As we celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows (September 15), I want to share a story of how God’s love was present in the sorrow I experienced about two years ago. I’ve always had a devotion to the passion of our Lord Jesus Christ because of the way he suffered for us and the love with which he gave every part of himself, even his very life. A few years ago, I began to also be devoted to Our Lady of Sorrows. Through this devotion, Our Lady asks us to commemorate seven sorrows in her life: three during the childhood of Christ and four at his passion and death. For each of the seven sorrows, you offer a Hail Mary and meditate on that sorrow. Our Lady makes seven promises to those who follow this practice. They involve her being with us in life, comforting us, helping us, and obtaining for us final deliverance at the hour of our death and eternal life with God. I took up this devotion and gradually fell in love with it. The daily practice of the Seven Sorrows devotion helped me grow much in my spiritual life and feel the love of God and our Blessed Mother present with me through the joys and sorrows of my life.
In 2023, my father, who had struggled with liver disease, was taken emergently to the hospital, where he spent two weeks. He came very close to death. The doctors found that he had stage one liver cancer. In June of 2024, on the day that my father turned 69 years old, he complained of severe stomach pains, and my mother, being woken from a dream by his groaning, told me at three in the morning that we needed to take Dad to the hospital. As one day followed another, the situation got worse. We were first told that my dad would have to go to rehab. Then, the doctors said that he was going to hospice. Then, they told us to bring him home because the situation was grim, and he had no hope of recovery. He would never make it home.
As I was faced with the thought of my father’s impending death, I wondered: How could I go on? What would happen to me? Would I have a nervous breakdown? Might I be able to do the things I had always done, or would depression and sorrow take over my life? They called us from the hospital and told us that it was likely that my father would pass away anytime. So, my mother and I went to the palliative care ward where they ultimately took him. On entering the room where my father was, we met the nurse who was taking care of him. On the necklace that she was wearing, there was an image of our Blessed Lady. So, I said to her, “Are you Catholic?” She said yes. She said that she was faithful and devout and prayed with all her patients who were nearing death. She showed me the cross she carried. She took a rosary out of her pocket, to which I promptly reacted by taking my rosary out of my pocket and showing her the cross that I wore around my neck. This moment of shared faith with a perfect stranger who was caring for my dying father that day took away the sorrow, the anxiousness, the worry, the fear of doom that was hanging over me and allowed me to experience peace. I believe that Our Lady of Sorrows had answered my prayers by making herself present through this kind lady, the nurse.
On that day, I stayed with my father for a few hours. The nurse kept the Mass and devotions playing on the television. My dad was unconscious. I prayed over him, asking for God’s mercy and that He would take him home peacefully if that was his will. My mother and I left the hospital. Soon after, I got the call that my father had passed away – on my birthday, July 9th. Relatives came from near and far, and we quickly planned a funeral with the help of our pastor and our parish family. My mother and I were surrounded by the love of family, friends, colleagues, parishioners, and clergy who came out in support. God provided all the love and support that I needed during this time of sorrow. Our Lady, true to her promises, gave peace to my family, comforted me in my pains, defended me against the attacks of the evil one, and, I pray, obtained forgiveness for my father and entrance into eternal life. In prayer with the Holy Spirit shortly after the funeral, Jesus said in my heart, “I took up all your sorrow.”
Below are the Seven Sorrows of Mary and the promises she makes to those who faithfully honor her with daily prayer, either with a Hail Mary for each Sorrow or by praying the Seven Sorrows Rosary.
The Seven Sorrows of Mary:
1) The Prophecy of Simeon (Luke 2:34-35)
2) The Flight into Egypt (Matthew 2:13-21)
3) The Loss of Jesus for Three Days (Luke 2:41-50)
4) The Meeting of Jesus and Mary on the Road to Calvary (John 19:17)
5) The Crucifixion of Jesus (John 19:18-30)
6) Jesus Taken Down from the Cross (John 19:39-40)
7) Jesus Laid in the Tomb (John 19:39-42)
The Seven Promises Revealed by Our Lady to Saint Bridget:
1) “I will grant peace to their families.”
2) “They will be enlightened about the divine Mysteries.”
3) “I will console them in their pains and I will accompany them in their work.”
4) “I will give them as much as they ask for as long as it does not oppose the adorable will of my divine Son or the sanctification of their souls.”
5) “I will defend them in their spiritual battles with the infernal enemy and I will protect them at every instant of their lives.”
6) “I will visibly help them at the moment of their death—they will see the face of their mother.”
7) “I have obtained this grace from my divine Son, that those who propagate this devotion to my tears and dolors will be taken directly from this earthly life to eternal happiness, since all their sins will be forgiven and my Son will be their eternal consolation and joy.”
I hope that you’ll take Our Lady at her word and try this practice of prayer. May God bless you and Our Lady be with you in both joy and sorrow!
More Resources On Our Lady of Sorrows
Our Lady of Sorrows: Devotion to Mary’s Seven Sorrows for Children
Our Lady of Sorrows: A Compilation of the Teachings of St. Alphonsus Liguori
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