Our Lady of Sorrows
Memorial
- Feast Day
- September 15
The Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows, kept the day after the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, contemplates the Mother of God in her share of the Passion of her Son. The feast originates in the medieval devotion to the Compassio Mariae and was approved for the Servite Order, founded in 1233 in Florence, in 1668. Pope Pius VII extended it to the universal Church in 1814, and Pope Pius X fixed the date as 15 September in 1913.
The seven sorrows of Mary, traditionally enumerated since the Middle Ages, are the prophecy of Simeon (Luke 2:34-35), the flight into Egypt (Matthew 2:13-21), the loss of the Child Jesus in the Temple (Luke 2:41-50), the meeting with Jesus on the way to Calvary, the Crucifixion (John 19:25-30), the Deposition from the Cross, and the Burial of Jesus.
The day's liturgy uses the medieval sequence Stabat Mater (Stood the Mother), attributed in tradition to Jacopone da Todi, in which the Church meditates on Mary standing at the foot of the Cross. The Gospel proper is Luke 2:33-35 (the prophecy of Simeon) or John 19:25-27 (Behold your mother).
Our Lady of Sorrows is the supreme Christian icon of consenting love in the face of suffering. The Catechism teaches that Mary's compassion at the foot of the Cross uniquely cooperates with the saving work of her Son. The faithful are invited to a share in this compassion, learning from Mary how to stand fast in love beside Christ in his suffering members.
Patronages
the suffering · Slovakia · the Mater Dolorosa
From Our Lady of Sorrows
"Stabat Mater dolorosa iuxta crucem lacrimosa, dum pendebat Filius. (At the Cross her station keeping, stood the mournful Mother weeping, close to Jesus to the last.)"
Catholic Churches Named After Our Lady of Sorrows
20 parishes on Catholic Church Times share Our Lady of Sorrows's name. Find their Mass times, confession schedules, and adoration hours:
- Our Lady of Grace — Greensburg, PA
- Our Lady of Perpetual Hope Catholic Church — Cottage Grove, OR
- Our Lady of Hope — Copake Falls, NY
- Our Lady of Fatima — Secane, PA
- Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal Parish — Montebello, CA
- Our Lady of the Rosary Cathedral — San Bernardino, CA
- Our Lady of Lourdes Roman Catholic Church — Oakland, CA
- Our Lady of Mount Carmel and Fatima Catholic Church — Camden, NJ
- Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Church — Pittsburgh, PA
- Our Lady of Malibu Catholic Church — Malibu, CA
- Our Lady of Lebanon Maronite Catholic Church — Lewisville, TX
- Our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic Church — Littleton, CO
- Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Mission — Georgetown, CO
- Our Lady Queen of Peace — Brodheadsville, PA
- Our Lady of the Mountains Catholic Church — Estes Park, CO
- Our Lady of the Lakes Catholic Church — Oakdale;Montville, CT
- Our Lady of Victory Roman Catholic Church — West Haven, CT
- Our Lady of Peace — Erie, PA
- Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Church — Selma, TX
- Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church — Town of Brant, NY
Sources