Old Calendar: Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary; St. Nicomedes, martyr; St. Catherine of Genoa, widow (Hist) ; Other Titles: Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary; Our Lady of Seven Dolours; Our Lady of Dolours
Devotion to the Seven Sorrows of Our Lady has its roots in Sacred Scripture and in Christian piety, which always associates the Blessed Mother with her suffering Son. Today's feast was introduced by the Servites in order to intensify devotion to Our Lady's Sorrows. In 1817 Pius VII suffering grievously in exile but finally liberated by Mary's intercession extended the feast to the universal Church.
According to the 1962 Missal of St. John XXIII the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, today is the feast of St. Nicomedes, a Roman martyr of unknown date. He was buried not far from the walls of Rome on the Via Nomentana, and the pious faithful built a "cemetery basilica" above his tomb. Also it is the feast of St. Catherine of Genoa who wrote a treatise on Purgatory and a Dialogue between the soul and bodytwo outstanding documents of Christian mysticism.
Our Lady of SorrowsThis feast dates back to the 12th century. It was especially promoted by the Cistercians and the Servites, so much so that in the 14th and 15th centuries it was widely celebrated throughout the Catholic Church. In 1482 the feast was added to the Missal under the title of "Our Lady of Compassion." Pope Benedict XIII added it to the Roman Calendar in 1727 on the Friday before Palm Sunday. In 1913, Pope Pius X fixed the date on September 15. The title "Our Lady of Sorrows" focuses on Mary's intense suffering during the passion and death of Christ. "The Seven Dolors," the title by which it was celebrated in the 17th century, referred to the seven swords that pierced the Heart of Mary. The feast is like an octave for the birthday of Our Lady on September 8th.
Excerpted from Our Lady of Sorrows by Fr. Paul Haffner (Inside the Vatican, September 2004)
This feast is dedicated to the spiritual martyrdom of Mary, Mother of God, and her compassion with the sufferings of her Divine Son, Jesus. In her suffering as co-redeemer, she reminds us of the tremendous evil of sin and shows us the way of true repentance. May the numerous tears of the Mother of God be conducive to our salvation; with which tears Thou, O God, art able to wash away the sins of the whole world.
As Mary stood at the foot of the Cross on which Jesus hung, the sword of sorrow Simeon had foretold pierced her soul. Below are the seven sorrows of Mary:
Symbols: heart pierced with a sword; heart pierced by seven swords; winged heart pierced with a sword; flowers: red rose, iris (meaning: "sword-lily"), cyclamen.
Patron: people named Dolores, Dolais, Deloris, Dolorita, Maria Dolorosa, Pia, and Pieta.
Things to Do:
St. Nicomedes St. Nicomedes was a martyr of unknown era. The Roman Martyrologium and the historical Martyrologies of Bede and his imitators place the feast on this date. The Gregorian Sacramentary contains under the same date the orations for his Mass . The name does not appear in the three oldest and most important manuscripts of the "Martyrologium Hieronymianum", but was inserted in later recensions ("Martyrol. Hieronymianum", ed. De Rossi-Duchesne, in Acta SS., Nov., II, 121). The saint is without doubt a martyr of the Roman Church. He was buried in a catacomb on the Via Nomentana near the gate of that name. Three seventh century Itineraries make explicit reference to his grave, and Pope Adrian I restored the church built over it (De Rossi, "Rome Sotterranea", I, 178-79). A titular church of Rome, mentioned in the fifth century, was dedicated to him (titulus S. Nicomedis). Nothing is known of the circumstances of his death. The legend of the martyrdom of Sts. Nereus and Achilleus introduces him as a presbyter and places his death at the end of the first century. Other recensions of the martyrdom of St. Nicomedes ascribe the sentence of death to the Emperor Maximinianus (beginning of the fourth century).
Excerpted from the Catholic Encyclopedia
St. Catherine of Genoa St. Catherine was noble in birth, rich, and exceedingly beautiful. As a child she rejected the solicitations of the world, and begged her divine Master for some share in His sufferings. At sixteen years of age she found herself promised in marriage to a young nobleman of dissolute habits, who treated her with such harshness that, after five years, wearied out by his cruelty, she somewhat relaxed the strictness of her life and entered into the worldly society of Genoa. At length, enlightened by divine grace as to the danger of her state, she resolutely broke with the world and gave herself up to a life of rigorous penance and prayer. The charity with which she devoted herself to the service of the hospitals, undertaking the vilest of offices with joy, induced her husband to amend his evil ways and he died penitent. Her heroic fortitude was sustained by the constant thought of the Holy Souls, whose sufferings were revealed to her, and whose state she has described in a treatise full of heavenly wisdom. A long and grievous malady during the last years of her life only served to perfect her union with God, till, worn out in body and purified in soul, she breathed her last on September 14, 1510.
Excerpted from Butler's Lives of the Saints
Patron: Brides, Childless People, Difficult Marriages, People Ridiculed For Their Piety, Temptations, Victims Of Adultery, Victims Of Unfaithfulness, Widows.
Things to Do:
Our Lady of Sorrows (Memorial)
Standing by the cross of Jesus was his mother. (John 19:25)
Have you ever attended the funeral where a mother was burying her child? It is nearly impossible to bear. Or perhaps you have lost a child yourself. Its the kind of thing that makes us want to run away so that we can avoid the pain. Whenever we face distress like this, we can find matchless help in Our Lady of Sorrows. Mary can help us follow her example. Through her intercession, we can find the grace to endure in hope and trust in God during indescribable sorrow.
Not all mothers will endure the death of a child, but every mother knows what its like to suffer over her child. Whether its a serious illness, rejection from a dear friend, challenges in school, or even the consequences of a childs own poor choices, mothers feel it all. Its love that causes them to carry these burdens. And thats where Our Lady of Sorrows can bring us hope.
Mary couldnt flee. She couldnt diminish her torment as she stood at the foot of the cross. And thats the point. She didnt try to. She accepted her own cross at Calvary: trusting that somehow God would bring salvation through the horror of her sons death. By showing us what grace-filled acceptance looks like, Mary also shows us that its possible.
But Mary is more than just an example for us. She stands with us in our suffering. As our mother in heaven, she comes alongside us, supports us, and leads us through. As Mother of the Church, she is uniquely able to understand what were going through.
That makes the foot of the cross a good place to approach Mary. When we find ourselves staggered by sorrow, she can intercede for us. When our child is bullied and we hurt for them emotionally, she can help us trust that God will bring good from it somehow. When we are up all night with a sick child, she can keep vigil with us.
As she comes to our side, Mary brings us the gift of her motherhood. She helps us find consolation. Her sorrows can be a source of blessing for us.
Holy Mary, thank you for your example of trust and abandonment to Gods will. Thank you too for the help of your intercession. Our Lady of Sorrows, pray for us.
1 Timothy 1:1-2, 12-14
Psalm 16:1-2. 5, 7-8, 11