Mary’s Cross!

Tuesday, September 15, 2026

Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows

1 Cor 12: 12-14, 27-31a; Jn 19: 25-27

The Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows invites us to reflect on the way Mary approached Jesus’ suffering.

If Jesus’ suffering was redemptive, Mary had her own integral part in it as the exceptional disciple of her son. In other words, Mary did not carry the cross in exactly the same way as Jesus did. Mary could endure the most painful moment of her life – to watch her son die – only because she remained steadfast to cooperate with God’s will for the world.

Our Lady of Sorrows reveals a different side of Jesus’ redemptive suffering. 

1. We reflect on Mary’s fiat often in the context of the Annunciation. But we forget that it was not a mere ‘yes’ to the joy of Bethlehem but also to the sorrow at Calvary. Mary did accept the privilege of being the Mother of God. However, it did not end there. She also accepted the suffering such a privilege would entail in the future. Thus, Mary’s suffering was solidaristic in as much as she chose to suffer with her son. That is what makes Mary an exceptional disciple. 

2. Mary’s faithfulness is revealed in her courage to accompany Jesus. It is in and through her faithful accompaniment that Mary reveals what it means to be the Mother of the Lord. In Mary’s faithful accompaniment, we find a beautiful discipleship lesson. If we want to do great things for God, it starts with standing beside the suffering Christ as Mary did (Jn 19: 25). We may find Mary silent here. But her silence points to the silence of a woman who entrusted herself completely to God. Mary’s suffering was filled with hope.

3. Our Lady of Sorrows understood that the cross was the only way left for the redemption of the world. Hence, her solidaristic suffering with her son knew that God was accomplishing something far greater through her son’s suffering. Indeed, as a mother, watching her son die at the cross broke her heart. But the same could not break her spirit or faith because she understood Jesus as the suffering servant, who was accomplishing God’s will. Mary suffered but was not desperate because she knew that the cross was just the beginning of the success story of the world’s redemption. For Mary, Jesus was not a defeated son but the redeemer of the world. This is why, in her sorrow, she drew closer to God rather than turning away from Him. 

Though we remember Our Lady of Sorrows, we will soon find the divine mother rejoicing in the victory of her son. Mary suffered. But her hope remained. That gave meaning to her cross and suffering.

Let us pray for the courage to carry our crosses just as Mary did faithfully. 

Fr. Dhinakaran Savariyar