaken in our hearts a desire to love, honour, and serve her through whom we breathe and from whom we receive so many blessings.

Footnotes

[1] Serm. de Nativit. Virg.

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The Vladimirskaya Icon. >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

The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 13 : § 5.1-2

Chapter 13 : The Eleventh Star or Splendour of the Crown of Excellence of 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)

How she is the honour of earth and of Heaven

§ 5. She is the Sun of the World

 1    The devout Emperor of Constantinople, Matthew Cantacuzenus[1], wrote as follows:

We have compared her to the Moon, but this does not mean that she cannot also be called a Sun – because we give her these different names for various reasons. We say that she is a Sun forasmuch as the divine Word made His abode in her tabernacle, and for this reason she has within her the fullness of light, no more or less than the Sun. We also give her the name of Moon, because the light within her does not come from herself but is all borrowed from her Son, who is the unique Sun of Justice.

Before this writer we have just quoted, the great Saint Jerome had the same thought with reference to the following words from Psalm XVIII: He hath set his tabernacle in the Sun. He argued that they must be understood as meaning the womb of the glorious Virgin and he adds:

So that she who previously was only a Star might become a radiant Sun, God communicated such a great abundance of light to her that the even Angels could not withstand its radiance.

After him, the blessed Cardinal Peter Damien gave free rein to his thoughts[2] and went looking for the reasons why the Church, following the Spouse of the Canticles, calls her bright as the Sun[3].

The Holy Spirit, he says, has never encountered amongst material creatures anything more noble. The brightness of the Sun is very different from that of the Moon for, even if the great light of the Moon in a certain way outshines that of the stars, it does not eclipse them. The Sun, however, blocks out of sight all the other stars by the power of its radiance so that from our point of view it is as though they cease to be visible. Similarly, the MOTHER OF GOD outshines the merits of all the other Saints that in her presence, their brightness and lustre seem to fade away.

The words of Saint Basil, Bishop of Seleucia, lend their support to this idea when he writes[4]:

The Holy Virgin certainly has the same ascendancy over the martyrs (and why not over all the other Saints?) that the Sun has over all the other lights in the Heavens. 

Footnotes

[1] Cant. 6.

[2] Serm. de Assumpt.

[3] Cant. vi. 9. The French text has choisie comme le Soleil, a translation of the Vulgate’s electa ut sol, meaning select, choice, excellent as the Sun, which becomes bright as the Sun in the Douay-Rheims translation.

[4] Serm. de Annuntiat.

The Holy Virgin is a rising Sun in her Conception

 2    Saint Bonaventure, along with the aforementioned Doctors, made an astute observation:

If there is one time which would enable us to compare her to the Sun, it would be the Incarnation of the divine Word[1]; for in that instant, she burst forth in a way which would dazzle men and Angels, filling them with astonishment.

After studying other writers, however, I find the words of Saint Bernardine of Siena very satisfying. He holds it as being beyond question that the MOTHER OF GOD is a Sun, and he then goes on to say she may be considered such in three different states. The first is at the time of her immaculate Conception, when she may deservedly be compared with the rising Sun, casting her first gleaming rays upon the peaks of the highest mountains.

At this point, says the Saint, meaning at daybreak, she sent out four rays. The first was of holiness, but holiness that was such as to befit the future MOTHER OF GOD. The second ray was of knowledge, by which her mind, anticipating the normal age of reason, was illuminated with an understanding unrivalled by any other created spirits. The third ray was of charity, for this beautiful soul, feeling herself so lovingly and preveniently graced with gentle blessings, exploded in a love so extraordinary that even the Seraphim were left confounded. The fourth ray was tranquillity, resulting from the universal peace that God established between all the faculties of her body and soul, so that not a single one could disturb or rise up against reason. 

Footnotes

[1] Speculi B. Virgin., c. 6.

