Our mother in joy and sorrow

When you think of the Blessed Mother, how do you picture her?

Most often, I think of her as a joyful new mother, holding her baby, the Savior of the World, in her arms. Those images are so beautiful and moving, showing motherhood at its most peaceful and serene. There is nothing like the wonder of holding a precious new life, a child with a whole future to experience. And, of course, Mary was holding an extraordinary child, a child who was the Son of God.

But there are other images of our Blessed Mother, those showing her at her most sorrowful. Michelangelo’s Pieta is one of the most poignant masterpieces, as it depicts Mary holding the body of her son after his suffering and death on the cross.

Mary knows the breadth of joy and she knows the depth of sorrow. As our mother, she understands how to accompany each of us—all of us—through all the joys and sorrows life brings. She knows how to be with us when we are at our most vulnerable and when we are completely depleted. She is our mother, loving us through all of that.

I would love to live in the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary. But sometimes I find strength and comfort reflecting on the sorrows that Mary bore. This week, we celebrate the Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows, as we consider on the deepest suffering of Jesus and how Mary—as his loving mother—suffered, too.

There’s such a power to this feast. What a beautiful invitation to each of us to know that Mary understands our most difficult moments—and God does too. Even though he spared the Blessed Mother the stain of sin, he didn’t keep her free from sadness. But he was with her through all of it, giving her the strength she needed as she watched her son suffer and die, waiting in grief—and deep faith, too—until he was raised from the dead on the third day.

Mary’s sorrow gives us hope and reminds us that none of us are alone. Earthly suffering is not eternal. Death is not the final answer. God is greater than all of that. Love can conquer everything. And our Blessed Mother in heaven is ready to intercede for us with love and understanding.

This feels especially fitting as our nation looks back on the 25^th anniversary of 9/11. The grief and weight of that tragedy is still so heavy even several years later—even for those who were not directly affected. I confess I still can’t look at some of the images and videos from that day, which happened half a lifetime ago for me. It is still incomprehensible to me that anyone would want to inflict that kind of violence and horror on anyone.

So, this Marian feast day seems to come at just the right time. But of course, we don’t need to wait for a special feast day to reach out to the Blessed Mother.

“Turn your eyes incessantly to the Blessed Virgin,” Saint John Paul II told us. “She, who is the Mother of Sorrows and also the Mother of Consolation, can understand you completely and help you. Looking to her, praying to her, you will obtain that your tedium will become serenity, your anguish change into hope, and your grief into love.”

When we feel helpless, sad, and perhaps a little lost, it can be comforting to know we can pray. God wants to walk with us even though the deepest sorrows. And Mary is a wonderful intercessor, Jesus’ mother and ours.

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