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

Chapter 5 : The Fourth 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)

§ 3. The dispositions of the Holy Virgin that made her a worthy Spouse for the Holy Ghost

The second disposition : virginity

 3   This is a gift worthy of Heaven, a diamond of purity set in the gold of humility. It was also altogether fitting, according to St Bernard[1], that if God were to be attracted to earth by any virtue, then He most certainly would be so drawn by the sweet fragrance rising up from these two rare qualities.

It was altogether becoming, says this Saint, that she who had raised aloft the standard of virginity, a virtue new to the world, should be honoured by a new embassy;[2] and who besides an Angel from Heaven could be chosen for the mission to the Angel on earth?

This Angel on earth is none other than Mary. According to St Basil[3], or rather according to the actual truth, she was beyond compare in this angelic virtue.

There is no point in searching, says his great follower St Anselm[4], either on earth or in Heaven for a purity comparable to Mary’s. That she should surpass in purity all other creatures is entirely reasonable, but to a degree you will not be able to understand. This is because : the Eternal Father condescends to make her Mother of His Son, the Son accepts her as such and the Holy Ghost passionately desires to have her for His Spouse – all for the fulfilment of the remarkable mystery of the Incarnation.

[1] Serm. in Annuntiat.

[2] A message sent or delivered by an ambassador. archaic and rare after 17th cent. Complete OED.

[3] Homil. de humana Christi generatione.

[4] Lib. de Conceptu Virginali, c. 18.

The third disposition : her steadfast purpose

 4   The third virtue which attracted the Holy Ghost’s love was her steadfast gaze continually fixed on Him, together with the beating of her heart which panted ceaselessly after Him. How could the Holy Ghost fail to love such a one, since a soul like hers is worth more than the whole world? 

You would have seen her always seeking out God, making her way to God, sighing after God. Did she keep watch? – it was for God. Did she do her work? – always in the presence of God. Did she walk?– it was in search of God. Did she take her rest? – it was in God. 

Whether praying, reading, taking care of her neighbour or seeing to her duties, she was more deeply absorbed in God than the highest Spirits in Paradise. In short, she lead her life just as she would have done if there had been no-one else in the world other than God and her. That sums it up and there is no need to look further, as she says: I to my beloved, and my beloved (in a reciprocal way) always to me.[1] These words have their equivalent in: My beloved to me, and I to him[2]. St Ambrose notes that the idea in these words is found three times in the Canticle of Canticles,[3]  signifying that Mary had always been in search of God, from the beginning of her life, throughout her life and at its end; similarly, God had been present in her thoughts, in her words and in her works.

 5   As St Bernard wrote[4], we have here in a few words just a glimpse of the virtues which adorned the Royal Virgin’s body and soul like sumptuous finery, set off by Her own peerless and dazzling beauty. This beautiful harmony made her so highly commendable to the citizens of Heaven that she captivated the heart and affections of the King of Angels, earning for herself an embassy[5] the like of which had never been seen before and will never be seen again.

[1] Cant. vi. 2.

[2] Cant. ii. 16.

[3] Cant. ii., vi., &  see also vii. 10. I to my beloved, and his turning is towards me.

[4] Homil. 1 in Missus.

[5] A message sent or delivered by an ambassador. archaic and rare after 17th cent. Complete OED.

👑       👑       👑

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 2024

The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 5 : § 3.1-2

Chapter 5 : The Fourth 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)

§ 3. The dispositions of the Holy Virgin that made her a worthy Spouse for the Holy Ghost

 1   The glorious Holy Ghost, says Fr Rupert[1], found more happiness in perfecting the Holy Virgin than the Eternal Father did in forming the first man and the first woman. This was not because the Holy Ghost was a better craftsman than the Father but because the raw material He started from was incomparably more suited to make an excellent piece of work than the clay from which Adam was moulded. This will be seen most clearly in the dispositions which Mary brings to make her a worthy Spouse of the Holy Ghost. I would have much more to say on this now were it not that I have a similar discussion on the subject in the second Treatise. 

