Our Lady of Sorrows Stands with Us

Our Lady of Sorrows

We avoid suffering like the plague. Who wouldn't? Many of us run away from it through distraction or blame someone rather than face it. It just seems safer to do so because facing it (alone) is too painful.

Mary experienced many sorrows in her life; on Sept. 15th, we remember seven in particular: 1) the ominous prophecy in the temple; 2) the flight into Egypt; 2) losing Jesus for three days; 4) meeting his battered body and face on the way to Calvary; 5) standing at the Cross during his agony; 6) seeing her son die; and 7) laying his body in a tomb.

I wonder if in those moments, Mary asked herself where God was. She had been faithful to him since the beginning. Perhaps she felt angry, confused, betrayed or asked herself why this was happening. Did God (really) have her best interests at heart? Anyone would have wondered this.

Mary could have believed that either God had betrayed her and was willfully holding back happiness from her, or, that he had a specific, personalized plan for salvation whose scope, significance and goodness superseded her comprehension. Accepting sorrows without fully understanding why they happen is hard. So often, we wish we could change the past…if only that didn’t happen. For many reasons, withdrawing from or blaming God seems safer than asking for help.

When I invite Our Lady of Sorrows into my life, I realize I don’t have to face my sorrows alone. She personally knows the difficulty of sorrow and remaining open to God. Mary stands with us just like she did for her son.

Blessed Mother, Our Lady of Sorrows, thank you for accepting
the joyful and sorrowful mysteries of life
while remaining strong in faith.
Stand with us at the crosses of our lives...
give us grace to accept them,
knowing we face them together. Amen.