Our Lady of Sorros Our Lady of Dolours, Fulham road, London, UK
Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: White
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Posted on 09/14/2021 11:37:47 PM PDT by Cronos
Our Lady of SorrosOur Lady of Dolours, Fulham road, London, UK
Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: White
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catholic,prayer,ordinarytime,jn19
24. These things therefore the soldiers did.
25. Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene.
26. When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son!
27. Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home.
THEOPHYLACT. While the soldiers were doing their cruel work, He was thinking anxiously of His mother: These things therefore the soldiers did. Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene.
AMBROSE. Mary the mother of our Lord stood before the cross of her Son. None of the Evangelists hath told me this except John. The others have related how that at our Lord’s Passion the earth quaked, the heaven was overspread with darkness, the sun fled, the thief was taken into paradise after confession. John hath told us, what the others have not, how that from the cross whereon He hung, He called to His mother. He thought it a greater thing to shew Him victorious over punishment, fulfilling the offices of piety to His mother, than giving the kingdom of heaven and eternal life to the thief. For if it was religious to give life to the thief, a much richer work of piety it is for a son to honour his mother with such affection. Behold, He saith, thy son; behold thy mother. Christ made His Testament from the cross, and divided the offices of piety between the Mother and the disciples. Our Lord made not only a public, but also a domestic Testamnet. And this His Testament John sealed, a witness worthy of such a Testator. A good testament it was, not of money, but of eternal life, which was not written with ink, but with the spirit of the living God: My tongue is the pen of a ready writer. (Ps. 45:1) Mary, as became the mother of our Lord, stood before the cross, when the Apostles fled, and with pitiful eyes beheld the wounds of her Son. For she looked not on the death of the Hostage, but on the salvation of the world; and perhaps knowing that her Son’s death would bring this salvation, she who had been the habitation of the King, thought that by her death she might add to that universal gift.
But Jesus did not need any help for saving the world, as we read in the Psalm, I have been even as a man with no help, free among the dead. (Ps. 87) He received indeed the affection of a parent, but He did not seek another’s help. Imitate her, ye holy matrons, who, as towards her only most beloved Son, hath set you an example of such virtue: for ye have not sweeter sons, nor did the Virgin seek consolation in again becoming a mother.
JEROME. The Mary which in Mark and Matthew is called the mother of James and Joses, was the wife of Alpheus, and sister of Mary the mother of our Lord: which Mary John here designates of Cleophas, either from her father, or family, or for some other reason. She need not be thought a different person, because she is called in one place Mary the mother of James the less, and here Mary of Cleophas, for it is customary in Scripture to give different names to the same person.
CHRYSOSTOM. (Hom. lxxxv) Observe how the weaker sex is the stronger; standing by the cross when the disciples fly.
AUGUSTINE. (de Con. Ev. iii. 21) If Matthew and Mark had not mentioned by name Mary Magdalen, we should have thought that there were two parties, one of which stood far off, and the other near. But how must we account for the same Mary Magdalen and the other women standing afar off, as Matthew and Mark say, and being near the cross, as John says? By supposing that they were within such a distance as to be within sight of our Lord, and yet sufficiently far off to be out of the way of the crowd and Centurion, and soldiers who were immediately about Him. Or, we may suppose that after our Lord had commended His mother to the disciple, they retired to be out of the way of the crowd, and saw what took place afterwards at a distance: so that those Evangelists who do not mention them till after our Lord’s death, describe them as standing afar off. (Matthew and Mark.) That some women are mentioned by all alike, others not, makes no matter.
CHRYSOSTOM. (Hom. lxxxv. 2) Though there were other women by, He makes no mention of any of them, but only of His mother, to shew us that we should specially honour our mothers. Our parents indeed, if they actually oppose the truth, are not even to be known: but otherwise we should pay them all attention, and honour them above all the world beside: When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, He saith unto His mother, Woman, behold thy son!
BEDE. By the disciple whom Jesus loved, the Evangelist means himself; not that the others were not loved, but he was loved more intimately on account of his estate of chastity; for a Virgin our Lord called him, and a Virgin he ever remained.
