The Sorrows of Mary, the Mother of Jesus (God the Son)

I would like to share some thoughts on Mary, the mother of Jesus (God the Son).  Mary, the mother of Jesus, is usually depicted in art, as a very beautiful woman.  I have always respected Mary as the mother of God, Jesus, God the Son.  Though I prayed to her, I could not relate to such a beautiful woman.  I only thought of her as a holy woman chosen by God, now blessed by Him to be instrumental in miraculous healings and answers to our prayers.

Two years ago, I was given a leaflet that recounted Our Blessed Mother Mary telling St. Bridgit of Sweden of seven instances in her life where she had to endure sorrow.  Now, of course, the Holy Rosary prayers recounted these instances, but when I prayed the rosary, I never thought of how situations in Jesus’ life here on Earth, impacted His Mother, Mary.  But when I read of the sorrows as listed in the leaflet, Mary seemed more approachable to me.  I have found that meditating on the painful experiences in her life, made her more relatable.  Luke 1:26-38 tells us that God chose Mary specifically. He sent the angel Gabriel to request her participation in His plan.  After hearing the message, she responded to the Angel who brought God’s request to her.  “Behold I am the handmaid of the Lord.  May it be done to me according to your word.”

While Mary is now honored as the Mother of God (Jesus), the sorrows she shared with St. Bridget helped me to realize how she fully understands what we go through in our earthly trials.  We live in a real world and sometimes endure fear and/or sorrow in our own lives.

Mary’s first sorrow:

The Bible tells us that Joseph and Mary brought the baby, Jesus, to the Temple as was the Jewish practice.

Luke 2:34-35 states, “And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed 35 (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.”

Mary was young mother.  Imagine what she might have felt when this old man said these words.  Can you remember a time when you had an older person say something to you, causing fear, real or imagined?

Mary’s Second Sorrow:

After the birth of Jesus and the visit of the three Kings from the East (or Wise men), Joseph was warned in a dream to take the young Mother, Mary, and child into Egypt because King Herod wanted to kill the infant.  Mary had just given birth and now had to travel, probably on a horse or mule, to protect her baby. 

Matthew 2:13-15 states, “When they (the Magi, Kings of the East) had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”

Have you ever had to deal with worry and concern about the safety of someone dear to you?  While Mary was faithful in her promise to God, do you think she was scared for her baby?  

Mary’s third sorrow: 

Luke 2:41-52 tells of 12 year old Jesus going with Mary and Joseph on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.  On the return home, on the second day, they realized that Jesus was missing.  As they made their way back to Jerusalem to look for him, imagine the fear Mary had in her heart.  Have you ever encountered situation like that?  I have.  Meeting our 12 year old son arriving on a non-stop cross-country flight and not seeing him among the travelers leaving the plane, was a terrifying experience.  When we found him, we learned that another mother arranged for a tour of the cockpit and invited our son along.  That was in the day when you could do this.  And, when we found him, what did I do?  I yelled at him, “Where have you been?”  Mary’s question to Jesus was much more subdued.  I was not that sweet.

Mary’s Fourth Sorrow:

The next instance of sorrow was the Meeting of Jesus and Mary as he carried his cross.  While this is not related in Scripture, this was related by a visionary.  It’s so hard to imagine a mother standing and watching this.  I think I would have followed my son and possibly interfered trying to save him.  After all, He was her son.

Can you even imagine not being able to help your child, not matter how old they are? Wouldn’t you be stressed and frustrated?  There is no mention of Mary’s thoughts.

Mary’s Fifth Sorrow:

John 19:25 tells us that Mary stood by Jesus on the Cross.  Actually, very little is said in that Scripture.  When raising our children, I had a very hard time dealing with emergencies.  Anytime there was an injury or medical emergency, I was a basket case.  As time went on, I grew stronger, but Mary was really strong.  What is related is Jesus telling John to look after his Mother after Jesus died.  That is the reason we can look to Mary as our Heavenly mother.