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The Vladimirskaya Icon. >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

The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 13 : § 4.1-5

Chapter 13 : The Eleventh Star or Splendour of the Crown of Excellence of 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)

How she is the honour of earth and of Heaven

§ 4. She is the Moon in the Church

 1    Just as the visible world has its many sources of light, so too has the Church. Its stars are the Saints who are no less different in their light, greatness and beauty than the ones we see in the firmament. They are no less infinite in number and are just as remarkable for their different effects, influences and characteristics. Some never appear over the horizon – they are those who shun being known to men so that they may be better known to God. There are others who never leave our hemisphere – they are those who perform works of charity unceasingly for their neighbour. Some appear at the beginning of the night, like the ancient Patriarchs; others come in the middle of the night, like the Prophets of old; the last ones come at daybreak, like the Blessed Precursor and the Apostles, whom we could with good reason compare to the twelve signs of the Zodiac[1] [2]. There are those who weep, like the Hyades[3]; and there are those who laugh like the planet Jupiter whom the Astrologers have nicknamed the Jovial one or the bringer of jollity. Some remain in their cells, like the stars in the firmament; and others wander like the planets, spreading the fruits of their holiness everywhere. You will find some who live in solitude away from the world, and others who lead a social life and live in common. There are the stars of winter, like the martyrs; and the stars of summer, like the confessors who bore the heat and the burden of the hottest time of the year. I might also mention the stars that see[4] and those that listen, were these not simply the imaginings of judicial astrologers[5].

Footnotes

[1] S. Anastas. Sinaïta, lib. IV in Hexameron.

[2] Zodiac: from the Greek meaning “circle of little animals.” In Old English the zodiac was twelf tacna "the twelve signs," and in Middle English also Our Ladye’s Waye and the Girdle of the Sky. See Online Etymology Dictionary.

[3] The Hyades were the nymphs that brought rain in Greek mythology. They were daughters of the Titan Atlas and either Pleione or the Oceanid Aethra, and had one brother, Hyas. According to the myth, their brother Hyas was killed while hunting, so they started crying from grief, which is how they brought rain on the earth. They were later transformed into a constellation of the same name. 

[4] Alex. de Angelis, in Astrologos, lib. IV, c. 18.

[5] judicial astrologers were practitioners of astrologia judiciaria, so-called because they applied subjective judgement to astrological phenomena in order to make predictions. 

The Saviour is the Sun and the Holy Virgin is the Moon

 2   Holy Scripture says that amongst all these lights God made two that are incomparable in their light and inimitable in their effects. I am referring to the Sun and the Moon: by the first, I mean the Saviour of the world and by the second, His Blessed Mother. The Egyptians of old worshipped the Sun and in their excess they called it the visible son of the invisible God; Christians adore the Saviour, recognising Him as being the only-begotten Son of God, believing that neither the Sun nor any other created thing may bear comparison with Him. The Orientals in our day worship the Moon, as being a heavenly body that with its various phases organises their lives and procures all manner of good things for them: the true children of the East revere the MOTHER OF GOD as a favourable heavenly influence upon them. Even if her aspect may vary, she never ceases to be constant and unchanging in the sweet influence she has upon them. 

Before proceeding onto the particular properties of the Moon, there is something to be said that applies to both of these exceptional lights: it was not without reason that God created them both on the fourth day, for this was a foreshadowing[1] of what would come to pass in the fourth age or fourth Millennium of the world’s history, to which by an unparalleled privilege was reserved the joy of beholding the birth of Jesus and Mary, who are the two great lights of the universe. For my part, I find that Saint Anastasius the Sinaite, Patriarch of Antioch, was inspired by grace when he said[2] that the Sun and the Moon were made on Earth and that from there they were transported into the heavens. In fact, Sacred Scripture speaks of the Sun and the Moon differently from the way it does of the other stars. It is said that God made the stars in the firmament but with regard to the Sun and the Moon, it is said explicitly that God made them and then set them in the firmament of Heaven[3]. This is a wondrous mystery through which we learn that Jesus and Mary are to be considered no less the honour of the Earth than of Heaven and that as they were destined to serve as an ornament for the dwelling of the Blessed, so it was fitting that our own earth might be glorified for having given them to Heaven. We can see from the opening of Genesis that the Sun and the Moon were created firstly to give light upon the Earth and later to provide an eternal source of joy to the inhabitants of Heaven; in the same way, Jesus and Mary were to illuminate the Church Militant through their exceptional example before becoming sources of brilliant light and joy for the Church Triumphant. The Sun and the Moon are the universal causes of all generations here below, one by virtue of its heat and the other through its refreshing coolness; in Jesus and Mary all the effects of grace have their origin, in the former through His most efficacious merits and in the latter through the sweetness of her incredible goodness.