CHRYSOSTOM. (Hom. lxxxv. 2.) Heavens! (Papæ) what honour does He pay to the disciple; who however conceals his name from modesty. For had he wished to boast, he would have added the reason why he was loved, for there must have been something great and wonderful to have caused that love. This is all He says to John; He does not console his grief, for this was a time for giving consolation. Yet was it no small one to be honoured with such a charge, to have the mother of our Lord, in her affliction, committed to his care by Himself on His departure: Then saith He to the disciple, Behold thy mother!
AUGUSTINE. (Tr. cxix. 1) This truly is that hour of the which Jesus, when about to change the water into wine, said, Mother, what have I to do with thee? Mine hour is not yet come. Then, about to act divinely, He repelled the mother of His humanity, of His infirmity, as if He knew her not: now, suffering humanly, He commends with human affection her of whom He was made man. Here is a moral lesson. The good Teacher shews us by His example how that pious sons should take care of their parents. The cross of the sufferer, is the chair of the Master.
CHRYSOSTOM. (Hom. lxxxv. 2) The shameless doctrine of Marcion is refuted here. For if our Lord were not born according to the flesh, and had not a mother, why did He make such provision for her? Observe how imperturbable He is during His crucifixion, talking to the disciple of His mother, fulfilling prophecies, giving good hope to the thief; whereas before His crucifixion, He seemed in fear. The weakness of His nature was shewn there, the exceeding greatness of His power here. He teaches us too herein, not to turn back, because we may feel disturbed at the difficulties before us; for when we are once actually under the trial, all will be light and easy for us.
AUGUSTINE. (Tr. cxix. 2) He does this to provide as it were another son for His mother in his place; And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own. Unto his own what? Was not John one of those who said, Lo, we have left all, and followed Thee? (Mat. 19:27) He took her then to his own, i. e. not to his farm, for he had none, but to his care, for of this he was master.
BEDE. Another reading is, Accepit eam discipulus in suam, his own mother some understand, but to his own care seems better.
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Sub-title should read Our Lady of Sorrows :)
| John | |||
| English: Douay-Rheims | Latin: Vulgata Clementina | Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000) | |
| John 19 | |||
| 25. | Now there stood by the cross of Jesus, his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalen. | Stabant autem juxta crucem Jesu mater ejus, et soror matris ejus, Maria Cleophæ, et Maria Magdalene. | ειστηκεισαν δε παρα τω σταυρω του ιησου η μητηρ αυτου και η αδελφη της μητρος αυτου μαρια η του κλωπα και μαρια η μαγδαληνη |
| 26. | When Jesus therefore had seen his mother and the disciple standing whom he loved, he saith to his mother: Woman, behold thy son. | Cum vidisset ergo Jesus matrem, et discipulum stantem, quem diligebat, dicit matri suæ : Mulier, ecce filius tuus. | ιησους ουν ιδων την μητερα και τον μαθητην παρεστωτα ον ηγαπα λεγει τη μητρι αυτου γυναι ιδου ο υιος σου |
| 27. | After that, he saith to the disciple: Behold thy mother. And from that hour, the disciple took her to his own. | Deinde dicit discipulo : Ecce mater tua. Et ex illa hora accepit eam discipulus in sua. | ειτα λεγει τω μαθητη ιδου η μητηρ σου και απ εκεινης της ωρας ελαβεν ο μαθητης αυτην εις τα ιδια |
For a while there were two feasts in honor of the Sorrowful Mother: one going back to the 15th century, the other to the 17th century. For a while both were celebrated by the universal Church: one on the Friday before Palm Sunday, the other in September.
The principal biblical references to Mary’s sorrows are in Luke 2:35 and John 19:26-27. The Lucan passage is Simeon’s prediction about a sword piercing Mary’s soul; the Johannine passage relates Jesus’ words from the cross to Mary and to the beloved disciple.
Many early Church writers interpret the sword as Mary’s sorrows, especially as she saw Jesus die on the cross. Thus, the two passages are brought together as prediction and fulfillment.
Saint Ambrose in particular sees Mary as a sorrowful yet powerful figure at the cross. Mary stood fearlessly at the cross while others fled. Mary looked on her Son’s wounds with pity, but saw in them the salvation of the world. As Jesus hung on the cross, Mary did not fear to be killed, but offered herself to her persecutors.
