September Devotion

The month of September is dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows, which the Church celebrates on September 15th. Devotion to the sorrows of the Virgin Mary dates from the twelfth century, it was revealed to St. Bridget of Sweden (1303–1373) that devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary's Seven Sorrows would bring great signal graces. In 1668, a separate feast of the Seven Sorrows of Mary celebrated on the third Sunday in September, was granted to the Servites. Pope Pius VII introduced it into the General Roman Calendar in 1814.

Devotion for September: The Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary

• The prophecy of Simeon.

• The Flight to Egypt.

• Loss of Child Jesus for 3 days.

• Meeting Jesus carrying His Cross.

• The Crucifixion of Jesus.

• The Pieta – receiving Jesus' Body.

• The Burial of Jesus.

Fr. Faber on the Seven Sorrows

God vouchsafed to select the very things about Him which are most incommunicable, and in a most mysteriously real way communicate them to her. See how He had already mixed her up with the eternal designs of creation, making her almost a partial cause and partial model of it. Our Lady's co-operation in the redemption of the world gives us a fresh view of her magnificence. Neither the Immaculate Conception nor the Assumption will give us a higher idea of Mary's exaltation than the title of co-redemptress. Her sorrows were not necessary for the redemption of the world, but in the counsels of God, they were inseparable from it. They belong to the integrity of the divine plan. Are not Mary's mysteries Jesus' mysteries, and His mysteries hers? The truth appears to be that all the mysteries of Jesus and Mary were in God's design as one mystery. Jesus, Himself was Mary's sorrow, seven times repeated, aggravated sevenfold. During the hours of the Passion, the offering of Jesus and the offering of Mary were tied in one. They kept pace together; they were made of the same materials; they were perfumed with kindred fragrance; they were lighted with the same fire; they were offered with kindred dispositions. The two things were one simultaneous oblation, interwoven each moment through the thickly crowded mysteries of that dread time, unto the eternal Father, out of two sinless hearts, that were the hearts of Son and Mother, for the sins of a guilty world which fell on them contrary to their merits, but according to their own free will. — Fr. Frederick Faber, The Foot of the Cross.

In this prayer to Our Lady of Sorrows, believers call to mind the pain endured both by Christ on the Cross and by Mary as she watched her Son be crucified

Traditionally, the Immaculate Heart is depicted pierced with seven swords or wounds, in homage to the seven dolors of Mary and roses, usually red or white, wrapped around the heart.

Did you know that the Church calls Our Lady Queen of Martyrs?

St. Basil said of her:

“As the sun surpasses all the stars in lustre, so the sorrows of Mary surpass all the tortures of the martyrs.”

Both Mary’s natural and supernatural love were united in her heart: she loved Jesus as her Son, and she loved Him as her God. Since she was a perfect woman, not even the slightest self-love stained her Immaculate Heart. Therefore, her capacity for love was (and is) astonishing. This wellspring of love is intimately connected with her queenship among martyrs. Those with the greatest capacity for love also have the greatest capacity for suffering. Our Blessed Mother’s entire life was martyrdom for, according to Simeon’s prophecy, she was enlightened regarding the intense sufferings of her Divine Son:

Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be spoken against so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul, too.” Luke 2:34-35

There are Seven Promises that coincide with the Seven Sorrows they are as follows:

1) “I will grant peace to their families.”

2) “They will be enlightened about the divine Mysteries.”

3) “I will console them in their pains, and I will accompany them in their work.”

4) “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.”

5) “I will defend them in their spiritual battles with the infernal enemy and I will protect them at every instant of their lives.”

6) “I will visibly help them at the moment of their death—they will see the face of their mother.”

7) “I have obtained this grace 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 will be their eternal consolation and joy.”

You can pray the Rosary of the Seven Sorrows along with us at: https://youtu.be/brwtstEROUo.

Pope Pius VII has approved a series of prayers in honor of the Seven Sorrows for daily meditation in 1815:

(While making the Sign of the Cross) O God, come to my assistance; O Lord, make haste to help me.

Glory be to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

On each of seven Hail Mary beads recite these prayers before saying the Hail Mary;

1. I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, in the affliction of your tender heart at the prophecy of the holy and aged Simeon. Dear Mother, by your heart so afflicted, obtain for me the virtue of humility and the gift of the holy fear of God. Hail Mary…

2. I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, in the anguish of your most affectionate heart during the flight into Egypt and your sojourn there. Dear Mother, by your heart so troubled, obtain for me the virtue of generosity, especially toward the poor, and the gift of piety. Hail Mary…

3. I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, in those anxieties which tried your troubled heart at the loss of your dear Jesus. Dear Mother, by your heart so full of anguish, obtain for me the virtue of chastity and the gift of knowledge. Hail Mary…

4. I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, in the consternation of your heart at meeting Jesus as He carried His Cross. Dear Mother, by your heart so troubled, obtain for me the virtue of patience and the gift of fortitude. Hail Mary…

5. I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, in the martyrdom which your generous heart endured in standing near Jesus in His agony. Dear Mother, by your afflicted heart, obtain for me the virtue of temperance and the gift of counsel. Hail Mary…

6. I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, in the wounding of your compassionate heart, when the side of Jesus was struck by the lance before His Body was removed from the Cross. Dear Mother, by your heart thus transfixed, obtain for me the virtue of fraternal charity and the gift of understanding. Hail Mary…

7. I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, for the pangs that wrenched your most loving heart at the burial of Jesus. Dear Mother, by your heart sunk in the bitterness of desolation, obtain for me the virtue of diligence and the gift of wisdom. Hail Mary…

Let Us Pray:

Let intercession be made for us, we beseech You, O Lord Jesus Christ, now and at the hour of our death, before the throne of Your mercy, by the Blessed Virgin Mary, Your Mother, whose most holy soul was pierced by a sword of sorrow in the hour of Your bitter Passion. Through You, O Jesus Christ, Savior of the world, Who with the Father and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, world without end. Amen.

https://www.goodcatholic.com/the-seven-sorrows-and-promises-of-our-lady-of-sorrows/