The Sun, says the Sinaite, was made of elementary matter and of subsisting light, and it was created from the very beginning of the world to be a source of light, both on earth and in Heaven; Jesus was composed of a material and passible body like unto our own, and of the uncreated and subsisting light of the divinity, to be the point of origin for grace, life, glory and light through all eternity. The Moon was indeed formed of the same elementary matter as the Sun, but it borrowed all its light from the Sun; similarly, the Holy Virgin has a body with the same nature as that of her Son, from whom however she holds everything that she is, either through grace or through glory.

Footnotes

[1] Anastasius, loc. cit.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Gen. i. 14-19.

Various links between the Moon and the Blessed Virgin

 3   Let us now focus upon the Moon for the remainder of this discussion. The learned Abbot Rupert makes the apposite observation that:

Even though the Moon owes all its light to the Sun, it does not keep this light for itself but communicates all of it immediately to the Earth[1]; in the same way, even though the holy Virgin is indebted to her Son for all the grace that she possesses, never she does not want to keep it just for herself but, recognising the love that He has for men, she continually shares amongst them the light that she has received from Him.

A learned, modern writer[2] develops this beautiful thought of the pious Abbot, saying that:

The Moon is in a certain sense the Spouse of the Sun, and having been impregnated, conceives and brings forth those sweet fruits born of their union. Although the Moon can do nothing unaided, once she has been made fruitful by the favourable conjuncture with the Father of light, she makes her favours available for the benefit of those on earth, rendering herself indispensable. From this derives the power she has over our bodies which can tell when she is close and when she is not, which can sense her plenitude, her waxing and waning and all her changes. She has power over illnesses, she gives good or bad omens, she increases or diminishes the effects of medications: on her depend favourable times to plant, to sow, to harvest, to go on a journey by sea or on land, and all the government of our natural life. In short, all the graces of the Sun – if they are to be propitious for us – must pass through the hands of the Moon, where they are moderated and tailored to our personal requirements.

This is an excellent image of the MOTHER OF GOD who by reason of her status as Spouse receives from the Saviour all those favours and graces that are necessary for our spiritual life. Within her, they receive new vigour and she tailors them carefully to our personal needs in such a way that not only does she have a great influence on all our actions but we for our part need to look to her and to have recourse to her in all that we undertake, lest we start things at the wrong time or make decisions that could prove dangerous.

Footnotes

[1] Lib. VI in Cant.

[2] Georgius Venetus, Harmoniæ mumdi, cant. I, t. I, c. 38.

 4   When speaking of the Moon[1], the learned Historian of nature attributes two Qualities to her and these find a marvellous correspondence in the MOTHER OF GOD: firstly, the Moon is a powerful friend of our earth; and secondly, the Moon oversees all the prognostics and conjectures that we take from Heaven. What thing could there be in the whole world that is more certain than the following indisputable truth, that out of all the Saints of God, there is none to whom we can have recourse in the way that we do with the Holy Virgin, who has such a love for men and never ceases to seek and procure their good? Is it not from her that we receive the most certain signs of the friendship that God has towards us, of our reconciliation with His Sovereign Majesty, of our eternal salvation and everything that is made available for our good? 