Notwithstanding this, I shall highlight here three rare attributes of Mary and which are revealed when the Holy Ghost opens His heart to His Spouse[2] and tells her what it is about her that has won His love. My sister, my spouse, He tells her, thou hast wounded my heart. The original text says: thou hast wounded my heart with one of thy eyes, and with one hair of thy neck. The eye that has wounded the heart of this noble Spouse is understood by St Jerome[3] to refer to the Virgin’s purity, greater than that of the Angels, inasmuch as virginity may properly be considered as being the right eye of the Church: an eye which is bright, piercing and pleasant. The other eye, which has a more serious and weary aspect, may be taken to represent marriage.

Hugh of Saint Victor[4] prefers to interpret this as being the steadfast purpose of the Holy Virgin’s soul which is forever fixed on God; her aim is so fixed and unswerving that it never deviates from its target, even in the slightest. 

Fr Rupert[5] is of the opinion that the words one hair of thy neck refer to Mary’s humility. This humility is at all times constant and equal to itself, like a hair; it esteems itself less than a hair; her humility is more supple and malleable than a hair; it is less showy and present to the eyes than a hair; it covers the neck, which represents obedience, and causes it to bow in submission before all. 

These then are three qualities of Mary: her purity, her steadfast purpose and her humility. They strike me as being truly worthy of note and eminently suitable to win the heart of the glorious Holy Ghost.

[1] Lib. I de Operibus Spiritus S., c. 12.

[2] Cant. iv. 9.

[3] Lib. I contra Jovinian.

[4] In eum. locum Cantic.

[5] Ibid.

The first disposition : Humility

 2   I am beginning with humility because it is the starting point for all the other virtues, making it possible for them to take up residence in the soul. When the soul loses humility, the other virtues disappear immediately. Another reason to start with humility is because the Blessed Virgin herself began with this virtue, as she once revealed to Saint Mechthild[1]. Mary passed her whole life, especially her early years, in a state of quiet self-restraint with little regard for herself. The people with whom she had interactions scarcely deserved to look upon her because of her peerless dignity, and yet she offered herself as the servant of everyone so that she never put herself before any other person whatsoever. A soul that is humble in a way that uplifts the hearts of others is something very precious to God. This is the case when humility finds itself accompanied by other rare and eminent qualities which, however, do not diminish its character. Even God Himself cannot but love such a soul.

There is, says St Bernard[2], a remarkable harmony in the soul which is capable of winning God’s heart. This happens when humility commends and provides a basis for virginity; and when virginity serves as a lighted lamp for humility. If this is true, then imagine what will happen if, as the same Saint says elsewhere[3], humility finds itself accompanied by all the virtues together, as was the case with the Holy Virgin, the true mirror of every perfection.

Is it possible that God could hide from such a soul the depths of His love for her, and that He would not be attracted by the fragrance of her celestial perfume? But what would you expect, since Holy Church puts these words in her mouth[4]: Being small in my own eyes, I have won graces from the Sovereign Lord ? Put another way, as Mary says in the Magnificat, Because he hath regarded the humility of his handmaid[5]. Would you not think, however, that a visit so magnificent as the one she received from Heaven would increase her courage and give her reason to be grateful? Far from it and on the contrary, it made her more aware of her own lowliness. St Bernard was so astonished by this that he was almost lost for words. He notes that whilst she is called by others the MOTHER OF GOD, she calls herself a handmaid; and that as soon as there is talk of raising her up to the heights, she lowers herself as though deep into the earth. 

Most holy virtue of humility! Who can say whether you have given greater honour to this Lady in raising her so high, or whether you yourself have been more greatly honoured by her who has the honour of being MOTHER OF GOD?

[1] Revel., lib. 1.

[2] Homil. 1 in Missus.

[3] Serm. 4 de Assumpt.

[4] Cf, I Sam. xv. 17.

[5] Luc. i. 48.

