The WORD in other words (2022) by Fr Narcisso Cellan SVD – Univeristy of San Carlos, Cebu
Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows, September 15
A small girl was lost in a large supermarket, so she went up to the security guard and said, “I’ve lost my mother!” The officer said, “What’s she like?” The little girl replied, “She is like me, and she also likes chocolate and ice cream!” A few minutes later, the mother was found at the food section of the store!
Today’s feast of Our Lady of Sorrows reminds us of the sorrows of our Blessed Mother, the episodes in her life which made her so much like her Son Jesus, and turned her experiences similar to the experiences of many of us. In the Gospel, we read the sad narrative of Mary standing by her dying son nailed on the cross. Already a widow and about to become an orphaned mother, she is being entrusted to the disciple who would be the one to look after her from that time on. Mary must have died a thousand times that day.
Life is a series of ups and downs. But sometimes a vilest of tragedy renders us profound misery that no matter how much success we make and joy we experience later on, sorrows will always linger, often leaving wounds in our hearts that will never heal. When this happens to us, we could only wonder how to move on and summon enough courage to be grateful for what is left and what is still in store for us.
In the case of Mary, it was her faith that gave her courage and hope. Her faith was there when she heard the bleak prophecy of Simeon about her son, when her family fled into Egypt, when Jesus disappeared for three days and was found in the temple of Jerusalem. A woman of faith, Mary bore sufferings in her heart, and she never ran out of reason to keep on believing, hoping, and serving God.
Like hope which cannot stop us from grieving, faith cannot remove sorrow. But Mary has shown us that sorrow can be bearable through faith in God. What is not bearable is to sacrifice without faith and serve without hope.
