Friday, September 15, 2017
FEAST OF OUR LADY OF SORROWS
“Honor your
father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord
your God is giving you.”-Ex 20:12
Psalm
55, Verse 6
Fear and trembling overwhelm me;
shuddering sweeps over me.
We must follow the example of Our Lady of Sorrows and bring our savior
to others and undergo the joys with the sorrows. Today would be a good day to
contemplate the seven sorrows of our Lady and to pray and honor her for she is
our mother too.
St. Bridget of Sweden (1303-1373), Our Lady
directly revealed the amazing graces granted by her Son for all those who daily
and pray seven Hail Mary’s while meditating on her seven dolors and tears:
1. “I will
grant peace to their families.”
2. “They
will be enlightened about the Divine Mysteries.”
3. “I will
console them in their pains and I will accompany them in their work.”
4. “I will
give them as much as they ask for as long as it does not oppose the adorable
will of my Divine Son or the sanctification of their souls.”
5. “I will
defend them in their spiritual battles with the infernal enemy and I will
protect them at every instant of their lives.”
6. “I will
visibly help them at the moment of their death—they will see the face of their
mother.”
7. “I have
obtained this grace from my divine Son, that those who propagate this devotion
to my tears and dolors will be taken directly from this earthly life to eternal
happiness, since all their sins will be forgiven and my Son will be their
eternal consolation and joy.”[1]
Things to Do[2]
Teach your children the Seven Sorrows of Mary.
Read more about this devotion. September is traditionally dedicated to Our
Lady of Sorrows.
·
Present
different art pieces of Our Lady of Sorrows, or illustration of one of her
sorrows, for meditation and discussion. There are so many different pieces from
all different eras, countries and mediums. Search words for art titles would be
Lamentation, Deposition, Pieta, Dolorosa, Sorrows, etc. Some samples:
o The Seven
Sorrows of the Virgin by Albrecht Durer
o Michelangelo's Pieta
o Pieta
by Giovanni Bellini
o Vincent Van
Gogh's Pieta
o Titian's Mater
Dolorosa
o Different
artists on the Presentation in the Temple
o Various artists
on the
Flight into Egypt
·
Discuss
why Mary is called the Queen of Martyrs.
·
Make
a heart-shaped cake for dessert, decorated with the swords piercing the heart.
·
Think
of ways to make reparation to Mary for the sins committed against Our Lord.
·
Pray
the short prayer or ejaculation, Holy Mother, imprint deeply upon my heart
the wounds of the Crucified.
·
Read
or sing the Stabat Mater, perhaps incorporating it with the Stations of
the Cross.
·
In
Italy, the title of Our Lady of Sorrows is Maria Santissima Addolorata.
This devotion began in the 1200s. She is the patron of many Italian cities. In
southern Italy there is La Festa della Madonna dei Sette Dolori (the
festival of the Seven Sorrows of the Madonna), instituted in 1423, also called
Madonna dell’Addolorata Festival. The food connected to this festival is cuccia
salata, wheat berries cooked in meat broth and layered with goat or pork.
Fitness Friday- Recognizing that God the Father created man on
Friday the 6th day I propose in this blog to have an entry that
shares on how to recreate and renew yourself in strength; mind, soul and heart.
Today might also be a good day to take a
hike or walk and pray along the way; going out to an isolated place was the
original way to pray. It was practiced by Abraham in the desert, and Mary on
her way to visit her aunt during her pregnancy with St. John the Baptist and by
our Lord Jesus Christ.
Below is an excerpt taken from my
book, Divine Mercy Hikes for your review and use if you can make it to Sedona,
Arizona; however, all hike meditations are adaptable to any other location. The
secret is to talk to God during the walk and He will talk to you.
Soldiers Pass Trail[3]
During this hike, if you are doing the Divine
Mercy Novena, you will be reflecting on the souls of the persons who are
detained in purgatory. This trail will take you by the devils kitchen
(sinkhole) and the seven sacred pools which are great geological features to
reflect on the grace of purgatory and the seven sacraments.
Length: 1.4 miles one way
Rating: Moderate
Use: Medium
Season: Year round
Hiking time: 2.5 hours
USGS Map: Wilson Mountain
Location: From the junction of Routes 89A and 179, take
89A west 1.2 miles to Soldier Pass Road on the right. Go 1.5 miles to Rim
Shadows Drive, then right 0.2 miles (keep straight ahead where Rim Shadows
branches left) to a gated entry road to trailhead parking on the left.
Notice for this meditation the water
flows from the first pool and fills it and then in succession the second pool
is filled. Similarly grace fills our life where one virtue will complete us
enough to overflow to the next. With this concept in mind we will review the
seven sorrows of the Mother of God and emulate the virtue she had in them;
seeing that we must be filled with grace from one pool to the other in
secession.
O God, come to my assistance; O Lord, make haste to help me. Glory be
to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is
now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.[4]
1.
I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, in the
affliction of your tender heart at the prophecy of the holy and aged Simeon.
Dear Mother, by your heart so afflicted, obtain for me the virtue of humility
and the gift of the holy fear of God. Hail Mary…
2.
I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, in the
anguish of your most affectionate heart during the flight into Egypt and your
sojourn there. Dear Mother, by your heart so troubled, obtain for me the virtue
of generosity, especially toward the poor, and the gift of piety. Hail Mary…
3.
I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, in
those anxieties which tried your troubled heart at the loss of your dear Jesus.
Dear Mother, by your heart so full of anguish, obtain for me the virtue of
chastity and the gift of knowledge. Hail Mary…
4.
I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, in the
consternation of your heart at meeting Jesus as He carried His Cross. Dear
Mother, by your heart so troubled, obtain for me the virtue of patience and the
gift of fortitude. Hail Mary…
5.
I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, in the
martyrdom which your generous heart endured in standing near Jesus in His
agony. Dear Mother, by your afflicted heart obtain for me the virtue of
temperance and the gift of counsel. Hail Mary…
6.
I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, in the
wounding of your compassionate heart, when the side of Jesus was struck by the
lance before His Body was removed from the Cross. Dear Mother, by your heart
thus transfixed, obtain for me the virtue of fraternal charity and the gift of
understanding. Hail Mary…
7. I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, for the pangs that
wrenched your most loving heart at the burial of Jesus. Dear Mother, by your
heart sunk in the bitterness of desolation, obtain for me the virtue of
diligence and the gift of wisdom. Hail Mary…
Let Us Pray:
Let intercession be made for us,
we beseech You, O Lord Jesus Christ, now and at the hour of our death, before
the throne of Your mercy, by the Blessed Virgin Mary, Your Mother, whose most
holy soul was pierced by a sword of sorrow in the hour of Your bitter Passion.
Through You, O Jesus Christ, Savior of the world, Who with the Father and the
Holy Spirit lives and reigns world without end. Amen.
Daily Devotions/Prayers
Today is my daughter Rachel Grace's birthday; her name means Lamb of Grace. When she was but a child she suffered a grand-mal seizure that nearly killed her. She was diagnosed with a brain tumor. I immediately called my friend Father Paul Wolff who was General Patton's Belgian Guide and asked for prays at the shrine of our Lady of Beauraing. A week later the brain tumor disappeared and there was still a small scar left on a portion of her brain. She continued to have seizures but medicine kept it under control for many years. Eventually through the work of a doctor she received a world class surgical procedure that completely healed her of seizures, from the world famous Barrow Neurological Institute. In March of next year she will be getting married. She works at Phoenix Children's Hospital. I ask your prayers for her intentions.
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