Mary’s Sixth Sorrow:

When the dead body of Jesus being removed from the cross and placed in the arms of his holy mother.  While this isn’t related in Scripture, I have no problem envisioning this.  When my six year old son died, the nurses laid him in my arms so I could hold him one more time.  Michelango’s Pieta depicts Mary holding Jesus after he died.  When I visited St. Peter’s Basillica in Rome, there were so many people surrounding this statue, I couldn’t get near enough to see it.  Having just visited the Sistine Chapel where people had to be reminded to be quiet and respectful, I was amazed at the quiet respectful crowd in front of the Pieta.

Mary’s seventh sorrow: 

This sorrow that she told to St. Bridget of Sweden was Mary’s tears and loneliness after Jesus’ burial.  She was so faithful, that she stayed with Jesus’ Apostles until the Holy Spirit came to them in the Upper Room, as related in Acts:2.  I believe she was their strength until the Holy Spirit came upon the Apostles as related in The Book of Acts Chapter 2:1-4.  I suggest that you read it because the same Holy Spirit will help and strengthen you, personally, in your life.

For more information, just Google “The seven sorrows of Mary, the Mother of Jesus”

Remember, we’re all in the same boat, so to speak. I’m a sinner saved by the grace and mercy of a dear, loving, forgiving Friend, God.

Thanks for taking the time to check out my blog. 

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  The Book of Micah by Catherine Hall (on Amazon in paperback and on Kindle) 

Perhaps by Catherine Hall (on Amazon in paperback and on Kindle)

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Easter is Coming

 

As our Jewish brother and sisters celebrate the Passover, we, Christians, are starting our observation of Holy Week.  It's a time we spiritually assess our relation to God, our Father.

God loves and cares for us.  Out of Love, because of Love, God the Father sent His only begotten son, Jesus, to earth to pay for our sins.  Jesus allowed Himself to be scourged, made to carry His own cross, and then was crucified upon it.  Jesus totally spent Himself for all of us.  After Jesus died and was buried., He rose from the dead and visited with his disciples and friends so that they could see him alive.  Just prior to ascending into Heaven before their eyes, Jesus told them he was sending the Holy Spirit to them.  The Book of Acts in the Bible tells us of the Holy Spirit.  When He came, he gave the apostles strength and boldness to spread the Good News of God’s love for us.  The Holy Spirit is still here to help us today.

This year has been a tough one for all of us.  Many have experienced a harder time than others.  For some, our worlds have been turned upside down or inside out. Either way, we’ve all been through a puzzling, constrained year.  You might be lonely.  You might not think that anything you do matters to anyone.  On the hand, you might think you just can’t be forgiven.  God knows exactly who you are and what you do.  Psalm 139:3 states, “O Lord, you have searched me and you Know me.  You know when I sit and when I rise.  You perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down.  You are familiar with all my ways…”  God cares and He wants to be with you and travel with you throughout your life.

Jesus is like a brother.  When you turn to Him and tell Him that you are truly sorry for anything and everything you ever done that was hurtful, He will be your answer.  He will always be with you.   And the Holy Spirit is ready to help.   

We live in a world that doesn’t listen to God.   Isaiah 5:20, His message is “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil.”   Even though Society’s message is to take the easy way out and that you are the only one who matters, in our hearts we know that it isn’t the answer. I once asked God, “How do you know who is praying to You?”  The answer came almost before my next breath, “I place a bit of myself in every baby born.”  We have a God-Given conscience.  In today’s lingo it is our GPS.  We have the option to use it or not. Unless we keep it listening to it and stay on course, it becomes dull.

But, we can get back on course.

Now, you may be thinking, “What does that have to do with me?”  We do have the option to turn to God and invite Him into our life.  We can awaken our God-given conscience.  We can repent and ask Jesus to be our Lord and Savior.  If you watched my second video, you saw how it changed my life for the better when I repented of anything and everything hurtful, I’d done in my life.  It was like wiping the slate clean, and God’s love and peace just rushing in.

Remember that we’re all in the same boat, so to speak. I’m a sinner saved by the grace and mercy of a dear, loving, forgiving Friend, God.

