Reflecting on the Seven Sorrows of Mary

September is the month dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows, and it is especially fruitful during this month to meditate on Mary’s Seven Sorrows and to accompany this with the Seven Hail Mary’s devotion, applying each sorrow of Mary to a Hail Mary and meditating on it. Meditating on the Seven Sorrows of Mary helps us to grow closer to Her and Her Son and gives us the desire and grace to ask to be able to accept God’s will in our sufferings just as Mary did. The Seven Sorrows are the prophecy of Simeon, the flight into Egypt, the loss of Jesus for three days, the carrying of the Cross, the crucifixion of Jesus, Jesus being taken down from the Cross, and Jesus being laid in the tomb.

1.     The Prophecy of Simeon (Luke 2:34-35): During the presentation of Jesus, Simeon said to Mary, “And you yourself a sword shall pierce,” referring to the many sorrows that She would endure as the mother of Jesus. Can you imagine knowing ahead of time that unimaginable suffering would await you if you consented to something and yet consenting anyway? That’s what Mary did. And She did it out of love for God. Ask God to fill your heart with such love for Him that you would be willing to suffer greatly for His sake.

2.     The Flight into Egypt (Matthew 2:13-21): When the Magi did not return to Herod to tell him of the Child Jesus’s whereabouts, he became enraged and ordered the slaughter of all male children two years old and under. An angel appeared to Joseph in a dream and ordered him to take the Child and His Mother and flee to Egypt because Herod was seeking the Child’s life. Egypt was not a safe place for Jews at the time and the Holy Family had to trust in God immensely to keep them safe and provide for them. Ask God to increase your trust in Him even in uncertain and scary situations.

3.     The Loss of Jesus for Three Days (Luke 2:41-50): After traveling to Jerusalem, Mary and Joseph were returning to Nazareth and they thought that Jesus was with them. Once they discovered that He was not, they returned to Jerusalem and after three days, they found Him in the temple listening to the scribes. Can you imagine losing your own child for three days? And not just any child, but the Son of God. Besides giving us guidance through anxiety and worry, this incident also describes spiritual darkness and gives us an answer when we read Jesus’s response to His Mother: “Why were you looking for Me? Did you not know that I must be in My Father’s house?” When we are lost and looking for God, we can go into a church or adoration chapel and encounter Him there in the Eucharist.

4.     The Carrying of the Cross (John 19:17): On the road to Calvary, Jesus and Mary meet and Mary is forced to endure the agony of watching Her Son carry His Cross to the place of His Crucifixion. The pain that She must have felt is indescribable. This event can help us when we are perhaps caring for a loved one who has a terminal illness or facing our own illness and trying to comfort our loved ones. Mary can help us offer up the pain and suffering to God for His glory.

5.     The Crucifixion of Jesus (John 19:18-30): Mary stood at the foot of the Cross and was there for the entire three hours of agony that Jesus endured before His Death. She stood steadfast and outwardly strong, but She must have felt like She was crumbling inside. Watching your own Child die is pure agony and She wouldn’t have made it through if it weren’t for the grace of God. We can look at Mary’s example of complete reliance on God and trust in His will and ask Her to help us when we are struggling during our own painful trials.

6.     Jesus Being Taken Down from the Cross (John 19:39-40): When Jesus’s side was pierced with the lance and He was taken down from the Cross and placed in Mary’s arms, She experienced the sorrow of being faced with the reality that the Son Whom She nursed and raised was dead. When we are faced with the death of loved ones and people close to us, let us turn to Mary and ask Her to help us trust in God’s plan and to give us the comfort we need and the hope that they will make it to heaven.

7.     Jesus Being Laid in the Tomb (John 19:39-42): As Jesus was laid in the tomb after His Death, Mary’s heart was broken and She experienced all of the bitterness and pain that we do when faced with the finality of death and the burial of a loved one. Let us turn to Mary when we are grieving and ask Her to draw us closer to God in our suffering and help us to be filled with hope and consolation.

Reflecting on these seven sorrows of Mary draws us closer to Her and makes us realize that She experienced suffering just as we do and that She can help us when we are undergoing our own sufferings. Uniting our sufferings to Hers and to those of Jesus helps grow our love for Christ and His Mother and we find relief in our sufferings. The seven Hail Mary’s prayer that asks of the Blessed Mother virtues attached to each sorrow can be found here. Our Lady of Sorrows, pray for us!