S. Mariæ Magdalenæ Pœnitentis

The penitent Mary Magdalen

Images are by J-J Tissot (Brooklyn Museum).

Sancta Maria Magdalena, ora pro nobis!

Before her conversion.

From the Sermons of Pope St. Gregory the Great.

25th on the Gospels.

Mary Magdalen, a woman in the city, which was a sinner, through love of the truth, washed away in her tears the defilement of her sins, and the words of the Truth are fulfilled which He spake Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much. She who had remained chilly in sin, became fiery through love. When even His disciples went away again unto their own home, Mary still stood without at the sepulchre of Christ, weeping. She sought Him Whom her soul loved, but she found Him not. She searched for Him with tears; she yearned with strong desire for Him Who, she believed, had been taken away. And thus it befell her, that being the only one who had remained to seek Him, she was the only one that saw Him. It is the truth that the backbone of a good work is perseverance.

℣. But thou, O Lord, have mercy upon us.

℟. Thanks be to God.

Thy faith hath made thee safe, go in peace.

48 And he said to her: Thy sins are forgiven thee.  

49 And they that sat at meat with him began to say within themselves: Who is this that forgiveth sins also?  

50 And he said to the woman: Thy faith hath made thee safe, go in peace.

48 εἶπεν δὲ αὐτῇ· Ἀφέωνταί σου αἱ ἁμαρτίαι.

48 Dixit autem ad illam : Remittuntur tibi peccata.  

49 καὶ ἤρξαντο οἱ συνανακείμενοι λέγειν ἐν ἑαυτοῖς· Τίς οὗτός ἐστιν ὃς καὶ ἁμαρτίας ἀφίησιν;

49 Et coeperunt qui simul accumbebant, dicere intra se : Quis est hic qui etiam peccata dimittit?  

50 εἶπεν δὲ πρὸς τὴν γυναῖκα· Ἡ πίστις σου σέσωκέν σε· πορεύου εἰς εἰρήνην.

50 Dixit autem ad mulierem : Fides tua te salvam fecit : vade in pace.

The penitent Mary Magdalen.

Homily by St. Augustine, Bishop of Hippo.

Bk. 1. Hom. 23, tom. x.

Ye have listened carefully to the Gospel while it was being read, so that the thing told hath, as it were, passed before the eyes of your heart. Ye have seen in your mind's eye, albeit not with bodily sight, the Lord Jesus Christ sitting down to meat in the Pharisee's house, and not refusing when He is bidden of him. Ye have seen also an infamous woman of the city, one of utterly bad character, a sinner, thrusting herself in an uninvited guest, to the banquet where her Healer was sitting, and seeking health at His hands with godly shamelessness; thrusting herself in eager for mercy, as though eager for the feast. She knew under what a disease she laboured, and she knew that He unto Whom she came was mighty to cure it.

℣. But thou, O Lord, have mercy upon us.

℟. Thanks be to God.

 

Mary hath chosen the best part, which shall not be taken away from her. 

Father of lights! one glance of thine,

Whose eyes the universe control,

Fills Magdalene with holy love,

And melts the ice within her soul.

Her precious ointment forth she brings

Upon those sacred feet to pour;

She washes them with burning tears,

And with her hair she wipes them o'er.

Impassioned, to the cross she clings.

Impassioned, to the cross she clings,

Nor fears beside the tomb to stay;

Nor dreads the soldiers' savage mien,

For love has cast all fear away.

O Christ, thou very love itself!

Blest hope of man, through thee forgiven!

So touch our spirits from above,

So purify our souls for heaven.

To God the Father, with the Son

And Holy Paraclete, with thee,

As evermore hath been before,

Be glory through eternity.

Amen.

℣. Grace is poured into thy lips.

℟. Therefore God hath blessed thee for ever.

Mary and the risen Christ

Prov. 31:10-11

Who shall find a valiant woman? Far and from the uttermost coasts is the price of her. The heart of her husband trusteth in her, and he shall have no need of spoils.

℟. Thanks be to God.

Hymn

Son of the Highest, deign to cast

On us a pitying eye;

Thou, who repentant Magdalene

Didst call to endless joy.

Again the royal treasury

Receives its long-lost coin;

The gem is found, and, cleansed from mire,

Doth all the stars outshine.