The Holy spirit, however, provides me with thoughts more lofty when He says in the book of Ecclesiasticus[2], that the Moon is for a declaration of times, dividing the seasons and separating ages; she is sign of the festival days and solemnities of the year; from her derive the Neomenia[3], the Pasch, the feast of Tabernacles and so on with the other feasts: in short, she is one of the principal pieces of God’s powerful armament that He uses to join his creatures to His laws and make them amenable to His commandments. What could be said more truly and at the same time more advantageously concerning the MOTHER OF GOD? For is it not she who rules our days, our years and our lives, and upon whom depend in a singular fashion after God Himself all the joy and happiness that we expect? Is it not she who measures out our joys and our pleasures, and without whom we could bid farewell to the delights and wonders that we look for in Heaven? Is she not a general instrument of the goodness and mercy of God for the conversion of sinners, for the advancement of the just for the sanctification of the perfect?

Footnotes

[1] Plin., lib. II, c. 9.

[2] Chap. xliii.

[3] In ancient Greek and Jewish history: the time of the new moon, the beginning of the lunar month. Also: the festival held at that time. 

 5   The author of the Debate between the Church and the Synagogue, who features in the work of Saint Augustine[1], called out:

Oh Mary, Mother of Mothers, Virgin of Virgins, Star of Stars and Sweet delight of faithful souls, in what way are we not indebted to thy goodness? What sweet blessings do we not receive through thy mediation? With what wondrous graces dost thou not bless those who have the joy of knowing thee and loving thee? Who could put a number on thy favours? Who could describe the effects of thy loving and tender-hearted interventions? Who could find a way of speaking worthily of the loving care that thou dost deign to take of us?

Plunge deeply, my soul, into these beautiful thoughts; lose myself in these sweet reflections; prepare thyself to see miracles one day – for mortal eye hath not seen, nor hath corruptible ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man to conceive the like[2].

Footnotes

[1] T. VI operum ipsius.

[2] I Cor. ii. 9.

 

 

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The Vladimirskaya Icon. >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

The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 13 : § 3.6-8

Chapter 13 : The Eleventh Star or Splendour of the Crown of Excellence of 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)

How she is the honour of earth and of Heaven

§ 3. She is the true Mirror of divine perfections

Holiness

 6    I could say in truth that of all the links that the most sacred Virgin has with God and His divine attributes, the one that she is most readily able to assimilate is Holiness. Holiness is the property of God as supreme being, in as much as He is its source and origin, He is its object and there is no holiness whatsoever which does not link back to Him, in as much as He is its idea and model, He is the principle which produces it and preserves it in our souls. In short, there is no degree of holiness which is not found in Him to an infinite degree. Accordingly, it is with reason that the Seraphim in Isaiah sing by day and by night[1]: Holy, holy, holy, the Lord God of hosts. The admirable Saint Dionysius, writing of holiness[2], teaches that it is nothing other than the most perfect purity, free from all stain of sin. After God Himself, the holy Virgin is uniquely and exclusively suited to this perfection. That is the teaching of Saint Augustine, as appears in the following words he wrote[3]:

I always exempt the most sacred Virgin Mary, who should never be implicated in or associated in any way with sin; inasmuch as we know she has received Grace in such abundance that she deserves to be the Mother of Him in whom sin has no place.

She alone excepted, if we had a way of seeing all the Saints in the state they once were in, and if they were asked if they were exempt from sin, which of the two replies would they give in your opinion: the one by Pelagius, or the one that we have learned from St John? I am speaking of those who occupied the highest place in merit and I am saying that if they were asked this question, they would reply unanimously: if we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us[4]. The great Saints do not stop at that, however, but they speak of the holy Virgin in a way that emphasises that she is unquestionably more pure and sinless than the Cherubim and Seraphim. This is the teaching of Saint Epiphanius[5], Richard of Saint Victor[6] and others. Saint Gregory[7] makes the point very well when he compares her to the mountain which is located higher than all the other mountains, and he declares:

she carries the peak of her exceptional merits higher than all created spirits, even unto the throne of the Divinity.

