Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of John (19: 25-27) in which Jesus, seeing his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing at the foot of the cross, said, “Woman, here is your son,” and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” Afterwards, Fr Paul shares a little about the memorial of ‘Our Lady of Sorrows’ which we remember today.

Fr Paul says the devotion to Our Lady of Sorrows flourished in the Middle Ages, and the hymn Stabat Mater was composed for it. The hymn portrays Mary’s suffering as a mother during the crucifixion of her Son, Jesus Christ. Although it is officially celebrated today, the day after the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, popular devotion in many parts of the Mediterranean celebrates it with processions on the Friday before Holy Week.