September is the month to remember Our Lady of Sorrows. The feast (or Memorial) day is celebrated on September 15th.
Every morning, as part of my Morning prayers, I stand before an old painting of the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary which hangs in my living room.
There, before the image, I ask Mother Mary’s help for so many needs as well as for all those whom have asked my prayers. It has become an important prayer habit of mine to do this. Mother Mary is so much a part of our lives as Catholics. Mary works tirelessly to usher us close to her Son Jesus Christ. Everything she does points us to Jesus. After all, she succinctly told the wine stewards at the Wedding Feast at Cana to “Do whatever He tells you,” (John 2:5) thus helping to bring about her Son’s first public miracle.
According to Catholic teaching, (you can see more here) the feast is dedicated to the spiritual martyrdom of Mary, Mother of God, and her compassion with the sufferings of her Divine Son, Jesus. In her suffering as co-redeemer, she reminds us of the tremendous evil of sin and shows us the way of true repentance. May the numerous tears of the Mother of God be conducive to our salvation; with which tears Thou, O God, art able to wash away the sins of the whole world.
As Mary stood at the foot of the Cross on which Jesus hung, the sword of sorrow Simeon had foretold pierced her soul. Below are the seven sorrows of Mary:
- The prophecy of Simeon (Luke 2:25-35)
- The flight into Egypt (Matthew 2:13-15)
- Loss of the Child Jesus for three days (Luke 2:41-50)
- Mary meets Jesus on his way to Calvary (Luke 23:27-31; John 19:17)
- Crucifixion and Death of Jesus (John 19:25-30)
- The body of Jesus being taken from the Cross (Psalm 130; Luke 23:50-54; John 19:31-37)
- The burial of Jesus (Isaiah 53:8; Luke 23:50-56; John 19:38-42; Mark 15:40-47)
Symbols: heart pierced with a sword; heart pierced by seven swords; winged heart pierced with a sword; flowers: red rose, iris (meaning: “sword-lily”), cyclamen.
Recent Inspiration!
Recently, I felt inspired to create a new bracelet in honor of Our Lady of Sorrows. It is called the “Seven Sorrows of Mary Bracelet.”
It is at my Bracelet Shop where you can see more and also where you can purchase. The bracelet comes in a gift box with a card explaining the Seven Sorrows.
