SAINT OF THE DAY · SEPTEMBER 15

What is the feast of Our Lady of Sorrows?

Saintly Editorial 2 min read
In short

Our Lady of Sorrows: A mother who remained faithful beneath the cross. Lived first century. From Nazareth, present at Jerusalem. Mother of Jesus and disciple. Patroness of the sorrowful. Mother of God. Saintly remembers this feast on September 15.

  • Lived first century
  • From Nazareth, present at Jerusalem
  • Mother of Jesus and disciple
  • Patroness of the sorrowful
  • Mother of God

What is the feast of Our Lady of Sorrows?

Mary brought the infant Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem. Simeon took the child into his arms. Then he looked at Mary and spoke of a sword that would pierce her soul. She heard the words while holding her Son. The warning remained with her. Its meaning would unfold slowly.

Soon after, danger came at night. An angel warned Joseph that Herod wanted the child dead. Mary gathered Jesus and fled with him into Egypt. She left her home without knowing when she could return. The road was long, and the child was still very young. Another sorrow awaited them.

When Jesus was twelve, Mary and Joseph found him missing after leaving Jerusalem. They searched among relatives and travelers. After three days, Mary found him in the Temple. She asked why he had caused such anguish. Jesus spoke of his Father's house. Mary kept these words in her heart.

Christian devotion remembers Mary meeting Jesus on his way to Calvary. This encounter is contemplated in the Stations of the Cross and among her seven sorrows. The Gospels do not describe their meeting on the road. Through this tradition, Christians reflect on a mother's compassion as her Son approaches death.

At Calvary, Mary stood near the cross of Jesus. Before he died, he entrusted her to the beloved disciple, who took her into his home. John's Gospel records her presence and these words. Christians contemplate her sorrow there in the light of Simeon's prophecy about the sword that would pierce her soul.

After Jesus died, Joseph of Arimathea received permission to take away his body. In the devotion of the seven sorrows, Mary is contemplated receiving her dead Son. Christian art calls this image the Pietà. It expresses her grief and love, without claiming that the Gospel describes this scene in detail.

The Gospels tell how Jesus was buried in a tomb. Christian tradition contemplates his mother's sorrow at that burial as the seventh of her sorrows. This devotion invites us to remain with her in grief and hope. The tomb was not the end of her Son's story. His resurrection would follow.

What can we learn from Our Lady of Sorrows today?

  • Name one sorrow before Mary today, using the specific pain you usually hide.
  • Stand beside someone grieving, as Mary remained beside Jesus at Calvary.
  • Read Luke 2:35 slowly, then entrust one family fear to Our Lady of Sorrows.

Our Lady of Sorrows stayed close through every stage of her Son's suffering. She carried sorrow without abandoning faith. At the cross, Jesus gave her to his disciples as a mother. Her presence speaks to anyone who grieves today. She remains near, faithful, compassionate, and attentive.

When is the feast day of Our Lady of Sorrows?

Saintly remembers Our Lady of Sorrows on September 15, when the story above is the saint of the day in the app. Read how the Church declares someone a saint, or how to choose a patron saint.

Sources

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