Our Lady's Third Sorrow

Our Lady's Third Sorrow

(Source Devotion to the Sorrowful Mother

by TAN Books, available for purchase here.)

The Loss of the Child Jesus in the Temple

"And having fulfilled the days, when they returned, the Child Jesus remained in Jerusalem; and His parents knew it not. And thinking that he was in the company, they came a day's journey, and sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. And not finding Him, they returned into Jerusalem, seeking Him." (Luke 2: 43-45)

Meditation: How dread was the grief of Mary, when she saw that she had lost her beloved Son! And as if to increase her sorrow, when she sought Him diligently among her kinsfolk and acquaintance, she could hear no tidings of Him. No hindrances stayed her, nor weariness, nor danger; but she forthwith returned to Jerusalem, and for three long days sought Him sorrowing. Great be your confusion, O my soul, who has so often lost your Jesus by your sins, and has given no heed to seek Him at once, a sign that you make very little or no account of the precious treasure of divine love.

Prayer

I grieve for thee, O Mary most sorrowful, in those anxieties

which tried thy troubled heart at the loss of they dear Jesus.

Dear Mother, by thy heart so full of anguish,

obtain for me the virtue of chastity

and the gift of knowledge.

Hail Mary...