The devout Abbott Rupert recognises her peerless qualities, saying that:

From the very creation of the world she has had no equal and will never have one, whether we consider the interior motions of her heart or whether we look at her actions and the fruits of sweetness and goodness that she has produced.

Such is the truth of this that we must consider her as a beautiful tree of Paradise, which has been transported down into our vale of tears.

Footnotes

[1] Isai. vi.3.

[2] Cap. 2 de Divin. nom.

[3] De Natura et Gratia, c. 31.

[4] I John i. 8.

[5] De Laudibus Mariæ.

[6] In Cant., c. 39.

[7] Lib. I Reg., c. 1.

Goodness

 7   The goodness of God follows closely upon His holiness, and His goodness is no less infinite in Him than His other perfections, obliging Him to find means of communicating Himself to His creatures. Out of all the material things visible in this world, Saint Gregory of Nazianzus found nothing which represented God’s goodness better than the Sun which sheds its rays everywhere, so that there is no place on earth untouched by its influence. There is, however, no need to develop this point now since I intend to cover it in Part III of this work where we shall consider the incomprehensibly great qualities of the goodness of the MOTHER OF GOD, which go to make her more lovable than all other creatures together.

Footnotes

[1] Lib. II Moral., c. 12.

[2] Apoc. v. 13.

Fruitful Virginity

 8   I have so far given no more than an introduction to the divine attributes and I shall leave readers to pursue the subject further for themselves. Saint Gregory of Nazianzus provides much food for thought when he says that[1]:

The first Virgin in the world is the most holy and most noble Trinity.

Now, what is altogether remarkable is that this same Trinity is Virginal and fruitful at the same time, the Father begetting the Son from all eternity, and the Father with the Son producing the glorious Holy Spirit. It is the adorable mystery that all creatures revere, that the Angels honour with a profound silence and the Cherubim contemplate with veiled gaze and in holy trembling. It is the mystery which has been so fully copied in the most immaculate MOTHER OF GOD that it has stopped with her, unable to be taken any further. The Christian Orator[2] speaks of this in a most discerning manner[3], incorporating an idea of the ancient Trismegistus[4], whereby God has no father or mother.

This attribute, he says, properly applies to the Eternal Father who is the first principle of the most holy Trinity; it was His wish, however, to communicate to His only-begotten Son this quality of His; in order to achieve this, since His son was already without a Mother in His eternal generation, He willed that His Son should be without a Father in His temporal generation. 

The Prophet could fittingly say that God would do a thing unheard of on earth, for, after God’s personal union with man, there is no miracle at all that is like unto that of a Virgin Mother.

If I felt a desire to praise the virginity of this Lady, said the pious Saint Bernard[5], I am aware that she is not the only one who has this honour, that there are many Virgins following after her and after the Lamb, her Son. If I wish to make known her humility, I know that there are at least some others who have learned from the holy teachings of the Saviour and who following His example have made themselves generous and humble of heart. If I were to speak of her charity, I can certainly find people of mercy among both men and women. But all these qualities aside, she has one which makes her completely exceptional: it is the pleasing title of Mother joined to the honour of virginity. This is properly speaking the truly excellent choice that she made, for although fruitfulness in marriage is a great good, and virginal purity is even better, nevertheless the two in combination infinitely surpass each other.

This harmonious combination, says Theodore[6], Bishop of Angora Galacia, the Noble work of Grace, for nature could never have achieved it.

There is nothing human here, for all is divine, says the great Chrysologus[7], and for this reason you must raise your thoughts and picture the womb of the Virgin no more or less than as a Temple consecrated by the Holy Spirit, where God is adored in person.

