O sorrowful Mother, I turn to you in total trust. You suffered the sharpest pains in life, watching your Son die upon the Cross, and yet you remained by Him to the end.
Look with favor upon me, a poor sinner, and obtain for me from your Son all the graces I need to endure the sufferings God allows me to face.
O Mother of Sorrows, through your seven sorrows, intercede for me with the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and grant me the favor I implore (mention request here).
Mother of God, stand by us in our trials and care for us in our many needs. Pray for us now and at the hour of our death.
Amen!
V. O God, come to my assistance.
R. O Lord, make haste to help me.
V. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost,
R. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
1. The prophecy of Simeon:
"And Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary his mother: Behold this child is set for the fall and for the resurrection of many in Israel, and for a sign which shall be contradicted; And thy own soul a sword shall pierce, that out of many hearts thoughts may be revealed." – Luke II, 34-35.
Mary later told the mystic St. Bridget of Sweden centuries later that she felt great anguish over what Simeon said after that. She said that “On that day [of the Presentation] my pain was increased. For though, by divine inspiration, I knew that my Son was to suffer, yet this grief pierced my heart more keenly at Simeon’s words when he said that a sword would pierce my soul [Luke 2:35], and that my Son should be set for a sign to be contradicted [Luke 2:34]”
She further revealed to St. Bridget that, while on earth, there was not an hour in which this grief did not pierce her soul. She continued, “ As often as I looked at my Son, as often as I wrapped Him in His swaddling clothes, as often as I saw His hands and feet, so often was my soul absorbed, so to say, in fresh grief; for I thought how He would be crucified. My eyes filled with tears, and my heart was tortured with grief.”
I grieve for thee, O Mary most sorrowful, in the affliction of thy tender heart at the prophecy of the holy and aged Simeon. Dear Mother, by thy heart so afflicted, obtain for me the virtue of humility and the gift of the holy fear of God.
*Hail Mary
2. The flight into Egypt:
"And after they (the wise men) were departed, behold an angel of the Lord appeared in sleep to Joseph, saying: Arise and take the child and His mother and fly into Egypt: and be there until I shall tell thee. For it will come to pass that Herod will seek the child to destroy Him. Who arose and took the child and His mother by night, and retired into Egypt: and He was there until the death of Herod." – Matt. II, 13-14.
By this time, the Holy Family was making the long, arduous trek into safer territory hundreds of miles away. (Egypt was at that time a traditional source of refuge for those fleeing from danger in Palestine, where Jesus was born.)
The road they traveled was, according to St. Bonaventure's description of it, "rough, unknown and little frequented.” “As they were destitute," says St. Basil, "it is evident that they must've labored much to provide themselves with the necessities of life."
I grieve for thee, O Mary most sorrowful, in the anguish of thy most affectionate heart during the flight into Egypt and thy sojourn there. Dear Mother, by thy heart so troubled, obtain for me the virtue of generosity, especially toward the poor, and the gift of piety.
*Hail Mary
3. The loss of the Child Jesus in the temple:
"And having fulfilled the days, when they returned, the Child Jesus remained in Jerusalem; and His parents knew it not. And thinking that he was in the company, they came a day's journey, and sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. And not finding Him, they returned into Jerusalem, seeking Him." Luke II, 43-45.
As the Blessed Mother said to Ven. Mary of Agreda, a 17th century Spanish nun: “In my great love the uncertainty as to the cause of His withdrawal gave me no rest until I found Him.”
God hasn't left us in our spiritual dryness or darkness, however, anymore than He abandoned His Holy Family by staying in Jerusalem. He tries to strengthen our faith in such moments by having us trust in Him in the midst of our anguish.
Mary revealed to Ven. Mary of Agreda that “The Lord absented Himself from me in order that by seeking Him in sorrow and tears I might find Him again in joy and with abundant fruits for my soul.”
I grieve for thee, O Mary most sorrowful, in those anxieties which tried thy troubled heart at the loss of thy dear Jesus. Dear Mother, by thy heart so full of anguish, obtain for me the virtue of chastity and the gift of knowledge.
*Hail Mary
4. The meeting of Jesus and Mary on the Way of the Cross:
"And there followed Him a great multitude of people, and of women, who bewailed and lamented Him." – Luke XXIII, 27.
Mary revealed to St. Bridget of Sweden that when she went with St. John to see her Divine Son, as he carried His cross, “by the footsteps of my Son, I knew where he had passed, for along the way the ground was marked with blood.”
5. The Crucifixion:
"They crucified Him. Now there stood by the cross of Jesus, His Mother. When Jesus therefore had seen His Mother and the disciple standing whom he loved, He saith to His Mother: Woman: behold thy son. After that he saith to the disciple: Behold thy Mother." – John XIX, l8-25-27.
Mary's words to St. Bridget capture her mood in this whole scene quite well:
“I stood right next to His Cross, and because the nearer something is to the heart the keener is its stab, so His suffering was more painful to me than to others. And when He looked down at me from the Cross, and I looked up at Him, tears streamed from my eyes like blood from veins…..His suffering became my suffering because His heart was mine…in a certain my Son and I redeemed the world with one Heart.”
6. The taking down of the Body of Jesus from the Cross:
"Joseph of Arimathea, a noble counselor, came and went in boldly to Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. And Joseph buying fine linen, and taking Him down, wrapped Him up in the fine linen." – Mark XV, 43-46.
