Five roses in bloom came out of the mouth of the wrongdoer

In Chartres (France), there lived a proud and wicked clerk who never tried to resist his temptations and sinned at every turn, forgetful of both Easter and Christmas! This unhappy man, however, had one merit: his great love for Our Lady. As soon as he saw one of her images, he would stop, kneel down and beat his chest, weeping, filled with tender feelings and repentance.

The Devil, however, managed to bring about this sinner’s death before he could confess or speak to a priest. No one mourned him, and the clergy refused to grant him a Christian burial. He was interred outside the walls, in a ditch, like a wretched wrongdoer.

The Sweet Lady, however, who never forgets her children, remembered her servant. Thirty days after his passing, she appeared to an ecclesiastic of the town, asking him why such shame had been inflicted on her friend. Since the priest did not understand, Mary revealed to him the devotion of the deceased, his attitude towards her, and expressly demanded that he should be unearthed the next day and moved to an honorable place. This was done. When they opened the coffin, they found his body intact, with five roses in bloom coming out of his mouth.

Gautier de Coincy

Les plus beaux miracles de la Vierge (The most beautiful miracles of Our Lady), F. Lanore, Editor, Paris