Our Lady of Sorrows

The meaning of the celebration

+ On September 15, the day after the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, the Church honors the suffering (or “sorrows”) of Mary, the Mother of Jesus. This memorial is based on a special feast of the Seven Sorrows of Mary first celebrated by the Servite Friars in the seventeenth century.

+ The Gospel of Luke tells us the story of the Presentation in the Temple when he was only a few weeks old. The devotions of Mary and Joseph were interrupted when Simeon, an elderly priest, took the Child in his arms and proclaimed that he was the fulfillment of the promises God had made to Israel.

+ Simeon also prophesied that Mary would have to share in the sufferings of her Son: “You yourself a sword will pierce so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed” (Luke 2:35). Years later, this prophesy was fulfilled as Mary courageously stood by and witnessed the execution of her Son (cf. John 19:25-27).

+ In art, the Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows, is often depicted with seven swords piercing her heart. These swords represent the traditional seven “sorrows” of Mary: the Prophecy of Simeon, the Flight into Egypt, the Loss of the Child Jesus, Meeting Jesus as he carried his Cross to Calvary, the Crucifixion, the Body of Jesus being placed in Mary’s arms, and the burial of Jesus.

For prayer and reflection

“If he could die in body, could she not die with him in spirit? He died in body through a love greater than anyone had known. She died in spirit through a love unlike any other since his.”—Saint Bernard of Clairvaux

Spiritual bonus

On this day we also remember Saint Catherine of Genoa. A widow and Franciscan tertiary, Catherine experienced a series of visions that later led to her books “Dialogues of Body and Soul” and the “Treatise on Purgatory.” Saint Catherine of Genoa died in 1510 and was canonized in 1737. She is honored as a patron saint of those in difficult marriages and spouses whose partners were unfaithful because of the painful marriage she endured for the first several years of her life.

Vocations

There are numerous religious communities dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows. Please pray for vocations to these communities, including:

The Trappist Monks of Gethsemani Abbey (Trappist, KY): www.monks.org

The Sisters of Our Lady of Sorrows, visit: www.ols.org

The Sisters of the Sorrowful Mother, visit: http://sistersofthesorrowfulmother.org/

The Marianites of the Holy Cross: www.marianites.org

The Sisters of Loretto: http://www.lorettocommunity.org/

Franciscan Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of Sorrows: www.olpretreat.org

Franciscan Sisters T.O.R. of Penance and the Sorrowful Mother: www.franciscansisterstor.org

Poor Sisters of Jesus Crucified and the Sorrow Mother: www.cjcbrockton.org

Mantallate Sisters Servants of Mary: www.mantellatesistersmsm.org

Servants of Mary (Servite Sisters): www.osms.org

Servite Sisters (Ladysmith, WI): www.servitesiters.org

Prayer

O God, who willed
that, when your Son was lifted high on the Cross,
his Mother should stand close by and share his suffering,
grant that your Church,
participating with the Virgin Mary in the Passion of Christ,
may merit a share in his Resurrection.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever. Amen.

(from The Roman Missal)

Saint profiles prepared by Brother Silas Henderson, S.D.S.