Homily for the Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows

When someone we love experiences suffering and pain in their lives, we suffer along with them. This is especially true of parents. When sons or daughters struggle physically, emotionally, or mentally, parents suffer just as much as their children. Sometimes, they suffer even more.

When we give our hearts to someone in love, there is always the risk that it will be broken. All love entails some suffering. The only way to avoid that kind of suffering is to close off our hearts. The temptation can be to refuse to give our hearts to anyone, so that it never gets broken, but to do that is only to be half alive. The only way to live is to love and to accept the inevitable suffering it brings.

As she stood at the foot of the Cross and watched Jesus die, Mary's heart was broken. Many years earlier, as he held the infant Jesus in his arms, Simeon had linked Jesus' suffering with that of his mother, saying to her, "And you yourself a sword will pierce."[1]

When our troubles are difficult to shoulder, we can look to Our Lady of Sorrows as our inspiration and help.+

 

[1] Luke 2:35