O Jesus, balm of every wound!

The sinner's only stay!

Wash thou in Magdalene's pure tears

Our guilty spots away.

Mother of God! the sons of Eve

Weeping thine aid implore:

Oh, land us from the storms of life

Safe on th' eternal shore.

Glory, for graces manifold,

To the one only Lord;

Whose mercy doth our souls forgive,

Whose bounty doth reward.

Amen.

℣. God hath chosen her and forechosen her.

℟. He hath made her to dwell in His tabernacle.

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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. 

The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 6 : § 4. 1-2

Chapter 6 : The Fifth 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)

§ 4. On her wonderful nature

 1   Now this last quality is not like the three previous ones, for it is a a gift from a friend and the richest jewel amongst all the natural gifts that one can receive from Heaven. It is the plan and foundation for virtue, and the most weighty of the dispositions God confers when He wishes to make someone truly exceptional. David had a son with a gentle disposition and an exceptional nature whom he named Solomon. He placed him in the hands of the prophet Nathan, as there was no-one else whom he could trust with his education. This man of God recognised that Solomon’s nature was suited for the achievement of great things and he wanted him to be known as the Beloved of the Lord.[1] 

Being favoured with a nature born for virtue is an infallible sign of being dear to God. The truth of this regarding Mary’s nature speaks for itself without need for proof from me; for we can see straight away that the MOTHER OF GOD was blessed with the most beautiful and the richest of natures, superior to that of any creature. To render the proof of this truth more persuasive, I have decided to offer no thoughts of my own but to give instead a voice to the opinions and declarations of several Doctors who were serious-minded and most irreproachable witnesses.

 2   It is not possible to reject the reasoning of the great St Ambrose on this question, for the quality of his work is too eminent and his probity too well-known. This is what he wrote[2]  about the way of life of the Virgin in her tender years : 

She was a virgin no less in her soul than in her body, without pretence and without dissimulation. She had a heart that was humble, her speech was serious and thoughtful, her soul was tranquil, her mind was given over to reading and her hands accustomed to alms-giving. In her work she was diligent, in her speech modest, in her thinking she had a right intention. She was full of good intentions towards everyone, full of respect towards her superiors and of sweetness to her equals. She was the enemy of vainglory, the friend of virtue and versatile in her thinking. She never caused even the slightest offence to her parents, she never exchanged harsh words with her companions; she never looked down on simple souls nor those showing weakness and she never missed a chance to care for the poor. There was no haughtiness in her look, no hastiness in her speech, nothing improper in her actions, nothing unbecoming in her gestures, no affectation in her demeanour, nothing in the body that was in any way contrary to her mind, nothing in her mind that went contrary to reason. 

How could I describe the strict self-discipline she maintained in the matter of her food? Or the joy with which she gave help to everyone? For in both of these areas she seemed to go beyond the power of human nature. As for taking rest, she was not drawn to this through pleasure but only when forced through necessity, and even then the sleep of the body did not distract her mind which was always fixed and focussed on some holy thought. Her contentment lay in submitting herself to the direction and guidance of others, even though there was no-one who took care of her more faithfully and more carefully than she did herself; for she never took a single step that did not lead along the path of virtue.

Even though she was ready to learn from anyone, she so comported herself as to be the example and model for all. Through her demeanour and behaviour she won the love of her parents, the high esteem of those outside her family and the love of God Himself. Further to this, she never found herself better accompanied than when she was quite alone, for then she rejoiced in colloquies with Angels and conversation with the Prophets by means of their writings. It was a normal thing for her to have heavenly discussions with St Gabriel the Archangel. If she had questions about his manner of greeting her, it was not because she was unaccustomed to dealing with these Blessed Spirits but she was surprised by the figure he had assumed, where his eyes were no less chaste than his ears were devout. In conclusion, the idea we must have of her is one perfect in virtue and a mirror of all holiness.

That is what St Ambrose says.

Footnotes

[1] II Reg. 12 : Amabilis Domino. Amiable to the Lord, because the Lord loved him.

[2] Coloss. ii. 3.

[3] Lib. II de Virginibus.

