Our Lady of Sorrows

My childhood church on the feast of Our Lady of Sorrows

I wrote this prayer as a meditation on this solemn day dedicated to our Sorrowful Mother, with the special devotion directed towards her especially in the Maltese Islands:

            O Mother of Sorrows, we witnessed you crying under the Cross, seeing your Son taking his last breath. The same breath you gave Him 33 years earlier when you gave birth to Him in the stable of Bethlehem. Then they brought down his lifeless body and placed it on your lap. Who knows how many times as a toddler, you welcomed Him on your lap, to nurse Him, to calm Him, to nurture Him, to put Him to sleep. But now he was much different, bloody, tortured and without any life.

           And now you prepare to give Him back to whoever gave Him to you from Heaven. What can I ask of you dear Mother in this moment of so much sorrow, anguish and pain? I cry with you, with Mary Magdalene and with John, the beloved apostle. Give me one drop of His precious blood so that I can be saved. Give me one drop of your tears to feel satiated. Give me one breath coming from His heart. Give me your hands so that we can walk together and find consolation in each other.

            Now I pray with the same courage that you showed on the way of the Cross and on Golgotha, fill us with that sacred courage we so desperately need nowadays. Help us on our own journey, during which we have none of the sorrows which you experienced. We had none of the thorns that were forced into your Son’s head, and none of the troubles and problems you faced. But we ask you nonetheless for your help in facing our own trials and tribulations. And walk with us through the alleys, the streets and hills we face each day. Today we cry with you dear Mother Mary, stay close to us, to dry the tears from our eyes. We cry with you today, not because we feel sorry for you, but because we know that only you can console us.

Help us to overcome the trial we are experiencing right now as a nation, as a world in distress because of the pandemic. Just as you consoled your Son and so many others, console the families of those who have lost loved ones over the past 13 months. Help us to see the end of coronavirus and may we see our lives return to normalcy.