The Dolours of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Our blessed Mother's love for her dear Son, the most perfect and loveable son a mother ever had, meant that she suffered greatly when she witnessed our Lord's suffering. St Alphonsus leads us to meditate on the seven dolours, or pains, of her immaculate heart that tradition bears witness to, from Simeon's prophecy of the future suffering of the Christ child, through to her receiving his dead body from the cross. We, whose sins caused our Lord Jesus Christ to suffer so on the cross, are held dearly in the heart of Mary, who knows how great was the price paid for our souls. By uniting our hearts to hers, whose heart is so intimately united to His, we learn true sorrow for our sins and find the strength to resist temptations, so that we may no longer hurt our Lord, nor cause his mother any more sorrow.