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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 2024

The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 6 : § 3.3-5

Chapter 6 : The Fifth 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. On Mary's fine Mind

She needed a fine mind to keep Our Lord company

 3   Secondly, she was destined to keep company with the Son of God, the very Phoenix[1] of great minds, in whom according to St Paul[2] were hidden all the treasures of the wisdom and knowledge of God. This makes me conclude that there must have been a proportion between these two minds. Otherwise, on the one hand the King of Heaven would have found Himself in a difficult position as He would be for a long time without company and conversation suited to His greatness; and on the other hand the Virgin, His faithful companion, would have good reason to complain that she did not have the necessary ability to understand the remarkable secrets that her Son continually shared with her so that she could pass them on to posterity.

Footnotes

[1] A person who excels in his domain, whose talents surpass all others. You are the phoenix of those who live in these woods, a compliment by the fox to the crow in the fable of La Fontaine. Personne qui excelle dans son domaine, dont le talent surpasse celui des autres. Vous êtes le phénix des hôtes de ces bois, compliment du renard au corbeau dans la fable de La Fontaine. Dict. De l’Acad. Fr. 9 Ed. 

[2] Coloss. ii. 3.

She needed a fine mind to be Mistress and Teacher of the Church

 4   After these[1], I find myself imperceptibly drawn to consider a third office of the MOTHER OF GOD which will help our discussion of her intelligence. After the Ascension, she was left to the Apostles and the Disciples of the Saviour, says St Anselm[2], to help them in what the Saviour had taught them and in what they later learned from the Holy Ghost, for her understanding was incomparably better than all of theirs. Because of this, the Saints call her the Teacher of the Apostles and St Ignatius[3] calls her the Mistress of our Religion. The Venerable Rupert[4] makes a subtle observation:

For Mary there was a time for silence and a time for speaking. During her silence, she was the garden enclosed, a fountain sealed up[5]. Conversely, during her regency she made the air fragrant with the sweet scents of her garden and she bedewed the fields with the healing waters of her Son’s teaching.

To say now that she could carry out this mission so important to the Church without a mind suited to the task is in my opinion like wanting to say that she could fly without wings, or could see without eyes and hear without ears.

Footnotes

[1] i.e., after our discussion of Mary’s sublime contemplations and her role of keeping company with her Son, vide supra.

[2] Lib. II de Excellentia Virg., c. 7.

[3] Epist. 1.

[4] Lib. II de Gloria et honore Filii hominis.

[5] My sister, my spouse, is a garden enclosed … a fountain sealed up. Cant. iv. 12. 

She needed a fine mind for her acts of heroic virtue

 5   Finally, mention must be made of the extraordinary acts of heroic virtue that she was to practise. Such acts derive considerable benefit from the intelligence and understanding which enlighten the operation of a person's will, making their performance easier. This is the view of the greatest Doctors and the most outstanding minds in the Church, who joined to their high intelligence and sublime teaching their personal virtue which was itself no less extraordinary and was elevated far above the norm.

This discussion could be extended further, but I shall finish now by saying that if the Holy Virgin showed her appreciation of these natural qualities she enjoyed, it was only as a way of paying homage to Him whom she honoured as the originating stock[1] of all nobility, the model for perfect beauty and the Lord of all knowledge. In the end, reason requires us to accept that since everything is made for Him, to Him alone be the honour and glory. 

Footnotes

[1] Cf. From the stock of Jesse a scion shall burgeon yet; out of his roots a flower shall spring. Isai. xi. 1, Knox translation.

 

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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 2024

The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 6 : § 3.1-2

Chapter 6 : The Fifth 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. On Mary's fine Mind

 1   A fine mind, like the two previous qualities, is like a two-edged sword, or a tool that can be used in various ways. If it is once conjoined with an ill will, it serves to give effect to all manner of evil schemes. If it is well ruled, however, it has a very close interconnection with virtue and we find in most cases that eminent holiness is in fact accompanied by a fine mind. Whatever may be said of others, it must nevertheless be accepted that the MOTHER OF GOD has a fine mind and there are several powerful reasons for saying this. I do not however wish to have recourse again to the explanation I relied on earlier, namely that her body was so perfect and in a sense unique of its kind that it deserved to have a rare and sublime intelligence of the mind. Neither do I wish to rely on the argument that God was simply desirous of displaying His loving generosity towards her; and that if He was willing to show His favour in respect of something of so little importance as the beauty of her body, then He would scarcely hold back from equipping her and honouring her with a fine mind. I shall pass over in silence the fact that she did not suffer from any of those failings which dull the sharpness of our minds, such as diseases or weaknesses in the organs of the body, inclinations to sin, disturbances in the soul, vices and other failings. St Ildephonsus remarks most wisely[1] that:

the Holy Spirit had delivered her from every stain of imperfection, as gold is tried by fire[2]. 

