Q&A: What does Saint Louis de Montfort intend by calling Mary Our Lady of Wisdom?
Father J. Patrick Gaffney, SMM
The specific title, Our Lady of Wisdom is not found in the saints writings. Nonetheless, it can be said that it expresses the thought of Montfort who does call Mary “the mother, the mistress and the throne of Divine Wisdom,” Jesus Christ (LEW 203).
She is the Mother of Divine Wisdom: through her “yes” at the Annunciation, the Eternal Wisdom, the Second Person of the Trinity, enters our human family as our brother and Savior. It is through God’s initiative and her faith—surrender to His plan that the Eternal Wisdom comes to be the Incarnate Eternal Wisdom. Eternal Wisdom is born of the Virgin Mary. “Hence it is true to say that Jesus (Eternal and Incarnate Wisdom) is the fruit and product of Mary wherever He is present be it in heaven, on earth, in our tabernacles or in our hearts . . . whoever wishes to possess Jesus must possess Mary” (LEW 204).
She is the Mistress of Divine Wisdom: She is the “lady of the house” where the Eternal and Incarnate Wisdom is raised, taught, prepared
for his public ministry and his redemptive death. Moreover, “the Son of God, Eternal Wisdom, by making himself entirely subject to her as his Mother, gave her a maternal and natural authority over himself which surpasses our understanding. As his Mother, Mary has authority over Jesus who because He wills it, remains in a sense subject to her. This means that Mary by her all – powerful prayers and because she is the Mother of God, obtains from Jesus all she wishes” (LEW 205).
She is the Seat or Throne of Divine Wisdom: Eternal Wisdom dwells in her more intensely than anywhere else in the universe. “There is no
place in heaven or on earth where Eternal Wisdom shows so much magnificence or finds more delight than in the incomparable Virgin Mary. That is why the Fathers of the Church call her the tabernacle of the divinity, the place of rest and contentment of the Blessed Trinity, the throne of God, the city of God, the altar of God, the temple of God, the world of God and the paradise of God. Only through Mary, then can we possess divine Wisdom” (LEW 208—209). In Mary we become truly wise.
The title, Our Lady of Wisdom beautifully summarizes this mystical teaching of Saint Louis de Montfort on Mary’s relationship to the Eternal and Incarnate Wisdom, Jesus Christ.
The Throne of Wisdom
In Catholic tradition, “Throne of Wisdom” is one of many devotional titles for Mary, the Mother of God. It refers to her status as the vessel in which the Holy Child was born. The Throne of Wisdom depicting Our Lady sitting on a throne with Our Lord may be traced back to Byzantine art in the 11th century. The image above is another Byzantine representation of the Throne of Wisdom.
