Day 9 – The Path from Sorrow to Joy

Day 9 – The Path from Sorrow to Joy

As we end our novena, here are seven principles which pave the path from sorrow to joy:

1. Every human being desires happiness, a joy that lasts. More than a passing feeling of euphoria, joy is a passion or emotion that stems from possessing something good in the right way. Ultimately, joy comes from knowing that I am loved, and loving in return. Joy is a fruit of love.
2. Because we love, we suffer. Love makes us vulnerable, opening us to disappointment, pain, and sorrow. To try to protect oneself from suffering by avoiding love leads to even greater pain, because we were made for love, and its absence brings existential anguish.
3. Suffering and sorrow without meaning, without God, lead to despair. If we suffer focused on self, we are lost in our immanence, filled with emptiness, and the pain will consume us and lead to bitterness. If we suffer with others or for others, we can discover a certain transcendence, but it is still incomplete and open to disappointment.
4. If we suffer with Christ and for Christ, we unlock the transcendence that leads to meaning, purpose, completion, and joy. It brings us to a deep level of intimacy with Christ, who chose to suffer for me.
5. Paradoxical as it may sound, suffering and sorrow are not incompatible with joy. Suffering and sorrow can lead to greater and deeper joy. In our human experience, we know that painful exercise can lead to health, and a discomforting operation can restore health. Through Mary’s spiritual experience, we see the pathway from sorrow to joy.
6. Jesus is the cause of our joy and Mary leads us to him.
7. We are free to choose the things that lead to joy—or to remain in our misery. Using our freedom wisely will lead us to choose love, always giving, always in thanksgiving. Prayer keeps us united with God. Concrete acts of love and dedication—such as a consecration of your family to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Our Lady of Sorrows—help to solidify that daily choice to love.

 

The following prayer is the novena prayer honoring the seven sorrows of Mary and approved by Pope Pius VII in 1815.

1. O God, come to my assistance;
2. O Lord, make haste to help me.
3. Glory be to the Father …
4. As it was in the beginning …

I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, in affliction of your tender heart at the prophecy of the holy and aged Simeon. O dearest Mother, by your heart so afflicted, implore for me the virtue of humility and the gift of the holy fear of God.

Hail Mary …

I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, in the anguish of your most affectionate heart during the flight into Egypt and your sojourn there. O dearest Mother, by your anxious heart so troubled, obtain for me the virtue of generosity, especially toward the poor, and the gift of piety.

Hail Mary …

I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, in those anxieties which tried your troubled heart at the loss of your beloved Child Jesus. O dearest Mother, by your exceedingly troubled heart implore for me the virtue of chastity and the gift of knowledge.

Hail Mary …

I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, on account of the horror with which your mother-heart was stricken when meeting Jesus bearing the Cross. O dearest Mother, by your exceedingly oppressed heart implore for me the virtue of patience and the gift of fortitude.

Hail Mary …

I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, on account of that martyrdom which tortured your generous heart at the death-agony of Jesus. O dearest Mother, through this thy martyred heart, implore for me the virtue of temperance and the gift of counsel.

Hail Mary …

I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, in the wounding of your tender heart, by the thrust of the lance that opened the side of Jesus and pierced His most adorable Heart. O dearest Mother, by this vicarious transfixion of thy own heart, implore for me the virtue of brotherly love and the gift of understanding.

Hail Mary …

I grieve for you, O Mary most sorrowful, on account of that agony which racked your most loving heart at the burial of Jesus. O dearest Mother, through this extreme torment that filled thy burdened heart, obtain for me the virtue of zeal and the gift of wisdom.

Hail Mary …

V.    Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us!

R.    That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Let us pray: Let intercession be made for us, we beseech you, O Lord Jesus Christ, now and at the hour of our death, before the throne of your mercy, by the Blessed Virgin Mary, your Mother, whose most holy soul was pierced by a sword of sorrow in the hour of your bitter passion. Through you, O Jesus Christ, Savior of the world, who with the Father and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns world without end. Amen.