 

The explanations I have in mind are in fact more cogent than those we have considered so far. They may be discerned deep in the mysteries of her election, and in the offices and work she was called upon to perform in accordance with God’s plan. She could not carry these to a conclusion without a mind up to the task: unless someone were to argue (without evidence and contrary to reason) that God worked a continual series of miracles in her, namely works of a high intelligence but which lacked an originating mind and had therefore no basis. The works of God are perfect, and when a person is appointed by God to perform His work, He grants that person pledges[3] to provide a stable basis and effectiveness for the time required: these are permanent and foundational habits and dispositions which will support a person in the discharge of his office and duties.

 

Footnotes

[1] Lib. de Virg. Deipara.

[2] Cf. more precious than gold which is tried by the fire, I Pet. v. 7.

[3] pledge: here, a thing given or taken as a sign or token of favour, loyalty, love, etc., or as a guarantee of something to come. Complete OED.

The Holy Virgin needed to have a fine mind for her sublime contemplations

 2   First of all, no-one can deny that before she had herself chosen the best part like Mary Magdalene[1], namely recollected contemplation, Heaven had already chosen this part for her and had predestined her for works of the most sublime contemplation that any mind had ever practised. For apart from what the Saints tell us[2], to place this matter beyond any doubt, all that people need to do is believe that Mary is THE MOTHER OF GOD. From this, it is easy to reach the same conclusion as St Bernardino of Siena[3] and Albert the Great[4] did when they wrote most aptly as follows: at the very instant that Mary was made holy, God gave her all the interior dispositions and intellectual knowledge appropriate to her state which would help her rise to the this sublime degree of contemplation. These included a high level of self-knowledge, of intelligent beings in creation, of hidden mysteries and of moral actions. Some have said[5] her knowledge included things of nature, insofar as this was necessary for her, as well as a memory capable of retaining so much knowledge and an understanding which would yield fruits a hundredfold.

Let us not forget her almost continuous revelations which were, when judged according to reason, the most sublime there have ever been. For this reason, St Andrew of Candia[6] calls her a fount of divine revelation which cannot be exhausted. The blessed St Lawrence Justinian[7] says that she is to be regarded as so far surpassing the revelations of other Saints[8] that the favour she received was far in advance of the graces that had been communicated to them. Accordingly, there can be no doubt that revelations such as these would require a clear, piercing and fully-formed intelligence, operating at a far higher level than is found ordinarily in the human mind. Whilst on the subject of her contemplative life, I cannot omit to mention something else she possessed which helped her raise her heart and mind heavenwards: her reading. Apart from prayers, reading was an everyday habit of the sacred Virgin, so much so that she came to understand by this means the whole of Sacred Scripture, without taking account of the infused knowledge she received. She could never have attained such a level of knowledge without a mind that was sufficiently elevated in proportion to it. 

Footnotes

[1] But one thing is necessary. Mary hath chosen the best part, which shall not be taken away from her.  Luc. x. 42..

[2] Eucher. Ludg., Serm. de Assumpt.

[3] Tract. de Virg., serm. 4.

[4] S. Antonin., II p., lit. XV, c. 19 ; Albertus, etc.

[5] Serm. 2 de Assumpt.

[6] Serm. de Assumpt.

[7] Aug., Serm. 5 de Nativit.

[8] Ambr., Lib. II de Virginibus; Gregor. Nyss., Serm. de Nativit.; Sophron., Serm. de Assumpt., etc.

