Mater dolorosa
Blessed Virgin Mary of Sorrows is one the title that the Church reserves for Mary.
Devotion to the Mater dolorosa developed from the end of the nineteenth century.
It was Pope Pius VII in 1814 who introduced it into the Roman liturgical calendar.
The Mother of Sorrows who suffers from the passion of her Son Jesus is present in popular piety, she is also called as Mother of the Seven Sorrows.
Evidence of this devotion is the Stabat Mater, attributed to Jacopone da Todi (1230-1306), in which he composed the "Laudi".
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Mary is sorrowful in the Temple
Mothers do not know the future of their children and they embroider this future with gold... She knows it clearly and, if she does not know it, the prophet of God will dispel the future: "A sword will pierce your heart through". And the cross stands up mournfully and on the cross the ruined body of Her sweet son. Simeon’s word is God’s word. And the Mother goes away, clasping Her treasure as strong as never, carrying the sentence with Her. And people do not notice that the Mother of Jesus Crucified is passing by, the Sorrowful. Also today people passing by do not know and they do not want to know.
Mary is sorrowful on the Calvary
It seems a dream, a very sad dream. It is really your Son, Woman! And the Son dies in the same way as the slaves, abandoned by God and by people, watered with gall, suffocated by hatred. He hardly recognises Her, Se looks at His eyes veiled, as they do not have any tears left.
A voice left: "Woman, these people who are killing me, are your sons. I love them very much, I would want to embrace them all; do it in my place, love them, Mother!".
Prayer
And the Mother forgives and the Mother loves. Her Son is taken down died from the cross and he is put down on Her lap. The adopted children are watching, but they are not able to relieve the Mother, the Sorrowful.
Mother, I have crucified you with your Jesus, and I have myself pierced His Heart and yours through with a cruel lance. And I cannot recognise yet His love and Yours. Mary, pierce my heart through with the most torturing repentance, make me to die, so that I will not attempt the life of Your sweet Crucified any more. Come with me, Sorrowful, I want to be with you as tender as John, the disciple, whom Jesus loved.
Offering Mary the heart
My very sweet Mother, look at me, your son, mercifully. How good you are and with how much tenderness you have filled this sinning soul! What will I give you to show you my gratefulness? I know now the huge worth of my soul. I know your pain, Mother; I know passion and death of Your Jesus. But I am very poor as I have nothing else than this poor heart. And now I am offering it to you completely, under God’s look, at the presence of the Angels and of the Saints. Accept it, Mary, and inflame it with the same love as yours. Forget ignorance, negligence, and my faults. I am sorry and I strongly feel in my soul love for You and Jesus.
Introduce to Your very Holy Son my heart that wants to live a life of love and reparation starting from now. Help me, Mary, and save me. I am your son both in life and in death, and I want to be it for the eternity. Amen.
The pain of Mary
Consider the reasons why the martyrdom of Mary was larger than all of the martyrs.
The Martyrs have suffered martyrdom in the bodies by fire and iron, but Mary suffered in the soul, as it was predicted by San Simeon: "And also to you a sword will pierce your soul".
It's like the holy old man had said: "O Holy Virgin, the other martyrs will suffer physical wounds with weapons, but Thou shalt be stabbed and martyred soul with the Passion of Your dearly beloved Son." As the soul is more noble than the body, so much the pain experienced by Mary was larger than that of all the martyrs, as Jesus Christ said to St. Catherine of Siena: "There is no comparison between the pain of the soul and the of the body".
(The Glories of Mary - St. Alphonsus)
