The
Rosary of the Seven Dolors.
Based on the Servite Rosary, this devotion is prayed
by members of the Community every Friday.
The meditations were written by a servant of the Community.
OPENING MEDITATION.
In the sorrows of Mary, Ever-Virgin, we see a reflection of the sufferings and bitterness of human life transformed by faith in Christ and love of god into a victorious surrender into the arms of the Father. Just as Mary accepted the total mystery of Christ into her life, so may we also see in our own sorrows, despairs and fears, a dim, but real participation in His passion and death and victory, in our own lives and in union with the lives of those around us. A sharing in the humanity of the total Christ, suffering in time, victorious in eternity. Let us remember that if we wish to follow Christ, we must take up our cross each day. Let us pray that we may accept Christ's call and become co-sufferers in His passion.
THE APOSTLES CREED.
I believe in God,
The Father Almighty,
Creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ,
His only son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the
Holy Spirit and born of the
Virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
Was crucified, died and was buried.
He descended into hell.
On the third day He rose again.
He ascended into Heaven and
Is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge
the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
The Holy Catholic Church,
The Communion of saints,
The forgiveness of sin,
The resurrection of the body
And life everlasting.
Amen.
OUR FATHER,
Who art in Heaven,
Hallowed be thy Name.
Thy Kingdom come.
Thy will be done,
On earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us, this day,
Our daily bread and
Forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil,
Amen.
HAIL MARY,
Full of grace, the Lord is with Thee.
Blessed are you among women,
And blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
Pray for us sinners now
and at the hour of our death.
Amen.
THE FIRST SORROW
The prophecy of Simeon.
God is a Father. The fundamental dogma of the Catholic Church that all the other dogmas presuppose, and it was this that Jesus came to tell us: God is a Father. He is a father because He has a Son. He is a parent. Many of us are parents. All of us have been entrusted with children to care for in one way or another. We have learnt that life is worth living when it is shared with others only after having received a share in God's life.
We joyfully present our children to God in Baptism that their life might be fulfilled in Him. We give them back to him with no fear or trepidation for the future. At the same time we hold human fear for their future. Simeon's prophecy was a blessing for mankind but surely foretold grief for his parents. Mary, your first sorrow was much more than a parent's fear, yet, knowing the Almighty Father, you trusted in God alone and with the courage of your faith, went forth into the future, able to let go of your child. Enabled to allow Him the freedom that was His by right - the Liberty of the Sons of God; to become the person He really was in God's eyes.
Blessed are you, O Virgin Mary.
Our Father, 7 Hail Mary's and the refrain:
"Alleluia, Alleluia,
give thanks to the risen Lord,
Alleluia, Alleluia, give praise to His name."
THE SECOND SORROW
The Flight into Egypt.
What can parents do when the life of their child is threatened? When Herod decreed the death of the Holy Innocents, God, the caring father, warned Joseph in a dream. With no time to lose, you left everything and everyone you had cared about. You escaped with Mary and Jesus to safety. What fear did you harbour as you secretly made your way? What dread of being discovered before you reached the border? Into the darkness of the night, a darkness full of uncertainty for sure, but filled with the new Light of Christ. Homeless, wearied in mind and body, what future lay before you, O Mary? What trust you put in Joseph to care for you and Jesus. No security. No belongings. Only Jesus and Joseph who loved you and needed you. Those, whom God in His wisdom had given to you out of His own love for you. Like Abraham, you set out for a new country, trusting in God alone to provide for you.
Our memories are disturbed by the thought of homeless, uncared-for children, refugees, migrants, the lost and destitute. The true poor who have nothing.
Blessed are you, O Virgin Mary in your poverty of heart.
Our Father, 7 Hail Mary's, Refrain.
THE THIRD SORROW
The loss of Jesus in the Temple.
Have you seen my child? He is lost. I can't find Him anywhere! What panic grips into the heart of a parent as the vice of fear tightens around their heart. And strangers too, at such a time. What thoughts and fears pass through their hearts,… if it were my child,… what if…? and in our hearts we find a deep compassion for parents whose loss is not resolved, who have no prospect of relief from the unknowing… Perhaps, without faith, things too terrible to express go through the mind. Yet, God says, 'Only have the faith of Abraham, and all will be well.'