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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 2024

The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 6 : § 2.6-8

Chapter 6 : The Fifth 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. Concerning her Gracefulness and physical Beauty

The beauty of the Mother of God encourages the love of chastity

 6   Reading the words of St John Damascene, I feel bound to agree with what many serious-minded authors[1] have concluded : the beauty of the Holy Virgin was such that, far from stimulating any unworthy thoughts or actions, her beauty actually served to attract and win hearts for chastity. Concerning, for example, her Holy Spouse, the glorious St Joseph, I have no difficulty in believing these writers when they say that the more dealings and conversations he had with Mary, the more ardently did the flames of chastity blaze within his heart. None of this will seem strange to those who recall what is said of blessed St Elzear[2], Count of Arian, who maintained perpetual virginity in his marriage with St Delphine, his spouse : sharing a bed with her, the more he drew close to her the more he felt his chastity was protected and the less he feared any temptations to incontinence. For her part, St Delphine called Elzear the guardian Angel of her virginity. This was a quite remarkable grace which was to spread its sweet effects on others as Alasia, St Delphine’s own sister, was to experience personally.

Footnotes

[1] S. Ambr., lib. de Instit. virg., c.7; D. Th. in III, dist. 3, q.1, art.2; q.3 ; Alex. Alens., III p., q.39, memb.3, art.1 ; D. Bonavent. in III, dist.3, q.1, art.2; q.3.

[2] Surius, 27 sept.

Various reflections on why Our Lady inspired chastity

 7   Returning to the Queen of perfect chastity, I note that certain writers set themselves the task of identifying the secret source of this outstanding privilege that is hers. One concluded[1] that it came from damping down the fire of concupiscence; to the extent that this furnace of all impurities was extinguished within her, it was no wonder that she herself would be so constituted in consequence as to diminish rather than arouse the flames of malign desire. Another believed[2] that the reason was to be found in her surpassing modesty, her serious-mindedness and the wonderful self-restraint of her conversation and dealings with others. Yet another was convinced[3] that this privilege is the result of an outpouring of God’s grace which, finding itself in such an abundance within her, breathes out on all sides the sweet balm of Paradise and the heavenly fragrance of chastity. 

Why shall I not add that her beauty is more divine than human, which means that the feelings she arouses in souls must also be heavenly and divine? Why shall I not say of her, with more reason than St John Damascene[4] when he spoke of a virtuous man, that her virtue is her beauty? The great St Dionysius the Areopagite will serve for me as an authority for what several esteemed authors[5] have written when he describes his own experience[6]. Having been led into the presence of the Holy Virgin, he was so dazzled by the brightness of divine Majesty radiating from her face that he passed out on the ground. When he finally came to his senses, he declared that if St Paul had not taught him about another God and had not Faith made him adore this God, then he would firmly have believed that Divinity could not have chosen any other abode on earth than in the countenance of this holy Lady.

Footnotes

[1] Dionys. Carthus., Cant. 2.

[2] Bern., Serm. in feria 2 post de Dom. Palmar.

[3] Cant. 4.

[4] De Joanne Coenobiarcha, epist. de Trisagio.

[5] Dionys. Carthus., etc.

[6] Epist. ad S. Joannem.

 8   Regarding this question, St Anselm exclaims[1]:

Most holy Virgin, thy beauty is so exquisite that it would seem thou wast made only to be admired and to captivate the hearts of those who gaze upon thee! O Virgin, thou art uniquely admirable and admirably unique!

Similarly, St Epiphanius boldly proclaims[2]:

with the exception of God alone, Mary surpasses all of creation in beauty; she goes before the Cherubim and Seraphim, and before all the Angelic Spirits; she is complete with every perfection of beauty.

Whilst St Bernard goes even further, saying[3]:

the beauty of the Holy Virgin, both in her soul and in her body, captivated the love of the King of Glory.

From considerations such as these, St Augustine[4] was moved to ecstatic acclamations saying that, after the heavenly Spouse Himself, the heavenly Bride is most beautiful, most pleasing, most glorious, without spot or blemish[5], clothed with all beauty and adorned with all holiness.

What more could we say?

Footnotes

[1] Lib. orationum.

[2] Serm. de Sanct. Deipara.

[3] Homil. 4 super Missus.

[4] Serm. de Incarn. Christi.

[5] Cf.Eph. v. 27.

