Our Lady of Sorrows: The Seven Sorrows of Mary and the Theology of Compassion

# Who is Our Lady of Sorrows?## Our Lady of Sorrows, also known as Mater Dolorosa or Our Lady of Compassion, is the Marian title that focuses on Mary’s suffering: at the foot of the Cross, participating in Christ’s Passion with undivided love and pain. Her liturgical feast is celebrated on September 15th, one day after the Exaltation of the Holy Cross.## The devotion to the Sorrows of Mary has its roots in the ancient tradition of the Church. It combines two fundamental elements: the historical dimension (Mary did suffer when she saw her Son die) and the theological dimension (Mary’s suffering holds a value in the economy of salvation that theology seeks to articulate without ever equating it with Christ’s redemptive Passion).## The Seven Sorrows of Mary## The devotional tradition has organized Mary’s suffering into **seven sorrows**, based on texts from the New Testament and spiritual meditation:– **1st Sorrow, The Prophecy of Simeon (Lk 2:34-35):** At the Temple, the elder Simeon announces to Mary: “A sword shall pierce through your own soul.” The shadow of the Cross falls upon the beginning of Jesus’ life.– **2nd Sorrow, Flight into Egypt (Mt 2:13-15):** Exile with the Child, persecution by Herod, life as refugees in a foreign land.– **3rd Sorrow, The Loss of Jesus in the Temple (Lk 2:41-50):** Three days of anguish searching for the missing Son, anticipating the three days in the tomb.– **4th Sorrow, Mary Meets Jesus Carrying His Cross (Lk 23:27-28):** The encounter of eyes, Mother and Son on the way to Calvary.– **5th Sorrow, The Crucifixion and Death of Jesus (Jo 19:25-30):** Mary at the foot of the Cross, witnessing her Son’s death. The central moment of the Sorrows.– **6th Sorrow, Jesus Taken Down from the Cross and Placed in Mary’s Arms (Jo 19:38-40):** The Pietà, the dead body of the Son in His Mother’s arms. One of the most powerful scenes in Christian art and spirituality.– **7th Sorrow, The Burial of Jesus (Jo 19:41-42):** Mary attends to the burial and is left alone after the stone is rolled over the tomb.The Vatican Council II (LG 58) states that Mary “advanced in the pilgrimage of faith, and faithfully maintained her union with the Son until the Cross, where she stood in accordance with divine plan, suffering deeply with her Only-Begotten Son, associating herself with a maternal heart to his sacrifice.”**Our Lady of Sorrows during Holy Week**Holy Week is the liturgical time when devotion to Mary’s Sorrows reaches its peak. In many Catholic countries such as Portugal, Spain, Brazil, Philippines, and Mexico, Holy Week processions feature the central figure of the *Mater Dolorosa*—the image of a bereaved Mary, with a sword in her side or a black cloak, processing through the streets accompanied by an praying crowd.This popular piety is not superficial folklore: it is the intuition of the faithful people that human suffering has a meaning in the suffering of Mary and Christ. Those who mourn a dead child, suffer from an incurable disease, or live under unjust persecution, find in Our Lady of Sorrows a companion who knows pain intimately.**Stabat Mater: The Hymn of Sorrows**The *Stabat Mater*, attributed to Franciscan Jacopone da Todi (13th century), is the liturgical hymn dedicated to Mary’s Sorrows. Its opening lines are among the most beautiful in Christian religious poetry: *”Stabat Mater dolorosa / iuxta crucem lacrimosa / dum pendebat Filius.”* (“The Mother Dolorosa stood / by the sorrowful Cross / while her Son hung.”)The *Stabat Mater* is chanted during Vespers for the feast of Our Lady of Sorrows (September 15th) and in the liturgy of Good Friday. Composers such as Pergolesi, Vivaldi, Haydn, Schubert, and Dvořák have set it to music, making it one of the most influential texts in sacred music history.**Sorrows, Apparitions, and Marian Messages**Major *Marian apparitions* frequently feature the theme of sorrows. In *Fátima* (1917), Mary showed the children her Immaculate Heart surrounded by thorns, symbolizing her Sorrows. At La Salette (1846), the Virgin appeared weeping. Many of the most revered shrines worldwide depict Mary as the Mater Dolorosa.The theological message is consistent: Mary, closest to Christ, is also closest to all who suffer. Her compassion is not merely historical; it is timeless, maternal, and universal.**Studying the Theology of Mary’s Sorrows**# The Theology of Mary’s SorrowsThe theology of Mary’s sorrows is one of the richest topics within Mariology, intersecting soteriology (salvation theory), christology (the Passion of Christ), theological anthropology (the meaning of human suffering), and spirituality. The *Locus Mariologicus* offers a Specialized Graduate Program in Mariology that devotes special attention to this theme, training theologians to provide pastoral care for those who suffer in the light of Mary’s mystery.## Frequently Asked Questions### What are the Seven Sorrows of Mary?1. **The Prophecy of Simeon** (Luke 2:35) 2. **Flight into Egypt** (Matthew 2:13-14) 3. **Jesus Lost and Found in the Temple** (Luke 2:43-45) 4. **Encounter with Jesus on the Way to the Cross** 5. **The Crucifixion and Death of Jesus** 6. **Descending from the Cross** 7. **Jesus’ Burial**### What is Mary’s “compassion” in the seven sorrows?Mary’s compassion (from the Latin *com-pati*, to suffer together) refers to her participation in Christ’s redemptive suffering. Mary is not a mere spectator but suffers interiorly with her Son on the Cross. This co-participation in the mystery of Redemption is the theological foundation for titles such as Co-Redemptrix and Mediatrix.### When is the feast day of Our Lady of Sorrows celebrated?The Catholic Church celebrates Our Lady of Sorrows on September 15th, the day after the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (September 14th). This liturgical proximity emphasizes the intimate connection between Mary and the pascal mystery of Christ, which is at the heart of the theology of her sorrows.## Further ExplorationThe compassionate and redemptive dimension of Mary is explored in Pope John Paul II’s encyclical *Redemptoris Mater*, which delves into the pilgrimage of Mary’s faith to the Cross.**Delve deeper:** Explore Mariology, Marian Theology, Marian Apparitions, and the Specialized Graduate Program in Mariology, as well as Angeology, Frequently Asked Questions, and topics like the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple.

Also see

• Immaculate Conception
• Assumption of Mary
• Mary, Mediator of All Graces