It is an ineffable mystery, says Saint Zenon[8], Bishop of Verona; it is a sign of the omnipotence of God, says Sophronius, patriarch of Jerusalem; it is a miracle that deserves to be dwell upon and pondered, say Saint Gregory of Nyssa; Simply consider what we see and let us wonder together at something so strange as a Bush which burns without being consumed.

For those who seek consolation from similar reflections, there are many others which will bring no less satisfaction and will serve to build up their idea of the Holy Virgin’s excellence. For my part, I prefer to leave readers with a desire to find out more than to burden them further at this point with what I could add. 

Footnotes

[1] In poemate de Laudibus Virginitatis.

[2] The Christian Orator is a reference to Lactantius, whose clear, pure, and elegant style caused some to call him the Christian Cicero.

[3] Lactant., lib. IV Divin. Instit., c. 13.

[4] Trismegistus: name meaning thrice-greatest and given to the supposed author/inspiration of the Hermetic Writings which included philosophical and theological texts. 

[5] Serm. 4 de Assumpt.

[6] Orat. de Nativit.

[7] Serm. 54.

[8] Serm. de Circumc.

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The Vladimirskaya Icon. >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

The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 13 : § 3.3-5

Chapter 13 : The Eleventh Star or Splendour of the Crown of Excellence of 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)

How she is the honour of earth and of Heaven

§ 3. She is the true Mirror of divine perfections

Infinity

 3    I shall begin with Infinity, as this is a distinction between sovereign being and others. Just as the great Saint Dionysius says[1]:

God is not in the way others might be, but He is an altogether simple being, without any limitation; He comprises in Himself being in all its extent, and possesses it as much as it can be possessed.

From this it follows, says Saint Anselm[2], that all the perfections which are found in Him, are found in an infinite manner.

He is sovereign essence, sovereign life, sovereign reason, sovereign health and salvation, sovereign justice, sovereign wisdom, sovereign truth, sovereign greatness, sovereign beauty, sovereign happiness, sovereign power and sovereign unity. From this it also follows that He contains eminently within Himself all things, to use the language of the Schools, and as the same Saint Dionysus says[3]:

He is the principle or origin, the point of connection and the end of all things.

From this it follows, finally, that He cannot be comprehended other than of and in Himself, and consequently:

our conception of Him is never better than when we represent Him as incomprehensible,

says blessed Saint Cyprian[4]. I have no intention of proposing that the Holy Virgin has in herself or in her own nature any sort of infinity, for this belongs to God alone. Along with the Holy Fathers and the Theologians, I may venture to say  that by virtue of her status as MOTHER OF GOD she encloses a term of infinite perfection. This led the Angelic Doctor, Saint Thomas, to say[5]:

of three things which God in a certain manner cannot make greater than they are, one is the Mother of His Son.

Accordingly, Even though we cannot call her sovereign essence, sovereign wisdom, sovereign goodness, sovereign power, we can make so bold as to say that she is the Mother of sovereign essence, of sovereign goodness, of sovereign wisdom and of sovereign power. We can take this idea further than we have above by saying that she has within herself more perfection than all other creatures, and that everything they have in them that is good maybe found to a higher and more excellent degree in her. In short, this is what led the great Saints to declare without any hesitation that her great qualities and privileges are incomprehensible to all spirits that are limited. With regard to this point, we have already cited earlier[6] the words of Saint Bernardine of Sienna, Saint Bernard, Saint Anselm, Saint Andrew of Jerusalem and Saint Augustine.

Footnotes

[1] Cap. 5 de Divin. nom.

[2] Monologii., c. 15.

[3] De Divin. nom., c. 4.

[4] Lib. quod Idola non sunt Dii.

[5] I p., q. XXV, art. 6 ad 4.

[6] Tract. I, c. 1, § 1 et 2.