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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 2024

The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 6 : § 2.4-5

Chapter 6 : The Fifth 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. Concerning her Gracefulness and physical Beauty

 4   When I consider, moreover, that the Holy Virgin’s body was to be joined in an eternal union with the most beautiful soul God had created after that of His own Son, I have no difficulty in believing that her body would be given an extraordinary beauty to match that of her soul. St Ambrose shares this view when he says:

it is entirely fitting that a beautiful mansion should also have a beautiful entrance portal.[1]

St Thomas follows the same line when he declares that:

the body of the first man must have been most beautiful, with exquisite proportions : for in producing a human body, God has no little regard for the perfections it should have, taking due account of the soul which it will house and of what will be done through its agency[2].

The body of the MOTHER OF GOD was destined to be united with her beautiful soul in the most heroic and divine actions ever performed (after those of the Prince of glory Himself) so that we might call her actions divinely human or humanly divine. This being so, then her body must have been the very beauty of physical holiness, in the words of St Gregory of Neocaesarea; or, as St Basil puts it:  flesh composed entirely of holiness.[3]

Footnotes

[1] Lib. II de Virginibus.

[2] I p., q. 81, art. 3.

[3] Homil. de Humana Christi generatione.

Being chosen to be Mother of the Saviour, Mary must have been perfectly beautiful

 5   Let us now move on from these considerations and contemplate the loftiest designs of our God who made the Holy Virgin only with a view to her becoming the Mother of His only-begotten Son. The Church sings of Him thus, that He is the most handsome, the most pleasing and the most perfect of the children of men. In view of this, must we not admit that His Mother must have possessed a beauty that was more than human? For if anyone were to say that the Son did not resemble His Mother perfectly, this would be unacceptable to those who give Him the honour which is His due. This is all the more true considering that there have never been more reasons for a perfect resemblance than are found in this case; for the Holy Virgin is in a certain fashion both Father and Mother to her Son, seeing that she alone contributed what was necessary to form the body of her beloved Son. 

Now, according to the axiom of the Philosopher, in each order of creatures there must be one who is the first and who serves as a model for the others; in terms of beauty, there is no body that can be more perfect than that of our Lord Jesus Christ; we must therefore accept that the creature who came closest to the beauty of the Lord’s body was His Blessed Mother. St John Damascene examines this idea when he addresses the Blessed Virgin in the following marvellous words[1]:

Thou hast a life, and in consequence a beauty which transcendeth the ordinary laws of nature. This is no cause to be astonished since thou hast received it not for thine own sake but for God, for whom thou wast made with the aim of helping to bring about the salvation of all men and to co-operate in the accomplishment of God’s plans for the Incarnation of the eternal Word and our deification. Thine appetite knoweth nothing of sensuality but rather, in line with reason, is nourished by holy affection. Thou art the true tree of life and thou canst bear  only good fruits, namely the fruit of life thou didst give to the world, none other than the Word made flesh. Thine eyes are made to gaze continually towards heaven and to be fixed for ever on thy Lord and thy God. Thine ears are attuned to the music of the Angels and to the words of the Holy Spirit, through which came salvation into the world. Thy nose is made only to savour the sweet fragrance of the heavenly Spouse, whose name is like unto ointment that hath been poured out. Thy lips are made only to praise God and to respond with love to those of thy Beloved. Thy tongue poureth forth without ceasing the ambrosia of heavenly speech. Thy heart beateth only for God, seeketh only God and sigheth only after God. Thy womb is the abode for Him who containeth all things and who cannot Himself be contained. Thy breasts are founts of honey and sweetness which have given suck to the Father of the universe. Thy hands have served to bear God as in a carriage. Thy knees form the Cherubim throne on which His Majesty is seated. Thy feet have ever been led by the light of the Law of God and have never ceased in their quest for the Spouse of beautiful souls, so as to draw Him down to earth. Finally, thou art the nuptial couch of the Holy Ghost. Thou art an immense ocean of wondrous graces. Thou are perfectly beautiful and closer than any creature to God.

 

Thus speaketh St John Damascene.