Reflection
John’s account of Jesus’ death is highly symbolic. When Jesus gives the beloved disciple to Mary, we are invited to appreciate Mary’s role in the Church: She symbolizes the Church; the beloved disciple represents all believers. As Mary mothered Jesus, she is now mother to all his followers. Furthermore, as Jesus died, he handed over his Spirit. Mary and the Spirit cooperate in begetting new children of God—almost an echo of Luke’s account of Jesus’ conception. Christians can trust that they will continue to experience the caring presence of Mary and Jesus’ Spirit throughout their lives and throughout history.
Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam (To the Greater Glory of God)
From: 1 Timothy 3:14-16
The Church is God's Household
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[14] I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these instructions to you so that, [15] if I am delayed, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and bulwark of the truth.
The Mystery of our Religion
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[16] Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of our religion: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.
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Commentary:
15. This verse contains three very evocative expressions which sum up the letter's ecclesiology or theology of the Church.
"The Church of the living God": St Paul usually uses "church of God" and (once) "church of Christ" (Rom 16:16), thereby implying continuity with the "assemblies of Yahweh" in the Old Testament. The Church, in other words, is the true people of God, founded on the New Covenant, heir to the ancient promises and trustee of the means of salvation (cf. "Lumen Gentium", 9). It is "the church of the living God", that is, it receives from him supernatural life (grace) and distributes it to all. "It pleased God to call men to share in his life and not merely singly, without any bond between them, but he formed them into a people, in which his children who had been scattered were gathered together" Vatican II, Ad Gentes, 2).
"The household of God": in the original Greek the definite article does not appear, thereby emphasizing the family character of the Church. St Paul frequently described the Church as God's family: "you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God" (Eph 2:19). The expression "household of God" conveys the idea of family and also the idea of the cohesion of Christians as parts of a holy building: the children of God, convoked by the will of God, form the Church, a home and a temple, where God dwells in a fuller way than he did in the ancient temple of Jerusalem (cf. 1 Kings 8:12-64).
This house or household of God is made up of all the believers; they are living stones, as it were (1 Pet 2:5); its foundations are the Apostles (1 Cor 3:11), and Christ himself is its cornerstone (Mt 21:42); those who hold office in it are not domineering overlords but conscientious stewards, who should rule with the same dedication as a father does in his own household (1 Tim 3:4-5, 12).
"Pillar and bulwark of the truth": those aspects of the building would have been very meaningful to Christians familiar with the great pillars of the temple of Jerusalem (cf. 1 Kings 7:15-52) or the columns of the huge temple at Ephesus dedicated to the goddess Artemis. They very graphically convey the idea of the Church's solidity and permanence in the role of safeguarding and transmitting the truth, for "the deposit of revelation [...] must be religiously guarded and courageously expounded" (Lumen Gentium, 25).
"The truth" which the Apostle mentions here is the Revelation God has communicated to men. It is interesting to note that there are three closely connected expressions in this chapter: deacons are exhorted to hold "the mystery of faith" (v. 9); the Church is "the pillar and bulwark of the truth" (v. 15); and then "the mystery of our religion" is extolled (v. 16). These are three ways of looking at the Church's reason-of-being--Jesus Christ. For our Lord, who is the fullness of Revelation (cf. Heb 1:2), is the center of our faith: he alone is the supreme Truth (cf. In 14:6); and because he is the fullest expression of God's love for men (making them children of God), he is "the mystery of our religion" (cf. Reconciliatio Et Paenitentia, 19).
16. The pietatis mysterium, the mystery of (our) religion, as opposed to the "mystery of lawlessness" (2:Thess 2:7) which includes the devil and his activity, refers first and foremost to Christ and his work of redemption and reconciliation. By describing it as the mystery of "piety", the virtue which characterizes parent/children relations, it includes the idea of God's paternal love for men, for it is through Christ that men become children of God.
"It is profoundly significant", John Paul II comments, "that when Paul presents this mysterium pietatis he simply transcribes, without making a grammatical link with what he has just written, three lines of a Christological hymn which--in the opinion of authoritative scholars--was used in the Greek-speaking Christian communities" (Reconciliatio Et Paenitentia, 20). The introduction itself ("we confess": by the confession of all), the rhythmic style, the fact that no articles are used in the original Greek, and even the vocabulary -- all point to these verses having been taken from an early liturgical hymn (cf. 1 Cor 14:26; Eph 5:19). It may even have been a kind of counter to the idolatrous chants of pagan Ephesians: they used to shout "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!" (Acts 19:34); St Paul exclaims, "Great is the mystery of our religion."