Mary, your faith and trust in God gave you Hope, perseverance to keep looking day after day, until, at last, you found Jesus, alive and well in the Temple. The outward _expression of His interior disposition. How profound the realization for you, O Mary, that here, was indeed, the Sacrificial Lamb provided by God's own Hand. The reality of the words of Isaiah in your own life! How often we think of our children as lost to us, to God; despairing of their actions, their apparent lack of interest. Yet, if we only trusted more in Christ, in them, how often we might happily be surprised to find that they had, indeed, been sitting in the Temple all along. And Christ, Himself was the Sacrificial Lamb in them. We must have faith in our children and trust in Christ in them, to save them from all evil.
Blessed are you, O Virgin Mary, who never gave up looking and trusting in Christ.
Our Father, 7 Hail Mary's, Refrain.
THE FOURTH SORROW
Mary meets Jesus on the way to Calvary.
A sick child. A child who suffers at the hands of others in illness. Unfeeling carers who hurt, give pain upon already untold sufferings. The silent sufferings of a child unable to express his pain. An injured child. Children hurt by the callousness, criticism and disordered desires of their parents and families, society. Our heart overflows with love and desire to take them into our heart and arms. To lift them up to the Father that they may know real love and healing through Christ Jesus, His Son. To bring them to Mary, that she may love them and stand by them as she stood by Jesus in His sufferings. How often a Mother's simple love and caring make even the worst pains bearable or even overcomes them. The simple trust of a child in his Mother; all will be well because she is there. Often a Mother desires to take upon herself her child's suffering, at least to help him bear them. Trapped by her own flesh and human fears, she remains a spectator, unable to suffer, not feeling his pain, only her own. Mary, you saw Jesus, your Son, torn and shredded, open wounds, clothes soaked in Blood, sweat, fear, swollen face, battered and bruised.
Powerless to help Him, prevented from reaching out to Him, to touch Him in His misery, - He who ripped from your womb was locked up behind the wall of authorities paralyzed by fear of a loving God, - yet, you found a way to be with Him, to share in the intimacy of those last moments. In the Word you were united, through love and joy. In peace and union you were able to enter into His life, His pain, and steadfastly stand beside Him at the foot of the Cross. Thus, you shared every living moment, every loving glance, the meeting of eyes in silent understanding of the love you shared, of private lives hidden from the world, acceptance. The loving trust that grew over the childhood years, the turbulent years of youth and the following years of friendship. The look that says: I love you still, Mother. But this is my life, mine to bear. You can do nothing. I want you to do nothing. I desire to do this by myself in this moment. I desire my life to be mine alone, in this moment, and then, it shall be yours forever. Only, be my Mum, just like you've always been, are now and will be forever more.
Blessed are you, O Virgin Mary for having the courage to let Jesus be Himself.
Our Father, 7 Hail Mary's, Refrain.
THE FIFTH SORROW
Jesus dies on the Cross.
It's hard to die. The body resists it, even belief in its presence, right up until the last moment when it becomes inevitable. Death is hard for others to endure, to pass through. Is the death of a child harder for a parent to bear than the death of a Beloved? or the death of the dearest of friends? I don't know the answer. We each have our own pain and separation of the flesh to live through. But if we have given everything in this life so that we have no more to give, then, even if the person came back to life there would be nothing left to give, for all had been given. It is impossible to give more from human love once it has all been given, so, there can be then, no regrets, no looking back, no "if only"s. God also instills in our hearts His own love for others and we love beyond time, into eternity.
In death there arises from the depths of one's being a silent scream that resounds not into our ears but into the eternity of the Heart of God. An interior voice that arises in the pain as the veil is torn, rended apart. So deep, that it cannot be touched in this life, until, one day God opens the grave so that you can descend and enter in to the eternity of death; the death of our Baptism and the rising to New Life, life beyond the grave that holds us in. The Victory of the Cross.