Footnotes

[1] Orat. 1 de Nativit. B. 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 2024

The Crown of Excellence : Chapter 6 : § 2.2-3

Chapter 6 : The Fifth 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. Concerning her Gracefulness and physical Beauty

Mary’s beauty is foreshadowed in the Old Testament

 2   It may be claimed that the authorities cited above were carried away by excessive affection in what they thought and wrote so as to make them praise her in every sort of perfection. This claim, however, should be considered in the light not only of the Historians[1] who describe her in all her traits such as she truly was, but also in the light of reason which supports all that these Fathers say. In consequence, it would be ill-advised for a man of sound judgement to deny them the credit they deserve. 

It is not necessary to set too great a store on the figures in the Old Testament from whom this Princess has been drawn, not so much to imitate but to surpass her ancestors’ qualities and to add many more of her own to the ones they possessed. Neither is it necessary to say that the main intention of the Holy Ghost, when He left to posterity an understanding of the elevated qualities of these noble Ladies from the past, was to reinforce the beauty of her whom they were honoured to prefigure. Examples in Scripture include Rebecca,[2] an exceeding comely maid, and a most beautiful virgin; Rachel[3], well favoured, and of a beautiful countenance; Esther[4], who was exceeding fair, and her incredible beauty made her appear agreeable and amiable in the eyes of all; and Judith[5], who was exceedingly beautiful and appeared to all men's eyes incomparably lovely.

Let us therefore simply cast our eyes on the glorious Holy Ghost who formed her in the womb of her barren mother. This will make it easy for us to understand how a craftsman so worthy could not but produce a work of supreme beauty with His plan to make of Mary His most worthy Spouse.

Footnotes

[1] S. Anton., IV p., t. XV, c. 10 ; Albertus, super Missus ; Dionys. Carthus., t. I de Laudib. Virg. ; Niceph., lib. de Eccles. hist., c. 23. 

[2] Gen. xxiv. 16.

[3] Gen. xxix. 17.

[4] Esther ii. 

[5] Judith, viii. 7. et x. 4.

 3   Over two hundred years ago in the church of Saint-Germain, the pious Chancellor of Paris gave a speech on Mary’s Conception which is striking for its wealth of insights. It is a pleasure to read :

how Nature presented herself, as it were, to the glorious Holy Ghost so that from the beautiful attributes that had been scattered among all creatures He might gather a selection for this Bride of His; thus Mary would partake of several others’ beautiful traits which Nature had kept safe as precious items in her treasure-chest. It is no less pleasurable to see how all the virtues presented themselves to Him so that He might create a master-piece out of this Maiden, Heaven’s beloved : purity which winnows bodily matter like a fan[1], providence which organises it, grace to vivify it, charity to inform the heart, prudence to order the mind, pudor to be like a veil for the countenance, sweetness to bedew the lips, honesty dwelling in the cheek, modesty and virginity to infuse propriety through the entire body.

This bears out the point made long ago by the Christian Philosopher when he said[2] that it is the preserve of the virtues to form the body of one who is to be consecrated to God. Notwithstanding this, I attach more weight to the noble thought of St Andrew of Jerusalem[3] who called Mary a statue carved by the hand of God Himself. Indeed, I cannot imagine this was the work of any hand other than that of the Author of Nature and the first model for every virtue who personally made up for anything wanting in nature and in this respect fulfilled the role of the virtues. At this point, I would love to meet anyone who could describe for me the feelings of the Holy Ghost, or better still, the feelings of the most holy Trinity whilst making this little body in the womb of the glorious St Anne. Praise be to God! What joy to form the heart which was to be the true altar for the perfumes which would unceasingly ascend heavenwards in the most pleasing fragrance of Holiness. What delight to prepare the Sanctuary where she was to dwell as in her chosen habitation! What pleasure to distinguish the individual components of the brain which would serve as starting point for the noblest thoughts ever to be produced by a created being! What a sweet thing to make ready the place wherein the Saviour of the world was to be received, to prepare the bodily parts that would produce the blood that would fill His sacred veins, to fill out the breasts that would suckle Him, to bring growth to the arms that would hold Him tenderly, to form the knees that would be a support for Him, to give sight to the eyes that were to look upon Him, to give colour to the lips that would kiss Him and to sanctify the whole body which was made specially for Him.

Footnotes

[1] Matt. iii. 12.

[2] Boetius, lib. IV de Consol.

[3] Orat. 2 de Assumpt.

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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 2024