👑       👑       👑

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 2024

The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 5 : § 2.5

Chapter 5 : The Fourth 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)

§ 2. How the Holy Ghost prepared the Glorious Virgin to be His worthy Spouse

 5   Who could possibly conceive what life the Blessed Virgin led in the Temple during the space of twelve whole years! Who could have any understanding of the depths of her contemplation, the fervent ardour of her ecstasies, her friendly colloquies with the blessed Spirits, her acts of thanksgiving, adoration and humility! Who could comprehend the sweetness of a life such that St Germanus declares it was worthy of the highest Heaven rather than the earth below! Who could describe the Holy Ghost’s tender caresses for this young girl who was being prepared to become His most worthy Spouse! Who could tell us what the Angel revealed to St Bridget[1] when he told her that the Holy Ghost would visit the Virgin like a solicitous bee attending on a rose-bud in the morning, waiting for the rays of the Sun to open it in flower! Who could explain what is written in the same place[2] comparing the Holy Ghost to a furnace into which the Virgin was cast in order to form her in the service of God’s astonishing plans! Who could possibly understand what the same Virgin revealed one day to this Blessed widow[3]: that she was like a nut slowly growing and ripening in such a way that as the shell expanded the kernel increased in size at the same time until it filled the shell entirely; in the same way, Mary increased in age and capacity as the Holy Ghost, in whose care she had been entrusted, filled up the whole capacity of her soul! Who could share the secret meaning hidden in the words of St John Damascene[4] when he said that Mary was planted in God’s house where, like a select olive tree, she bore as her fruit all the virtues, preparing her body and her soul to be a pleasant dwelling-place for the Creator of all things! Who could describe, along with the pious Emperor of the East[5], how Mary was received into the cellar which stored the exquisite wines of her Spouse and how she was able to drink at will this celestial malmsey[6] wine!

But these are all secrets to be wondered at rather than understood; they are mysteries which we have a duty to honour in profound and religious silence rather than to profane through clumsy language.

[1] Serm. Angelico, c. 11.

[2] Cap. 11.

[3] Lib. III Revel., c. 8..

[4] Fidei Orth., lib. IV, c. 15 ; et Serm. de Nativit. B. Virg.

[5] Matth. Cantacuzenus, loco cit.

[6] malmsey: from Middle French malvoisie, a kind of sweet wine originally from Greece (14th cent.)

👑       👑       👑

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 2024

The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 5 : § 2. 3-4

Chapter 5 : The Fourth 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)

§ 2. How the Holy Ghost prepared the Glorious Virgin to be His worthy Spouse

 3   If there should be anyone who, despite the authority of so many great men, still resists the idea [of Mary being received into the Temple], then he needs to consider what is said in Scripture. There it is written that no-one other than the High Priest was allowed to enter the Sanctuary. This may be taken and interpreted to refer to that time when, once a year, the High Priest officiated there solemnly. It should be remembered, however, that writers such as Hegesippus[1], Eusebius of Caesarea[2], Epiphanius[3] and St Jerome[4] report that St James the Less (known as the brother of the Lord[5]) had the privilege of making his devotions from time to time in the Holy of Holies. Again, let any who doubts this story consider well the state to which the Jewish people were reduced after so many wars and upheavals; let him ponder the destruction of the Temple on two separate occasions, the removal of the Ark of the Covenant and the changes to the ancient ceremonies. In the light of all this, it would not be surprising if there had been a certain relaxation of the Temple rules. Let any doubters recall, furthermore, that God who made the laws was Himself above His laws and that He could dispense with any in favour of the Mother of His Son. This is the understanding of the Fathers from whom we have learned about Mary’s childhood. Finally, let any sceptics pay due attention to the Conception and Birth of the Holy Virgin, for these were more than sufficiently remarkable to make the Priests realize that there was something great and truly out of the ordinary about this girl. This was apparent even from her face and her demeanour. In short, I hope the doubters will realize that the majority of the Authors I have cited above[6] go even further. They assert[7], for example, that Mary was wont to take no other food than that brought to her by the Angels. But why should we find this at all strange? We know, after all, that favours which are comparable or even more extraordinary have been granted to several Saints who are themselves only servants of Him who has the glorious Virgin for His Mother.