The Holy Spirit in my Life (Continued)

 After I was prayed with for ‘Baptism of the Holy Spirit’ I began to have amazing responses to my requests from God.  When I was expecting our fourth daughter, my winter coat would not close.  I wouldn’t purchase another one, because my coat would be fine the next winter.  My older sister, a Sister of Charity, visited me and gave me a black cloth coat with a mink lining.  I pulled it out of the closet since I needed a coat that fit me for the New York winter.  As I did, my husband looked at me and asked where the coat came from.  Turns out that he was praying I would get a new coat!

In the Spring of 1975, at five months pregnant, I started to lose our fifth baby and had to stay on the couch for a week.  Two of the prayer group leaders came to the house and prayed over me.   Some of the older women were kind enough to clean.   Well, the tear healed and that little girl was born healthy right around her due date.

When the same daughter was around two years old, her clothing consisted of hand-me-downs from boy cousins.  I looked at her one day and asked the Lord to send me some girl’s clothes.  About a week later, we received a box from a former coworker in IBM.  As I opened the box, I was amazed at the outfits … one more beautiful than the other.  Her daughter had outgrown the clothing that was purchased from B. Altman in New York City, her husband’s employer.  Up until now the only correspondence with this woman had been through Christmas cards.

There were many other instances of answered prayer, but unfortunately, memory fails.  I remember at one point my pastor allowed me to create a newsletter about answer prayer.  I called it “God Cares.”  Parishioners gave me their accounts of how God answered their prayers.   It was quite uplifting.  

In 1977, our seventh child, Micah, was born with Down Syndrome.  Micah could not be released from the hospital and he remained in a ‘special’ nursery.  Two of our older children were ‘preemies,’ so I didn’t like it but understood.  A few days later, medical tests showed a heart problem, which was of real concern.   Micah was born on a Saturday night and on Tuesday evening, the somber doctor gave me the test results.  After the doctor left my bedside, I immediately called Terry because Tuesday night was the prayer meeting at her house.   A few weeks later, Terry told me that she was upset with the news, because on Sunday morning, the day after Micah was born, she had thought of me and wondered if I had given birth yet.  Immediately, the words, “Mongoloid child” came across her mind.  She just dismissed the thought and went on with her day.  After my phone call requesting prayer, she felt badly about dismissing any thought about it .  As to Micah, we were referred to a pediatric cardiac specialist in New York City.   A few months later, a cardiac catheterization showed that his heart had no wall at all … only a membrane separating his good blood from his bad.  The medical term is Complete AV Canal Defect.  Micah lived 6 years.  During that time, I prayed over him in his cradle, then his crib and finally as he went on a school bus to a special school every day.  I wrote about this in “The Book of Micah,” so suffice it to say that God taught me a lot during that time. Even though the repair of the heart was successful, Micah died from lung damage.

Healing Services

My first exposure to a Healing Service was when I took a nine-hour bus ride from New York City to Pittsburgh.  The woman with the Healing Ministry was Kathryn Kulhman, a Baptist Minister.  Time flew by, four hours seemed like one hour.  There were many hymns of praise followed by personal accounts of healings as told by attendees .  Kathryn never personally prayed with anyone until they said they felt something or could now walk, etc.  Then she would pray with them.  She wanted everyone to know it was the Holy Spirit doing the healing, not her.

After Micah was born, we started attending Healing Services held by Roman Catholic Priests, Father Edward McDonough in Boston and Father Ralph D’Orio in Worcester, MA.   They began with hymns of praise and lasted two to three hours, which just flew by.  These services were also immensely powerful.  The accounts of these trips to Massachusetts are in “The Book of Micah”.

 I encourage anyone in need of healing to seek out a Church that offers it.

Last year, while driving in New York, I started to pray and then asked, “How do you know who is praying to you?”  The answer was immediate!  I believe that God said, “There’s a bit of me in every baby born.”  I felt a pang in my heart as I thought of all the millions of abortions.  Just then, I had a fleeting mental image of Jesus with a tear in his eye.

Thanks for taking the time to check out my blog. 

  The Book of Micah by Catherine Hall (Amazon.com) 

Perhaps by Catherine Hall (Amazon.com)