Our Lady of Sorrows

Gospel Reflection on 15th Sep 2021

These Seven Sorrows should not be confused with the five Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary. The Seven Sorrows of Mary are a popular Roman Catholic devotion. Mater Dolorosa, it is also a key subject for Marian art in the Catholic Church. In common religious Catholic imagery, the Virgin Mary is portrayed sorrowful and in tears, with one or seven long knives or daggers piercing her heart, often bleeding. Mary received painful sorrows in the seven events of her life with Jesus. 

Seven sorrows 

1. The Prophecy of Simeon
2. The Flight into Egypt
3. The Loss of the Child Jesus in the Temple of Jerusalem
4. Mary's meeting Jesus on the Via Dolorosa 
5. The Crucifixion of Jesus on Mount Calvary
6. Jesus is Taken Down from the Cross.
7. The Burial of Jesus by Joseph of Arimathea

Mary surrounded by the Seven Sorrows; in 1232, seven youths in Tuscany founded the Servite Order whose patron was our Lady of Sorrows (also known as "Order of the Servants of Mary"). Five years later, they took up the sorrows of Mary, standing under the Cross, as the principal devotion of their order.

Three things to learn from today's Feast

1. Suffering is a reality:

Suffering is a day to day reality of this world. No one is exceptional in this world. From the Country's president to the poor man of your street, everyone has to encounter suffering. It is just a memory in the reality. You never think of a tooth or finger in your life, unless there is pain. Every human being experiences it at any stage of life. Simeon told the blessed Mother, Even though you are the Mother of God, you will receive suffering. In Genesis, suffering entered into the world through sin. First parents committed sin against God. that is why they suffered. Suffering is reserved to the sinners. In NT, Suffering is a Mission, to be accomplished. 

2. Suffering is a mission:

It is a significant part of your life, for what you came to be. If you do not take up the cross, you cannot follow me. says Jesus. Buddha's statue seems to be calm, tranquil and serene. Jesus on the Cross is humiliated, ashamed, disturbing and nude. Some buddhists question how can the christians worship an unserene God. Buddha said desire is a root for suffering. So omit suffering. No! For us it is the mission to be accomplished. For Jesus, Mary and Joseph God has assigned the sufferings.

3. Suffering is a mystery:  

You cannot score the marks immediately, go for the class, study and appear  at the exams. Wait! We do not know the answer to the death. Mary treasured everything in the heart without lamenting to anyone. She did not search for the immediate answers. She communicated to God and waited patiently for his mysterious revelation. She understood the pain of others in silence (eg. wedding at Cana). 

Today, we miss from the tracks of our life, keeping away the suffering elements of our life. We pray to the Mother Mary to accompany us when we face difficult situations in our life.