 4   Allowing the truth of this account, I should like to greet the future Spouse of the Holy Ghost by making use of the sweet words that St Germanus[8] placed in the mouth of Zachary, father of John the Baptist and cousin of the Blessed Virgin, on the occasion of her entry into the Temple:

Enter, for now is the propitious time; enter, the accomplishment of my Prophecy; enter, the fruit of Heaven’s promises; enter, the seal of the Lord’s Covenant; enter, the aim and fulfilment of His plans; enter, the key to hidden mysteries; enter, the focal point of all the Prophets; enter, peace for those fallen from favour, restoring harmony to disunity, support for those falling into ruin, renewal for the inveterate, enlightenment for those struggling in darkness; enter, gift most rare and altogether divine; enter, Lady of all that is created; enter into thine own inheritance and await with joy and pleasure the coming down of the Holy Spirit, thy Spouse, into the Temple of thy body; in the name of all the children of adoption, await the communication of the divine messenger, the overshadowing of the power of the Most High and the conception of the only-begotten Son of God.

[1] Lib. V.

[2] Lib. II Hist. Eccles., c. 23.

[3] Hæresi 78.

[4] Lib. de Scriptor. Eccles.

[5] See e.g., Gal. i. 19.

[6] Andreas Cretens.

[7] Germanus Constantinop., Georgius Nicomediens, locis citatis.

[8] Loco citato.

👑       👑       👑

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 2024

The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 5 : § 2.1-2

Chapter 5 : The Fourth 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)

§ 2. How the Holy Ghost prepared the Glorious Virgin to be His worthy Spouse

 1   During the time of Assuerus[1], maidens from all his subject provinces[2] were hand-picked to spend one night with him. The preparations for this began one year in advance, incorporating every conceivable artifice that might help their desire to please the Sovereign with their fragrant beauty. Consider then what greater reason there is to acknowledge how Mary, who was to be the peerless Spouse of the Holy Ghost, would have been prepared in every suitable way for Majesty such as this. This being so, is it not clear that it was the Holy Ghost Himself alone who was  able to provide her with what was necessary, adorning and enriching His Spouse as would be most fitting? This was the view of Blessed Peter Damian and the pious St Bernard:

The Virgin was made, announced and prepared by the Holy Ghost[3].

Indeed, more than eight hundred years before them, Dionysius of Alexandria had said[4]:

 

that the tabernacle of the Holy Ghost, which is to say the Holy Virgin, had not been fashioned by human hands but had been made and set in place by the same Holy Ghost. Yes, that it was the Holy Ghost who, in the womb of His Blessed Mother, had given His help to her natural body which was as though dead and incapable of conceiving; who at the same time had sanctified her and adorned her with His gifts; and who had served her as Teacher and tutor.

 

Footnotes

[1] Commonly identified with Xerxes I, emperor of Persia.

[2] In the days of Assuerus, who reigned from India to Ethiopia over a hundred and twenty-seven provinces.  Esther i.1. See also Esther ii. 2-4.

[3] Damianus, serm. 2 de Nativit. B. Virg. ; S. Bern., Serm. 2 in Missus.

[4] Epist. adversus Paulum Samosatenum apud Turrianum in Hopplotheca.

 2   The Holy Ghost showed His loving and assiduous care in a most particular way when He led Mary into the wilderness to speak to her heart, at a time when He had prepared for her a permanent and fixed abode in His own house. This is what He Himself says through His Prophet Osee[1] and this is what the Church sings[2]. In accordance with a commandment from heaven, Mary’s parents had consecrated her to God as a Nazarite before she was even conceived. When she reached the age of three, they presented her in the Temple to serve the divine Majesty until such time as God decreed otherwise. After she had thus been received miraculously into the Temple, she stayed for twelve years in God’s Sanctuary where no-one was permitted to enter except the High Priest and even he could go in only once a year.