Immensity and Dominion

 4   The second of God’s attributes is His immensity which is explained by the great Pope Saint Gregory in the following remarkable words[1]:

He is inside and outside, over and beneath all things; over because of His power, under because providing His support; inside through subtlety, outside through greatness. From on high, He governs them and from below He supports them; inside, He penetrates them, outside He encloses them: and yet it should not be thought that He has one part of Himself inside and the other outside, one part on high and the other below; rather, through one and the same individual essence, He encloses them all, being inside each one and at the same time enclosing them, He may be found in all; He governs them in supporting them, and in governing them He supports them.

This Immensity explains how He is in all places through His essence, through His presence, and through His power. From this arises the high dominion that He has over all things, which He wields with total freedom and absolute power. Regarding this, St John heard every creature, which is in heaven, and on the Earth, and under the Earth, and such as are in the sea, cry out with a loud voice: to him that sitteth on the throne, and to the lamb, benediction, and honour, and glory, and power, forever and ever[2]. I have no plan to dwell at length here on this matter as it touches the glorious Virgin. I shall discuss it later, explaining that the Saints declare the extent of Mary’s domain is the same as that of the Saviour's Empire, and by virtue of her status as Queen Mother and Queen Regnant, she has absolute dominion under her spouse throughout the whole extent of His domains.

Footnotes

[1] Lib. II Moral., c. 12.

[2] Apoc. v. 13.

Omnipotence

 5   From the two proceeding attributes proceeds God’s Omnipotence, a cause of unimaginable wonder to us. It appears not only in the manner of His actions but in their term or end: for just as simply by willing He makes everything that He wants, in the same way He can produce from nothing all that appears good to Him, inasmuch as because nothingness may be considered infinite, all creatures can be drawn therefrom. This power is equal to the divine essence, capable of participation and imitation in infinite ways; it is no sense less than God’s wisdom, since all that His wisdom might propose can be brought about through His omnipotence. 

Someone may ask whether I am really saying that the MOTHER OF GOD is omnipotent. I would answer by asking why not, since great Doctors have said this before me and it suits me to follow them in what they have said. It is true, for example, that the Patriarch Eutchian in the book he wrote about the repentance of Theophilus, St John Damascene[1], Cosmas of Jerusalem[2], Bishop of Mazuma in Palestine and Teacher of the same St John Damascene and several others, when they speak of the help which our Holy Mother gives us in our needs, they call her all-powerful without any hesitation. Saint Anselm clearly says that[3]:

The Omnipotent has raised her thus high, so that all things might be possible for this Lady as they are for Himself.

I understand this must be understood in the way taught by Saint Cyril[4] and Yves Bishop of Chartres[5], namely that she possesses only by Grace that which God has through nature; this not withstanding, it cannot be denied that the privilege she enjoys is most excellent, since it is communicated to her exclusively, as I shall explain at greater length in Part Two[6].

Footnotes

[1] Carm. in Annuntiat.

[2] Hymno VI iisdem plane verbis.

[3] De Excellentia Virg., c. 12.

[4] Lib. VIII Thesauri, c. 2.

[5] Serm. de Nativit. Domini.

[6] Chap. 13.

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The Vladimirskaya Icon. >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

The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 13 : § 3.1-2

Chapter 13 : The Eleventh Star or Splendour of the Crown of Excellence of 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)

How she is the honour of earth and of Heaven

§ 3. She is the true Mirror of divine perfections

 1   Just as precious stones are the mirrors of nature, so too mirrors may be considered as the precious stones of art. This discovery is so exalted and mystical that several Hebrew doctors taught that before God produced this visible world He made mirrors. I do not know whether in saying this they were engaging in their customary speculations, or whether in these few words they had stumbled upon a profound mystery. Did they not mean to say that throughout all eternity God produced his Word, the mirror of mirrors, meaning the mirror of His inner perfections and the mirror for all creatures? Did they have in mind a plan that God formed to go out of Himself at that point through His works, which is equivalent to making mirrors of His goodness, His wisdom, His power and all His divine attributes? Were that to be so, I would have just reason to say that among so many mirrors God prepared two which would be inimitable in beauty, in greatness and in purity. The first is the Word Incarnate, whom Saint Lawrence Justinian calls the mirror of perfection[1], and Solomon before him, the unspotted mirror of God‘s Majesty, and the image of his goodness[2]. The second is the Blessed MOTHER OF GOD, for whom I have undertaken this work. She spoke one day in the following terms to the blessed Saint Bridget[3], saying:

