Mary Knows Pain and Sorrow

The Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows follows the Exaltation of the Holy Cross and reminds us how closely Mary is united to Jesus in the work of redemption and to us, as the gift Jesus gave her during his agonizing hours on the Cross.  "Woman, behold your son" (Jn 19:26).  As with the death of Jesus, there is an upside: his resurrection and new life for all or us; Mary's pain is softened by the added dignity of becoming the mother of the Church, the mother of us all.  The promised "swords of sorrows" made by the old man Simeon when Jesus was presented in the temple as an infant all came true, 1) Simeon's prophecy itself, 2) the flight into Egypt, 3) the 3-day loss of Jesus, 4) the meeting of Jesus en route to Calvary, 5) standing at the foot of the cross, 6) the "pieta moment" as Jesus is laid in Mary's lap, 7) the burial of Jesus. But further in God's plan was Mary's role as our loving mother, one which she has taken very seriously as evidenced by her many apparitions during which she, as any mother would, takes pains to make sure we "do what we are told" by Jesus.
The role of a mother is a mixture of pain, sorrow and deep joy, and Mary is certainly no stranger to them. In a reverent praying of the Hail Mary, or of the Rosary today, we might show her our understanding and appreciation, as well as find in her a source of strength in our own pain and sorrows.
Bro. Rene