This part of Mary’s life-story could perhaps seem a little hard to believe were it not for the common agreement among the ancient Fathers which means rejecting it would be an act of foolhardiness. The following writers have endorsed the account clearly and unambiguously: the blessed Evodius[3], the first Patriarch of Antioch after St Peter, St Gregory of Nyssa[4], St Andrew of Jerusalem[5], Archbishop of Candia (Crete); St Germanus[6], Patriarch of Constantinople; George[7], Archbishop of Nicomedia; Symeon Metaphrastes[8], whom the Greeks are wont to call the Master and whom they honour as an equal of St John Chrysostom, of St Gregory and St Basil, and whom the Council of Florence granted the title of Saint and Doctor of note; St John Damascene[9], the Eastern emperors Leo (known as the Wise)[10] and Matthew Cantacuzenus[11]; the historians Nicephorus[12], Glycas[13], and many more, without mentioning modern writers[14]. Here is what is written in the Menologion[15] of the Greeks for the 21st of November: 

The celebration of the entry of the MOTHER OF GOD into the Temple when her father and mother , three years after her wondrous birth and in accordance with a promise they had made, lead her to the Temple and presented her to the Priests. They received her and in obedience to God’s command they lodged her in the the most secret place within the Temple where the High Priest alone would enter once every year. There, they allowed her to live a life of retreat and voluntary solitude.

Footnotes

[1] See, e.g., I will allure her, and will lead her into the wilderness: and I will speak to her heart. Osee ii. 14; and I will espouse thee to me for ever: and I will espouse thee to me in justice, and judgment, and in mercy, and in commiserations.  And: I will espouse thee to me in faith: and thou shalt know that I am the Lord.  Osee ii. 19-20.

[2] In Tabernaculo suo habitare facit eam. He shall make her to live in His Tabernacle. See 16 occurrences in Breviarium Romanum (1931). .

[3] In Epist. apud Nicephorum, lib. II Hist., c. 23.

[4] Orat. in diem Natalis Domini.

[5] Orat. 1 de Dormit. B. Virg.

[6] Orat. de Oblatione B. Virg.

[7] Orat. de Oblatione B. Mariæ.

[8] Orat. de Ortu et Dormit. Deiparæ.

[9] IV Fidei orthod., c. 15.

[10] Orat. de hoc festo citata in Menolog. Græcorum.

[11] In illud Cant. 2 : Introduxit me in cellam vinariam.

[12] Lib. I Hist., c. 18.

[13] III parte Annalium.

[14] Vide Canis., lib. I de B. Virg., c. 13 ; A Castro, Hist. Deiparæ, c. 3 ; Vincentium Ricardum in lo-cum cilatum Cantacuzeni.

[15] A hagiographical collection of a type compiled in the Byzantine Empire from the 9th cent. onwards, in which the saints' lives, usually of substantial length and often interspersed with homilies or verses, are arranged in the order of the dates on which their subjects are commemorated. OED

 

👑       👑       👑

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 2024

The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 5 : § 1.1-2

Chapter 5 : The Fourth 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)

That she is the Spouse of the Holy Ghost

A threefold cord is not easily broken, says Solomon.[1] The threefold relationship that the MOTHER OF GOD has with the Holy Trinity is an indissoluble link and a knot stronger than the Gordian knot. All the powers of Hell are incapable of undoing it. We have completed our discussion of the first two links. There only remains the third, the one that she has with the Holy Ghost.

§ 1. The Holy Virgin is truly the Spouse of the Holy Ghost

 1   Why take the trouble of proving this truth since all the Holy Fathers preach it unanimously and it is the ordinary magisterium of the Catholic Church? St Ildephonsus, St Bernard, St Bonaventure say it so frequently that it is a wonder to hear their words. St Germanus, Patriarch of Constantinople,[2] calls her in this context the spotless Bride without blemish[3]. Other writers call her the royal and nuptial couch of the Holy Ghost. 