     My daughter, thou shouldst know that my body and my spirit are purer than the Sun and more spotless than any mirror. He who chooseth to look upon me seeth therein the three Persons of the most Holy Trinity who dwell within me in an ineffable manner. All their excellent qualities may be found in me as though in an epitome or summary. The purity, moreover, with which God hath honoured me is so great that the rays of His divine perfections are reflected as fully as is possible for a mere creature.

Footnotes

[1] In fasciculo amoris in Coena Domini, c. 2.

[2] Wisdom. vii. 26.

[3] Revelat., lib. I, c. 42.

 2   This is without doubt the beautiful thought that Saint Andrew of Jerusalem had in mind[1]  when he called the Holy Virgin:

the first created nature, and the one closer than all the others to the Creator of all things.

I think that Saint Bonaventure had the same idea in mind when he said[2] :

She had ascended so high and she came so close to God on the summit of all sorts of privileges that, excepting only the case of personal union, it would be impossible to find a creature more perfect or more capable of participating in the Creator’s attributes.

Saint Augustine took flight, so to speak, and soared so high with this idea as almost to disappear from view[3]. Please weigh carefully the words he addresses to the Holy Virgin:

If I call thee the form[4] of God, he says to her, I am not saying anything which goes beyond what thou dost merit.

Now how are we to understand the mystery hidden under these words and the meaning of this beautiful title the form of God? Does it not mean, perhaps, that she was like a second thought which God considered in his mind when He wanted to show in souls the beautiful traits of His most excellent virtues? Or rather was it not His plan to say that, just as in a mirror may be seen the image of the face which is presented, and just as soft wax receives the form and characteristics of the seal which is pressed into it, in the same way, the Holy Virgin has been marked by the seal of divine perfection and represents them within her in the most wondrous manner?

Consider how we may see in bronze and in wax the same figure, even though the bronze is firm and solid whereas the image in wax has been pressed into soft and delicate material; how the bronze was the original and the wax image was copied from it; how the bronze is not subject to wear and tear, unlike the image in the wax; in the same way we note in the soul of the Virgin something that draws from the essential perfections of God, even though they cannot be separated from the essence where they are found, as is the case with all creatures; the Virgin Mother does not possess, except by virtue of God’s willing participation, that which is proper to His Majesty in essence and independently of any will. I feared I might be getting out of my depth in this discussion until I found help in the words of the holy Abbott Rupert who said[5]:

that everything we might say of the Mother will redound to the honour and glory of her Son.

This thought reassures me and has given me the courage to delve into the relationship between the excellent qualities of the peerless Mother and the divine attributes. I have no intention of suggesting there is equality in any way whatsoever between the creature and the Creator, but I also feel a desire to demonstrate that never did any mere creature come so close as she to the first ideas of all imaginable perfections.

Footnotes

[1] Serm. de Assumpt.

[2] Serm. 2 de Virg. Maria.

[3] Serm. de Assumpt., t. X.

[4] The French text has la forme de Dieu, translating St Augustine’s Latin words forma Dei. St Louis de Montfort in his work True Devotion to Mary includes these Latin words but he translates them as moule de Dieu, which means mould of God. In Lewis & Short, translations of Latin forma include model, pattern, stamp and mould. This is reflected in the OED entry for form which includes: II.18.a. 1655– Mechanics, etc. A mould or ‘shape’; an implement on which anything is shaped or fashioned.

[5] Lib. VI in Cant.

👑       👑       👑

The Vladimirskaya Icon. >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