Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows, September 15, 2025

Sequence — Stabat Mater

At the cross her station keeping,

Stood the mournful Mother weeping,

Close to Jesus to the last.

Through her heart, his sorrow sharing,

All his bitter anguish bearing,

Now at length the sword had passed.

Oh, how sad and sore distressed

Was that Mother highly blessed

Of the sole begotten One!

Christ above in torment hangs,

She beneath beholds the pangs

Of her dying, glorious Son.

Is there one who would not weep,

'Whelmed in miseries so deep,

Christ's dear Mother to behold?

Can the human heart refrain

From partaking in her pain,

In that mother's pain untold?

Bruised, derided, cursed, defiled,

She beheld her tender Child,

All with bloody scourges rent.

For the sins of his own nation

Saw him hang in desolation

Till his spirit forth he sent.

O sweet Mother! font of love,

Touch my spirit from above,

Make my heart with yours accord.

Make me feel as you have felt;

Make my soul to glow and melt

With the love of Christ, my Lord.

Holy Mother, pierce me through,

In my heart each wound renew

Of my Savior crucified.

Let me share with you his pain,

Who for all our sins was slain,

Who for me in torments died.

Let me mingle tears with you,

Mourning him who mourned for me,

All the days that I may live.

By the cross with you to stay,

There with you to weep and pray,

Is all I ask of you to give.

Virgin of all virgins blest!

Listen to my fond request:

Let me share your grief divine.

Let me to my latest breath,

In my body bear the death

Of that dying Son of yours.

Wounded with his every wound,

Steep my soul till it has swooned

In his very Blood away.

Be to me, O Virgin, nigh,

Lest in flames I burn and die,

In his awful judgment day.

Christ, when you shall call me hence,

Be your Mother my defense,

Be your cross my victory.

While my body here decays,

May my soul your goodness praise,

Safe in heaven eternally.

Amen. (Alleluia)

Reflection

The Stabat Mater has always moved me with how poetically beautiful and heartbreakingly tragic it is. Its verses invite us to stand beside Mary at the foot of the Cross and help bare the weight of her sorrow..."Let me share with you his pain, Who for all our sins was slain, Who for me in torments died". Through its words, we are not only drawn into her grief but also into her strength and love. We are able to catch the faintest glimpse of the depths of the Blessed Mother’s sorrow as she endured watching her Son suffer and die for the salvation of the world.

It is so fitting that we celebrate the Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows immediately after the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. In the homily I listened to yesterday, the priest reflected on how the cross, once a brutal instrument of torture and fear, was transformed through Jesus’ death. What was meant for humiliation and punishment has now become a symbol of our faith. Today, we wear crosses, hang them in our homes, and see them in our churches not as signs of defeat, but as symbols of salvation and hope.

Through the Cross, God has shown us that He can use anything, even what was meant for cruelty and despair, for His divine plan and the building of His Kingdom. Even the Stabat Mater, a sorrowful hymn, reflects this through its hopeful ending...“Christ, when you shall call me hence, Be your Mother my defense, Be your cross my victory. While my body here decays, May my soul your goodness praise, Safe in heaven eternally”.

By reflecting on the sorrows of Mary, we do not only mourn with her but also share in her faith. She teaches us to stand steadfast by the Cross, to unite our sufferings with her Son’s, and to trust that, in the end, His Cross is our eternal victory.