Corpus Christi Blog

As we enter into this final week of Lent, we will take a look at the sixth and seventh sorrows of Mary, which go hand in hand. Mary’s sixth sorrow was when Jesus was pierced in the side with a spear and then placed in her arms. The seventh sorrow is the burial of her precious Son in His tomb.

This week we will reflect on the Fifth Sorrow of Mary, which is The Crucifixion and Death of Her Son, Jesus. “But standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene” (John 19:25).

The death of a child must be the worst suffering any parent could ever experience in any circumstance. For Mary, the pain must have been unimaginable. She not only witnessed her Son die, but she witnessed the horror of the manner of His death. She knew deeply and intimately of His perfection and innocence. She saw Him humiliated and His dignity destroyed as the soldiers stripped Him naked and cast lots for His clothing. She saw the wounds and pain from the beating He had taken earlier. She saw the crown of thrones pressing into head and she saw the sign above Him that read, “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews” (John 19:19). While Jesus was suffering in His physical body, Mary was suffering right along with Him in the deepest depths of her soul.

Check out this great update video from Steve Mandarino!

This week, we start to get into the heaviest and deepest sorrows of Mary’s life, beginning with her fourth sorrow: Meeting Jesus on the Road to Calvary. Take a moment to recall Mary’s first two sorrows – the prophecy of Simeon and the flight into Egypt. Call to mind the joy she was probably experiencing at those two times, basking in the glow of being a new wife and a new mother. She was very likely experiencing strongly positive and happy feelings right before those first two blows were delivered. With her fourth sorrow, we have a similar situation, but with perhaps a bit more intensity.

The Third Sorrow of Mary is the Loss of the Child Jesus in the Temple, which we find in Luke:

...supposing him to be in the group, they went a day’s journey, but then they began to search for him among their relatives and acquaintances, and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, searching for him. After three days they found him in the temple, siƫng among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. (Luke 2:44-46)

Nearly four years ago, we began the five-year Together Let Us Go Forth diocesan capital campaign at Corpus Christi. Thank you to our parishioners who continue to give towards this campaign! We recently received a semi-annual disbursement from the diocese for $38,000. If you are able, we ask you to please continue to fulfill your pledges for the remainder of the campaign. As you know the portion of funds that the parish receives are going toward the planned renovation of the Parish Center.

Speaking of that, we want to give a big shout out to the Knights of Columbus for a recent donation of $30,000 to go towards the Parish Center renovation fund. Thank you, Knights of Columbus! Finally, please be on the lookout for an exciting update on the Parish Center renovations! Spoiler alert: construction is planned to start in a couple months!