REFLECTIONS ON OUR LADY OF SORROWS
It is impossible to describe adequately the suffering
and sorrows of Our Lady at Calvary. She was truly a martyr there because
Her beloved Son was suffering.
At Calvary, Our Lady, as the Co-Redemptrix with Her
Son, the Redeemer, saved us. But at what a price! Our Lady's Heart
was pierced, broken and shattered - to see her Jesus suffer so. Only
a mother can come close to understanding Our Blessed Mother's Sorrows.
Our Lady of Sorrows has appeared to many Catholics
over the centuries. She cried during her apparition to the children
of La Salette in 1846. An image of Our Lady wept for three days in
a home in Syracuse, Sicily, in 1953.
Our Lady is weeping over our world, which is as far
from God, so cold, so indifferent. Our Mother is crying! Who can stand
to see his or her mother cry?
We must console Mary and lovingly dry her tears, saying:
"Mother, don't cry. We'll be good."
We must offer loving compassion to Our Lady of Sorrows.
We should offer frequent prayers and many rosaries to console her.
We can't remain indifferent and cold. Our Mother is crying!
Let us learn a lesson from the saintly French writer,
Leon Bloy (d 1917) who taught that Mary's tears must "call forth our
own effusion of tears." This great writer was very devoted to Our
Lady of La Salette. The thought of tears "shattered him."
Our response to Our Lady's tears should be filled with
compassion and love. In this way, we'll console Mary, Our Mother.
-excerpted from article by Brother Craig Driscoll,
Catholic Twin Circle)
