Mother and Son

A prayer that has been in the Church for centuries and that has regained great popularity in our present time is the Chaplet (also called the Rosary) of the Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It came onto the scene in the mid-thirteenth century with the founding of the Servite Order (Order of the Servants of the Blessed Virgin Mary) that promoted devotion to Our Lady of Sorrows. The Chaplet itself is made up of seven groups of seven Hail Marys. For each group of prayers, one of the Seven Sorrows of Our Lady is considered. In each of the Seven Sorrows, there is an emphasis on the relationship between Jesus and His Mother. Where one is found, there is the other. We see that throughout Jesus’ life, Mary, His Mother, is always at His side.
 
In the first sorrow, The Prophecy of Simeon, we hear Simeon say that the soul of Our lady will be pierced with a sword. This reminds us that just as Our Lord’s side (and heart) was pierced by the centurion’s spear as He was hanging on the Cross, so too, Our Lady’s soul (heart) was pierced in union with her Son. Through her Heart pierced with sorrow we come to His Heart pierced with love.
 
In the second sorrow, The Flight into Egypt, Our Lady with the Infant Jesus in her arms and St. Joseph escape from the clutches of Herod, who is seeking the Child’s life. Mother and Son are united in seeking to fulfill God’s plan amidst the dangers of the world.
 
In the third sorrow, The Loss of the Child Jesus in the Temple, Our Lady mourns the separation she experiences when the Child Jesus is speaking with the scribes and doctors of the law in the Temple. She could not bear to be separated from Him.
 
In the fourth sorrow, Our Lady Meets Jesus as He Carries His Cross to Calvary, the Mother extends her unconditional love to her Son as He walks the last agonizing part of His journey to the hill where He will extend His love to us by having His hands nailed to the Cross. She walks every step of the path of her Son’s Passion just as she walks with us in the sorrows and suffering of our own lives.
 
In the fifth sorrow, Our Lady Stands at the Cross of Her Son, the Mother is united with Jesus in His pain as He suffers and dies for our salvation. She would give her life for His sake to alleviate His agony. To fulfill the Father’s Will, Our Lady supports Jesus by offering her love to Him and herself to the Father with Him. She teaches us how we, too, must enter the Mystery of Redemption by uniting ourselves with the Passi0n of her Son.
 
In the sixth sorrow, Our Lady Takes Her Son’s Body into Her Arms as He is Lowered from the Cross, she cradles the broken Body of Jesus in her arms with a Mother’s love as she embraces her Son’s Body, the Church. In the most difficult times of her Son’s life, she was there to hold Him close; she does the same for the Church and for each member of the Church, that is, for us.
 
In the seventh sorrow, Our Lady Sees Her Son Laid in the Tomb, even as she mourns profoundly over her Son’s death and burial, Our Lady’s heart is filled with the hope that Jesus will rise again as He foretold. She reminds us that no matter how dark the times may seem for the Church and for us, hope springs eternal.
 
My dear friends, in our love for the unborn and our care for their mothers and families, we find great strength and consolation in the union of Mary, the Sorrowful Mother, and Jesus, the Son, who offers Himself for love of us all.  Let us look upon Our Lady and Our Lord and see the unbreakable bond that exists between them!  Even in our society where abortion seeks to destroy the bond of love between a mother and her child, we believe with all our heart that in our advocacy for unborn children and their agonizing mothers the victory over abortion, the murder of children and destruction of their mothers, will be won through the unbreakable bond between Moher Mary and her beloved Son Jesus!
 
Most Reverend William J. Waltersheid
Auxiliary Bishop of Pittsburgh