The order of ideas in this confession of faith is typical of the christological hymns in the New Testament (cf. Phil 2:6-11; Col 1:15-20; Heb 1:3), and probably reflects the oral preaching of the Apostles which took in the existence of the Word from all eternity, his incarnation and life on earth; his message of salvation for the whole world; his passion, death, resurrection and ascension into heaven. Each of the three parts of this short creed stresses the paradox of the mystery by using phrases involving contrasts (Semites were very fond of this device). The first sentence, professing belief in the Incarnation, uses a very early form of words--"manifested in the flesh" (cf. 1 Jn 4:2; 2 In 7). Pope John Paul II comments as follows: "he was made manifest in the reality of human flesh and was constituted by the Holy Spirit as the Just One who offers himself for the unjust" (Reconciliatio Et Paenitentia, 20).
The second phrase describes how Christ is manifested: the angels have direct sight of him, men came to know him through preaching. Christ is manifested to all, for just as he is seen by the angels (that part of creation nearest to God), so is he revealed to the Gentiles (whom the Jews regarded as most distanced from God): "he appeared to the angels, having been made greater than them, and he was preached to the nations, as the bearer of salvation" (ibid.).
The last words profess faith in the glorification of Christ at the extremes of creation--earth and heaven. On earth he is glorified because faith in him implies recognizing him as God; and he is glorified in heaven because the Ascension (which in Pauline teaching marks the definitive victory of Christ--cf. Phil 2:19-2 and note) is the definitive glorious revelation of his Person: "he was believed in, in the world, as the one sent by the Father, and by the same Father he was assumed into heaven as Lord" ("ibid.").
And so the mysterium pietatis involves the reconciliation--union of man with God in Christ: he takes our flesh without ceasing to be God; the nations of the earth will recognize him, as will the angels in heaven, he dwells in the hearts of men through faith, but his mansion is in heaven at the Father's side.
The Crucifixion and Death of Jesus (Continuation)
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[25] So the soldiers did this. But standing by the cross of Jesus were His mother, and His mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. [26] When Jesus saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing near, He said to His mother, "Woman, behold your son!" [27] Then He said to the disciple, "Behold, your mother!" And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.
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Commentary:
25. Whereas the Apostles, with the exception of St. John, abandon Jesus in the hour of His humiliation, these pious women, who had followed Him during His public life (cf. Lk 8:2-3) now stay with their Master as He dies on the cross (cf. note on Mt 27:55-56).
Pope St John Paul II explains that our Lady's faithfulness was shown in four ways: first, in her generous desire to do all that God wanted of her (cf. Lk 1:34); second, in her total acceptance of God's will (cf. Lk 1:38); third, in the consistency between her life and the commitment of faith which she made; and, finally, in her withstanding this test. "And only a consistency that lasts throughout the whole of life can be called faithfulness. Mary's 'fiat' in the Annunciation finds its fullness in the silent 'fiat' that she repeats at the foot of the Cross" (Homily in Mexico Cathedral, 26 January 1979).
The Church has always recognized the dignity of women and their important role in salvation history. It is enough to recall the veneration which from the earliest times the Christian people have had for the Mother of Christ, the Woman "par excellence" and the most sublime and most privileged creature ever to come from the hands of God. Addressing a special message to women, the Second Vatican Council said, among other things: "Women in trial, who stand upright at the foot of the cross like Mary, you who so often in history have given to men the strength to battle unto the very end and to give witness to the point of martyrdom, aid them now still once more to retain courage in their great undertakings, while at the same time maintaining patience and an esteem for humble beginnings" (Vatican II, Message To Women, 8 December 1965).
26-27. "The spotless purity of John's whole life makes him strong before the Cross. The other apostles fly from Golgotha: he, with the Mother of Christ, remains. Don't forget that purity strengthens and invigorates the character" (St J. Escriva, The Way, 144).
