The middle of Lent is upon us, and we find ourselves rejoicing. But isn’t Lent a season of sorrow, of penance? True, and yet it is appropriate to be joyful. Our Lady is the Cause of our Joy, and her feast of the Annunciation falls in the midst of this sorrowful time. Lent is a time of joyful sorrow - sorrow for sin, and the suffering of Our Lord Jesus, yet this sorrow is what brings us to the joy of repentance, the joy of salvation, the joy of union with Our Lord Who is Himself our Joy.
When the angel Gabriel appeared to Our Lady, her joy may have been tinged by sorrow at the knowledge that she was to be the Mother of the Man of Sorrows and, therefore, Our Lady of Sorrows. But Our Lady of Sorrows has another name - Our Lady of Compassion. It is her compassion upon which we should focus. For it was this compassion that prompted her fiat at the Annunciation, and again on Calvary. Her compassion enabled her to suffer with Our Lord in the depths of His physical sufferings, which were but a fraction of the sufferings of His Sacred Heart at His sorrow for the state of men’s souls. This is why penance is a joyful sorrow, a joyful suffering. It is prompted by compassion - taking on suffering for the sake of suffering with and comforting the Heart of Christ and the Heart of His Mother.
It is a beautiful practice to take on special devotions during this season of Lent. Father Emile Neubert, SM, in his book Devotion to Mary says that “Devotion implies generosity in the divine service” (p. 8). One of the most popular Lenten devotions is the Stations of the Cross - meditating on Our Lord’s Passion at fourteen different stations, commemorating an event from the Passion at each one. What a beautiful way to be “generous in the divine service” by accompanying Our Lord on the road to Calvary. When performing this devotion, you can simply meditate on the events of the Passion on your own, or you could use one of the many books and booklets of meditations that have been written over the centuries. The Way of the Cross is a beautiful book containing many different sets of meditations. Additionally, the Shrine has its booklet based on its own outdoor stations, available here.
May we accompany our Lord and our Lady on the way to Calvary, uniting our hearts to theirs! As spring approaches, and we prepare for new life, planting new seeds in our gardens, Lent is an excellent time to plant new seeds in our lives, starting new habits that will grow into fruitful plants this year and in the rest of our lives.
“Stabat mater dolorosa,
Juxta crucem lacrimosa,
Dum pendebat filius.”
“At the cross her station keeping,
Stood the mournful mother weeping,
Close to Jesus to the last.”
