Let Us Not Forget Our Ancestors

      Each Friday after the 12:05 Mass we have Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament followed by the devotion to Our Mother of Sorrows, then Benediction. This devotion has been prayed at our parish since the 1940’s. It requires just over 20 minutes and we finish by 1:00. There are between 20 and 35 participants. The window nearest to the statues of Mary and Joseph to the north of the sanctuary is Our Mother of Sorrows. The seven arrows piercing her heart represent her seven main sorrows. The first sorrow is “Mary Accepts in Faith the Prophecy of Simeon”; the second is “Mary Flees into Egypt with Jesus and Joseph”; the third is “Mary Seeks Jesus Lost in Jerusalem”; the fourth is “Mary Meets Jesus on the Way to Calvary”; the fifth is “Mary Stands Near the Cross of Her Son”; the sixth sorrow is “Mary Receives the Body of Jesus Taken Down from the Cross”; the seventh is “Mary Places the Body of Jesus in the Tomb Awaiting the Resurrection”. 

      The reflections and prayers for each sorrow acknowledge Mary’s experience and petition her for her help in our lives. You will also find images of the sorrows of Mary on the wall across from the pieta statue. These images were recently cleaned, restored, and put in their current location.

      One of the sorrows touches me in a particular way, namely, the second: “Mary Flees into Egypt with Jesus and Joseph.” The prayer follows: Meditation – LEADER – What can a mother do when the life of her son is threatened? When Herod decreed death for all those innocent children, God warned Joseph. With no time for packing or goodbyes, you escaped into the night. Homeless, tired, hungry, with memories of home and family, and an uncertain future before you, you were secure in nothing but the love of those who needed you. Prayer – ALL – Mary, teach us the secret of survival when we are torn from what we understand and love. Though we are descendants of immigrants [my bold], it has never been easy to grow in foreign soil. Teach us to endure and abide in peace. Teach us to overcome our insecurities through patience and love. Amen.

      Mary, Jesus, and Joseph were immigrants very soon after Jesus birth. Most of our ancestors immigrated, as well as many members of our parish, local, and national communities. No one can fully appreciate the immigrant experience – the reason for leaving one land to come to another and then the feeling of helplessness in that new land. For many of our parents and grandparents, they, too, knew this “sorrow.”  As Pope Francis has called for again, may we be open and prudent in regard to immigrants and policies.

Peace, Fr. Andy