Our Lord's gesture in entrusting His Blessed Mother to the disciple's care, has a dual meaning (see p. 19 above and pp. 35ff). For one thing it expresses His filial love for the Virgin Mary. St Augustine sees it as a lesson Jesus gives us on how to keep the fourth commandment: "Here is a lesson in morals. He is doing what He tells us to do and, like a good Teacher, He instructs His own by example, that it is the duty of good children to take care of their parents; as though the wood on which His dying members were fixed were also the chair of the teaching Master" (St Augustine, In Ioann. Evang., 119, 2).
Our Lord's words also declare that Mary is our Mother: "The Blessed Virgin also advanced in her pilgrimage of faith, and faithfully persevered in her union with her Son unto the cross, where she stood, in keeping with the divine plan, enduring with her only begotten Son the intensity of His suffering, associating herself with His sacrifice in her mother's heart, and lovingly consenting to the immolation of this victim who was born of her. Finally, she was given by the same Christ Jesus dying on the cross as a mother to His disciple" (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium, 58).
All Christians, who are represented in the person of John, are children of Mary. By giving us His Mother to be our Mother, Christ demonstrates His love for His own to the end (cf. Jn 13:1). Our Lady's acceptance of John as her son show her motherly care for us: "the Son of God, and your Son, from the Cross indicated a man to you, Mary, and said: 'Behold, your son' (Jn 19:26). And in that man He entrusted to you every person, He entrusted everyone to you. And you, who at the moment of the Annunciation, concentrated the whole program of your life in those simple words: 'Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word' (Lk 1:38): embrace everyone, draw close to everyone, seek everyone out with motherly care. Thus is accomplished what the last Council said about your presence in the mystery of Christ and the Church. In a wonderful way you are always found in the mystery of Christ, your only Son, because you are present wherever men and women, His brothers and sisters, are present, wherever the Church is present" (John Paul II, Homily in the Basilica of Guadalupe, 27 January 1979).
"John, the disciple whom Jesus loved, brought Mary into his home, into his life. Spiritual writers have seen these words of the Gospel as an invitation to all Christians to bring Mary into their lives. Mary certainly wants us to invoke her, to approach her confidently, to appeal to her as our mother, asking her to 'show that you are our mother'" (St J. Escriva, Christ Is Passing By, 140).
John Paul II constantly treats our Lady as his Mother. In bidding farewell to the Virgin of Czestochowa he prayed in this way: "Our Lady of the Bright Mountain, Mother of the Church! Once more I consecrate myself to you 'in your maternal slavery of love'. 'Totus tuus!' I am yours! I consecrate to you the whole Church--everyone to the ends of the earth! I consecrate to you humanity; I consecrate to you all men and women, my brothers and sisters. All peoples and all nations. I consecrate to you Europe and all the continents. I consecrate to you Rome and Poland, united, through your servant, by a fresh bond of love. Mother, accept us! Mother, do not abandon us! Mother, be our guide!" (Farewell Address at Jasna Gora Shrine, 6 June 1979).
or
From: Luke 2:33-35
Simeon's Prophecy
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[33] And His father and His mother marvelled at what was said about Him; [34] and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, His mother, "Behold this child is set for the fall and the rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is spoken against [35] (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), that thoughts out of many hearts may be revealed."
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Commentary:
33. The Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph marvelled not because they did not know who Christ was; they were in awe at the way God was revealing Him. Once again they teach us to contemplate the mysteries involved in the birth of Christ.
34-35. After Simeon blesses them, the Holy Spirit moves him to further prophecy about the Child's future and His Mother's. His words become clearer in the light of our Lord's life and death.
Jesus came to bring salvation to all men, yet He will be a sign of contradiction because some people will obstinately reject Him--and for this reason He will be their ruin. But for those who accept Him with faith Jesus will be their salvation, freeing them from sin in this life and raising them up to eternal life.
The words Simeon addresses to Mary announce that she will be intimately linked with her Son's redemptive work. The sword indicates that Mary will have a share in her Son's sufferings; hers will be an unspeakable pain which pierces her soul. Our Lord suffered on the cross for our sins, and it is those sins which forge the sword of Mary's pain. Therefore, we have a duty to atone not only to God but also to His Mother, who is our Mother too.
The last words of the prophecy, "that out of many hearts thoughts may be revealed", link up with verse 34: uprightness or perversity will be demonstrated by whether one accepts or rejects Christ.
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