The Blessed Holy Ghost, says St Anselm[4], is the love and the link between the Father and the Son; there is in Him everything that we rightly want to love. He came down in person upon the glorious Virgin in His own substance and, by a special privilege beyond our comprehension, He chose her to the exclusion of every other creature, took her as His Bride and as a result she became Queen and Empress of the universe.

St Gregory of Nyssa makes a characteristically subtle observation about this.[5] He says that on the day of the Incarnation, a day of limitless joy for heaven and earth, the nuptial couch was nothing other than the purity of the sacred Virgin, who was free of all sin and all corruption; that the canopy of the bed was the power of the Most High[6] which overshadowed the Virginity of the Spouse most chaste; and that the mysterious lamp was the splendour of the Holy Ghost. St Lawrence Justinian notes pertinently[7] that the glorious St Joseph acted in this as delegate and minister of the Holy Ghost, responsible for preserving His Spouse pure and unspotted, being as it were the Guardian Angel of her body. Tertullian[8], Eusebius of Caesarea[9], St Epiphanius[10] and St Gregory of Nazianzus[11] refer to this same Holy Ghost speaking through Isaiah, and put into His mouth these words of the same Prophet[12]: And I went to the prophetess, and she conceived, and bore a son.

Footnotes

[1] Eccles. iv. 12.

[2] Orat. de Præsentatione B. Virg.

[3] Cf. Eph. v. 27.

[4] Lib. de Excellentia Virg., c. 4.

[5] Homil. 18 in Cant.

[6] Luc. i. 35.

[7] Lib. de Casto connubio Verbi et animæ.

[8] Lib. de Trinit.

[9] Lib. VII de Demonstr. Evang., c. 7.

[10] Hæresi 78.

[11] Orat. in Pascha.

[12] Isai. viii. 3.

 2   But what could be more explicit than the infallible word of the Angelic Envoy[1] Gabriel who told the Virgin[2] on behalf of his Master that the Holy Ghost would come upon her, and the power of the Most High, none other than the same Holy Ghost, would overshadow her. He would place her under His royal cloak, that is to say, in the shelter of His protection, giving her the power to bear His name and to call Him her Spouse for ever.

The Holy Ghost shall overshadow thee, St Bermard says[3], meaning that 

He will strengthen thee so as to be able to withstand the dazzling light of the Divinity that shall spread within thee.

That is to say, according to the same writer[4]:

Do not trouble thyself trying to understand how this mystery shall be accomplished in thee; for He who will give effect to this divine work will serve thee as Spouse and Teacher; He will shelter thy spirit from His light inaccessible[5], enabling thee to look upon that which others dare not approach.

That is to say, according to the learned Euthymius[6],

His coming upon thee will be like a cloud gently condensing its waters imperceptibly into the veins of the earth, rendering her fertile but without doing her any violence. 

That is to say, as St Augustine explains[7]: 

He will protect thee and defend thee from every possible attack on thy purity but in such a way that through this immaculate conception thy purity and integrity will be greater than ever.

We have perhaps spent enough time on this point, so let us pass on to the divine espousals.

Footnotes

[1] In original French, Paranymphe. From Lat. paranymphus [< παράνυμφος] 1. attendant at a wedding (also fig).b groomsman; c (fig.); d bridesman.  Eng. paranymph: 1. perhaps: a person who ‘gives away’ a bride. 1602 Our blessed Ladies paranimphe Saint Gabriell. 2. a spokesperson or orator who speaks on behalf of someone else. Now historical and rare. Complete OED.

[2] Luc. i. 35.

[3] Homil. 4 in Missus.

[4] Ibid.

[5] Vide. Who only hath immortality, and inhabiteth light inaccessible, whom no man hath seen, nor can see: 1 Tim. vi. 16.

[6] In Lucam ; Maldon. in 1 Matth.

[7] Lib. 50 Homiliarum, homil. 44.