Mary, in those long hours at the foot of the Cross, did you think at all? Were not your eyes fixed upon the Beloved? Drinking in His Glory whilst He was still present to you. Facing the terrible reality of human death…….
His breath was laboured, shallow, his lungs filling with water. One breath … nothing; one breath … nothing. The final look, eyes meeting, accepting the moment. I am your Son; you are my Mother, always, forever. Behold, I give now, Myself, forever, my every being, to be your own. Mary, Mother, Mother me!
Then, He breathed out and before the breath ended, you knew He would take no other. He had spent His life, your own being, upon the Cross for you. Then, His Heart beat. Three beats, so loud it could have been a gong ringing in your ears. And He was gone. Your spirit went with Him, so united in love and faith in your God. The Word enshrined now forever in your Heart. No separation now, no obstacle in the way, only love, pure Divine Love of God.
Blessed are you, O Virgin Mary, who remained at the Cross.
Our Father, 7 Hail Mary's, Refrain.
THE SIXTH SORROW
Mary receives the dead body of Jesus.
He is dead…. And it hardly seems real. So alive in your heart, He seems still alive, running, laughing, loving. But, death is real, so very real. The Body now an empty shell, useless, lifeless. You hold Him in your arms - the last time. Remembering the cold night in the stable, the first time you held Him in your arms; the moment He turned His head to look at you and see you with human eyes. How he had fallen in love with you then. A love that lasted a lifetime, an eternity. Now, He was gone and you lay down His head upon the hard ground of the earth.
Standing, you look at Him once more - a Sacred Vessel, emptied, and turn your eyes to God, your Father, and to His Son, the Eternal Word who has died for you. Grateful for being allowed His Presence in your life in such a unique and intimate way, full of gratitude for having been allowed to share in such mysteries of God. Sorrowful, yes, but O so thankful.
Blessed are you, O Virgin Mary, who gained the Eucharistic Jesus at the foot of the Cross.
Our Father, 7 Hail Mary's, Refrain.
THE SEVENTH SORROW
Jesus is laid in the tomb.
The garden and the tomb… there is a warmth, an intimacy, a closeness to Jesus that comes from entering into the grave with Him, a gentle consolation, a rest. Perhaps, Mary, as you laid Jesus in the tomb you experienced the rest of eternity whilst still in the face of the temple raised to the ground. Perhaps, there in the garden with its wild flowers and tended earth you remembered His Words: Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it cannot produce new life.
It can be hard to see life in death, especially at the moment of burial. Perhaps, looking at the flowers, the new life in creation around you, you thought of other gardens, days in the sun, the childhood gifts of blossoms picked too short for a vase, pretty rocks, autumn leaves, rainbows in the sun, the wonder of the world through a child's eyes. Perhaps these signs of God's love and concern for you gave you hope. Never again would God send such a deluge of water upon the earth, for now, there was no need. The Sacrifice of the Lamb was complete. God, Himself, had provided the Lamb.
And now we remember, as we, with you beside us as our Mother, are strengthened in our Hope, to leave behind all we knew and putting all our faith and trust in your Son, our Risen Saviour, reach out into the future of our years to complete in our own bodies the sufferings of Christ and to search for Him until we find Him in the Temple of our own souls, - Emmanuel, God with us.
Blessed are you, O Virgin Mary, a true child of Abraham.
Our Father, 7 Hail Mary's, Refrain.
CLOSING PRAYER.
Lord God, our Father,
From the passion and death of your Son, Jesus, shared by the compassion of His Mother, you brought healing to fallen man. Grant that we, your people, may experience this healing, and rise from the power of sin to a wholeness of life promised by Jesus, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, now and for ever and ever.
Amen.
The Sisters of St. John the Beloved
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Rosary of the 7 Dolors
The Chapter of St. John the Baptist
Tydewi Binderie
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To Him are all things.
The Monastery of Dewi Sant,
Western Australia.
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This Page was created specifically for the Monastery of Dewi Sant, Australia,
By Cath Art Creations
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