For daily readings, see http://www.usccb.org/nab/091508.shtml
Mary, who shared in the suffering of your Son at the foot of the cross, pray for us!
Mary, who is the closest witness to the Incarnation, God being made man, is also the closest witness, as we hear in today’s Gospel, of the redemption of the world, for she was there at the foot of the cross with John, her sister Mary, and Mary Magdalene. Mary, who presented her Son in the temple where He received the name Jesus, which means the one who will save people from their sins, is there as He offers His body on the cross for the salvation of the world, and for the payment of the debt of all sin that ever was committed or ever will be committed until the end of time. Those of us, then, who wish to be transformed by the mysteries of love revealed at the Incarnation in Bethlehem and at the Crucifixion in Jerusalem want to experience them as May did, and be affected by them in the same way Mary was, for these events affected her to the point of her being full of grace. That is why Jesus gives us His mother to be our mother at the foot of the cross, so that she can teach us how to have the same relationship with Him that she had.
The Memorial of our Lady of Sorrows reminds us that being a follower of Jesus, as Mary was to the utmost degree, is not to become a member of a superficial don’t worry be happy society that ignores human pain and grief because everything will work out in heaven. The Memorial of our Lady of Sorrows shows that real sorrow is not incompatible with faith, even with faith that looks forward in hope to the resurrection and to the realities of heaven where there will be no more tears. Sorrow felt and expressed during the suffering and death of a loved one is a way of proclaiming our love and expressing how good life is on this earth. We would expect Mary’s heart to be pierced with a sword just as surely as was the body of Her Son. Her sorrow expresses her love for her Son, but also expresses her questions of why things had to happen this way.
Through Mary’s eyes, we get to see most intimately the effects of our sins, and the damage that they do to the body of Christ, the Church today. Mary’s sorrow should lead us to express a more perfect contrition for our sins. We should hate our sins with a more perfect hate, insofar as we can see more clearly their effects through the eyes of Mary, who is there at the foot of the cross. What is more, like Mary, we should not shy away from sharing in Christ’s suffering, even choosing to suffer with Him and for Him wherever we can, so that the sorrow that is an inevitable part of life is something that we choose with our freedom. Mary chose to be with Her Son to the end, sharing in His suffering. Through her great and powerful intercession, may we learn to do the same. +m
Mary, who shared in the suffering of your Son at the foot of the cross, pray for us!
Mary, who is the closest witness to the Incarnation, God being made man, is also the closest witness, as we hear in today’s Gospel, of the redemption of the world, for she was there at the foot of the cross with John, her sister Mary, and Mary Magdalene. Mary, who presented her Son in the temple where He received the name Jesus, which means the one who will save people from their sins, is there as He offers His body on the cross for the salvation of the world, and for the payment of the debt of all sin that ever was committed or ever will be committed until the end of time. Those of us, then, who wish to be transformed by the mysteries of love revealed at the Incarnation in Bethlehem and at the Crucifixion in Jerusalem want to experience them as May did, and be affected by them in the same way Mary was, for these events affected her to the point of her being full of grace. That is why Jesus gives us His mother to be our mother at the foot of the cross, so that she can teach us how to have the same relationship with Him that she had.
The Memorial of our Lady of Sorrows reminds us that being a follower of Jesus, as Mary was to the utmost degree, is not to become a member of a superficial don’t worry be happy society that ignores human pain and grief because everything will work out in heaven. The Memorial of our Lady of Sorrows shows that real sorrow is not incompatible with faith, even with faith that looks forward in hope to the resurrection and to the realities of heaven where there will be no more tears. Sorrow felt and expressed during the suffering and death of a loved one is a way of proclaiming our love and expressing how good life is on this earth. We would expect Mary’s heart to be pierced with a sword just as surely as was the body of Her Son. Her sorrow expresses her love for her Son, but also expresses her questions of why things had to happen this way.
Through Mary’s eyes, we get to see most intimately the effects of our sins, and the damage that they do to the body of Christ, the Church today. Mary’s sorrow should lead us to express a more perfect contrition for our sins. We should hate our sins with a more perfect hate, insofar as we can see more clearly their effects through the eyes of Mary, who is there at the foot of the cross. What is more, like Mary, we should not shy away from sharing in Christ’s suffering, even choosing to suffer with Him and for Him wherever we can, so that the sorrow that is an inevitable part of life is something that we choose with our freedom. Mary chose to be with Her Son to the end, sharing in His suffering. Through her great and powerful intercession, may we learn to do the same. +m
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