Our Lady of Sorrows

Continuing the theme of suffering, today is the feast of Our Lady of Sorrows.  Even in the early days of her life with St. Joseph and Jesus, Mary experienced much sorrow.  At the Presentation of Christ in the Temple, the prophet Simeon foretold that for Mary, "a sword will pierce your own heart."  This is where the classic images of Our Lady of Sorrows  and the Immaculate Heart of Mary come from. Coming as it did, directly after the prophesy about the Child, Mary's sorrows were forever linked to her Son.

Something Our Lady knew, something most people of that time knew, is that sorrow and suffering are an intricate part of living. We in the modern world assume that after life begins, there is no where to go but "up".  Especially in the United States, we tend towards a sort of Prosperity Doctrine that assumes no sorrow will touch us.

Our Lady is someone who knew sorrow.  She almost lost her finance, St. Joseph after conceiving Our Lord.  She was a refugee in Egypt, she lost her 12 year old Son in Jerusalem and then later, as he left to preach the Gospel.  She saw Him die on the cross.

As we often turn to our own mothers, let us turn to Our Lady, who was intimately acquainted with sorrow and grief.

Our Lady of Sorrows, pray for us!