The Sorrows of Mary (feast 15 September)
The flight into Egypt. (St. Matthew 2:13, 14)
The loss of the Child Jesus in the temple. (St. Luke 2:
43-45)
The meeting of Jesus and Mary on the Way of the Cross.
The Crucifixion.
The taking down of the Body of Jesus from the Cross.
The burial of Jesus.
The last four of the sorrows deal with Our Lord's death, the first
three with the earlier years.
The last three sorrows coincide with the last three stations.
All mothers feel the pain that their children feel. Mary felt the pain a million times more – having more capacity to love, and having more to weep about, given that Christ is more important than any other child.
The invitation/challenge for us is to see how much we can identify with her sorrow: Is there one who would not weep, whelmed in miseries so deep, Christ’s dear Mother to behold?
We are aware of the sensation we can have in following a story about other people, where there is suffering involved. It actually does us good, because it opens our hearts to a greater compassion. It takes us out of ourselves, for a while at least. We are less worried than usual about ourselves and what happens next.
This is especially so with this story of Mary and Jesus. The more fully we enter it the more we are going to be transformed, not just in how we feel, but actually becoming more charitable, better people.
Is there one who would not weep? Can the human heart refrain from partaking in her pain, in that Mother’s pain untold?
We would need to have hearts of stone not to be affected by the sight.
We can be very stony in our disregard of other people’s sufferings, because we think we have already enough for ourselves.
We can even be indignant at our own troubles, declaring life to be unfair. We can break free from these attitudes with enough contemplation of higher things, such as the sorrows of Mary.
We can do ourselves a lot of good, but we can also help Mary and Jesus, by helping them carry the load. And also help them to convey their love out to the world.
We might think we cannot do much good, but each person that comes onside is changing the overall balance.
We become more willing to help others in need, and less likely to cause harm ourselves.
Through sorrow we learn the pain that is caused by sin, and the need that we have to overcome sin, and transform it by love.
This is the key: we do not want to kill sinners but turn them into good people. This, at least, is what God wants, and He wants us to take on His view of others.
This is something good that comes from the Cross, even though it is an event that should not have happened.
The love of Jesus and Mary, called into action by the cruelty of man - then comes to help man stop being cruel!
We share in this transforming, ourselves becoming less ‘cruel’ (generally nasty), and more useful in extending the power of the cross to the world around us.
The world is still crucifying Him, or would do so again if He let them. They do not care about Him now for the same reasons as then.
We have to go against the tide and be with Mary - eyes fixed on the cross. If there are tears they are tears of hope not despair; hope that all this suffering will turn to joy.
Our Lady of Sorrows, help us to take our part in these great matters.
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