 

👑       👑       👑

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 2024

The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 4 : § 2. 6-7

Chapter 4 : The Third 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)

§ 2. The Holy Virgin is called the Daughter of the Eternal Father. Her second title:

The close relationship she has as Spouse of His Son

 6   If we were to want now a deeper understanding of the unfathomable love the Eternal Father has towards His only daughter because of this special union she has with Him, of the tender caresses He has given her, of the extraordinary graces He has poured into her blessed soul; if we were to try and grasp with our feeble intellects the reciprocal love and respect she returned to such a Father, the gratitude for so many blessings received and which she kept and pondered unceasingly in her heart, then would that not be for us a foolhardy undertaking full of presumption? Let us acknowledge in all honesty that there are some secrets that God allows us to approach only so that we may revere them. Let us recognize that the Holy Spouse herself diverts our curiosity, saying[1]: My secret to myself, my secret to myself; let there be no prying here, for these letters are sealed and these mysteries are concealed from other people.

 7   Notwithstanding what I have just written, it is true that God has deigned to favour us with a revelation in this matter and I do not believe I shall infringe any law of secrecy if I draw attention to some details revealed one day to the Blessed Saint Bridget by this same Spouse. My intention is at various points in this study to make use of what I have discovered from reading the excellent book of her Revelations. It would accordingly give me considerable satisfaction for the judicious and serious-minded Reader to appreciate the worth of her book and to be aware that it has been read and re-read several times, both during the Saint’s lifetime and after her death; and that it has been frequently examined by very learned Cardinals and well-informed Prelates.  These include Cardinal de Torquemada, noted for his great authority and profound learning, who praised her book in the highest terms. All this should satisfy those who have doubts about her book which was, moreover, highly esteemed and recommended by the assembled Prelates at the Council of Constance, given an honourable mention by Pope Boniface IX, endorsed in the Bull of St Bridget’s canonisation and in the confirmation of this same Bull by Martin V. The Revelations contain statements made by the Holy Angel to the Blessed Widow Bridget concerning the great and excellent qualities of the MOTHER OF GOD[2]. A comparison is made between the love of Abraham, Father of the faithful, towards his dear son Isaac; and the love of the Father of all creatures and of the Word incarnate towards His beloved Daughter, the glorious Virgin.

The Holy Angel states that Abraham loved his son even before he was conceived, as soon as he received the promise of his birth; God loved His Daughter from all eternity with a love that surpassed by far what he had for all other creatures. Abraham had no idea that his love for God should be known to all his posterity, i.e., to the whole world, through this son of his; God, however, knew very well it would be through His beloved Daughter that His infinite love would be shown forth to all the ages to come. Abraham understood clearly enough that his son, although born from a holy and legitimate marriage, would come into the world against a background of questioning; it was quite contrary case with God who drew particular satisfaction from the holiness and purity of the immaculate conception of His only-begotten Son in this Daughter of His, and of the children by grace and by adoption who were to proceed from both. Abraham was not unaware of the fact that his own substance that he communicated to his Son must be separate from him; but God understood perfectly that the flesh His Son drew from Mary would never be separate from His divinity, and that His Son’s divinity was inseparable from His own. Abraham knew well that the body Isaac took from him would one day return to dust and ashes; but God knew that His holy Daughter’s body would be exempt from corruption, just like the body of His own Son. Abraham prepared a tent for his son before he was conceived; God willed Himself to be the tent and dwelling of His peerless Daughter. Abraham made provision of wheat, wine and oil, fruits of the ancient blessing, before Isaac’s birth; God, before the conception of His Daughter most sweet, provided a triple blessing which was very different: He gave Himself, the oil and principle of all holiness; He gave His Son, who is the bread and meat of Angels; and He gave the Holy Ghost, who is the wine that gladdens the heart of man.

It seems to me there is nothing to add to these sublime reflections. Let us move on to the third way that Mary has a close relationship with the Father.

Footnotes

[1] Isai. xxiv. 16. 

[2] In sermone Angelico, c. 3.

👑       👑       👑

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 2024