Let Mary describe the scene further, again, in her revelations to St. Bridget:
“While the others left the scene, I did not want to go away. Later my Son was taken down from the Cross…. we carried Him to a stone which I had covered with clean linens. All my Son’s limbs had become stiff and cold in death, and the blood which had flowed over them during His Passion adhered to them. But I was indeed consoled that I could touch His body and take him onto my lap, examine His wounds and dry up the blood…. Then they laid Him out on some clean linen, and with my cloth, I washed His wounds and His limbs. And with my fingers I closed His eyes and His mouth, which were open when he died.”
7. The burial of Jesus:
"Now there was in the place where He was crucified, a garden; and in the garden a new sepulcher, wherein no man yet had been laid. There, therefore, because of the parasceve of the Jews, they laid Jesus, because the sepulcher was nigh at hand." John XIX, 41-42.
Our Blessed Mother told the famous mystic St. Bridget of Sweden, what was going through her mind when they placed Jesus in the Holy Sepulcher:
“It would be impossible for anyone to describe how sad I was then….Oh, how gladly would I have allowed them to entomb me alive with my Son, if it had been His will! I can truly say that when my Son was entombed, there were two Hearts in one sepulcher. Is there not the saying: where your treasure is, there is also your heart? [Matthew 6: 21; Luke 12:34] Therefore my thoughts and my heart were always in the Tomb of my Son.”
HERE ARE THE SEVEN GRACES:
"And there followed Him a great multitude of people, and of women, who bewailed and lamented Him." – Luke XXIII, 27.
Mary revealed to St. Bridget of Sweden that when she went with St. John to see her Divine Son, as he carried His cross, “by the footsteps of my Son, I knew where he had passed, for along the way the ground was marked with blood.”
I grieve for thee, O Mary most sorrowful in the consternation of thy heart at meeting Jesus as he carried His Cross. Dear Mother, by thy heart so troubled, obtain for me the virtue of patience and the gift of fortitude.
*Hail Mary
5. The Crucifixion:
"They crucified Him. Now there stood by the cross of Jesus, His Mother. When Jesus therefore had seen His Mother and the disciple standing whom he loved, He saith to His Mother: Woman: behold thy son. After that he saith to the disciple: Behold thy Mother." – John XIX, l8-25-27.
Mary's words to St. Bridget capture her mood in this whole scene quite well:
“I stood right next to His Cross, and because the nearer something is to the heart the keener is its stab, so His suffering was more painful to me than to others. And when He looked down at me from the Cross, and I looked up at Him, tears streamed from my eyes like blood from veins…..His suffering became my suffering because His heart was mine…in a certain my Son and I redeemed the world with one Heart.”
I grieve for thee O Mary, most sorrowful, in the martyrdom which thy generous heart endured in standing near Jesus in His agony. Dear Mother, by thy afflicted heart, obtain for me the virtue of temperance and the gift of counsel.
*Hail Mary
6. The taking down of the Body of Jesus from the Cross:
"Joseph of Arimathea, a noble counselor, came and went in boldly to Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. And Joseph buying fine linen, and taking Him down, wrapped Him up in the fine linen." – Mark XV, 43-46.
Let Mary describe the scene further, again, in her revelations to St. Bridget:
“While the others left the scene, I did not want to go away. Later my Son was taken down from the Cross…. we carried Him to a stone which I had covered with clean linens. All my Son’s limbs had become stiff and cold in death, and the blood which had flowed over them during His Passion adhered to them. But I was indeed consoled that I could touch His body and take him onto my lap, examine His wounds and dry up the blood…. Then they laid Him out on some clean linen, and with my cloth, I washed His wounds and His limbs. And with my fingers I closed His eyes and His mouth, which were open when he died.”
I grieve for thee, O Mary most sorrowful, in the wounding of thy compassionate heart, when the side of Jesus was struck by the lance and His Heart was pierced before His body was removed from the Cross. Dear Mother, by thy heart thus transfixed, obtain for me the virtue of fraternal charity and the gift of understanding.
*Hail Mary
7. The burial of Jesus:
"Now there was in the place where He was crucified, a garden; and in the garden a new sepulcher, wherein no man yet had been laid. There, therefore, because of the parasceve of the Jews, they laid Jesus, because the sepulcher was nigh at hand." John XIX, 41-42.
Our Blessed Mother told the famous mystic St. Bridget of Sweden, what was going through her mind when they placed Jesus in the Holy Sepulcher:
“It would be impossible for anyone to describe how sad I was then….Oh, how gladly would I have allowed them to entomb me alive with my Son, if it had been His will! I can truly say that when my Son was entombed, there were two Hearts in one sepulcher. Is there not the saying: where your treasure is, there is also your heart? [Matthew 6: 21; Luke 12:34] Therefore my thoughts and my heart were always in the Tomb of my Son.”
I grieve for thee, O Mary most sorrowful, for the pangs that wrenched thy most loving heart at the burial of Jesus. Dear Mother, by thy heart sunk in the bitterness of desolation, obtain for me the gift of wisdom.
*Hail Mary
- I will grant peace to their families.
- They will be enlightened about the divine mysteries.
- I will console them in their pains and I will accompany them in their work.
- I will give them as much as they ask for as long as it does not oppose the adorable will of my divine Son or the sanctification of their souls.
- I will defend them in their spiritual battles with the infernal enemy and I will protect them at every instant of their lives.
- I will visibly help them at the moment of their death, they will see the face of their Mother.
- I have obtained from my divine Son, that those who propagate this devotion to my tears and dolors, will be taken directly from this earthly life to eternal happiness since all their sins will be forgiven and my Son and I will be their eternal consolation and joy.
The Blessed Virgin Mary grants seven graces to the souls who honor her daily by saying seven Hail Mary's and meditating on her tears and dolors (sorrows). The devotion was passed on by St. Bridget.
