Editor’s Note: This is Sarah Pandl’s final column with the Catholic Herald as she moves on the other endeavors. The Catholic Herald thanks Sarah for her time, efforts, and energy in putting together these pieces over the past year and is grateful for her encouragement for all to “live liturgically”.
There are few things that are guaranteed in life. Most things and experiences come and go. One guarantee in human life is the experience of suffering.
Everyone experiences suffering in some way or form. Suffering can present itself physically, mentally, or emotionally. Our bodies get injured and age. The current culture and society can cause much mental anguish and anxiety. Our relationships with others can lead to emotional suffering.
The death of a loved one brings sorrow and grieving. Unforgiveness and broken relationships cause hurt and heartache. The loss of a job brings uncertainty. A sudden sickness can cause loneliness or despair. Everyone experiences suffering so how can we find meaning in it?
September brings two feast days that remind us of the only way to make sense out of suffering.
On September 14, the Church celebrates the feast of the Exaltation of the Cross, also known as the Triumph of the Cross, and on September 15, we celebrate Our Lady of Sorrows.
Both of these feast days help us to bring meaning to the experience of suffering.
The cross of Christ
Suffering, in its various forms, is our participation in the cross of Christ. With St. Paul, we can say, “Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ on behalf of his body, which is the Church” (Colossians 1:24).
Our sufferings have great value when we unite them to Christ. We can bear our sufferings for the sake of others. With every form of suffering we experience, we have the choice to let it be meaningless or to raise it to a supernatural level giving it infinite value.
Suffering merely endured lacks meaning. When we invite Jesus into our sufferings and unite them with his cross, our sufferings become a means of intercession for others.
Uniting our sufferings with Christ does not mean the suffering will suddenly go away, but with Jesus, we can find a new purpose as we embrace our sufferings.
“The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18). The feast of the Exaltation of the Cross reminds us that there is no need to fear the cross of suffering.
On its own, the cross is an instrument of torture. With Jesus, the cross is not the end of the story. The cross is a sign of triumph — a continual reminder that resurrection and new life will come.
“As a result of Christ’s salvific work, man exists on earth with the hope of eternal life and holiness. And even though the victory over sin and death achieved by Christ in his Cross and Resurrection does not abolish temporal suffering from human life, nor free from suffering the whole historical dimension of human existence, it nevertheless throws a new light upon this dimension and upon every suffering: the light of salvation” (St. John Paul II, Salvifici Doloris 15).
With the light of salvation illuminating our experience of suffering, we can embrace our sufferings and offer them for the salvation of souls.
Our Lady of Sorrows
On September 15, we turn to Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows. In Mary, we see the real raw effects of human suffering. Very often one person’s experience of suffering brings about suffering for others as well. This was very much the case for Mary as she watched the horrific suffering her son endured as he carried the cross and was crucified.
As Simeon prophesied, Mary’s heart was pierced with the anguish of watching Jesus suffering such brutality (Luke 2:34-35).
The feast of Our Lady of Sorrows validates the human experience of suffering. Suffering comes to everyone — even to Mary who was sinless. Depictions of Mary in anguish, tears streaming down her face, and her heart pierced, show the rawness of human suffering.
Suffering is an inevitable part of human life. In Mary, we also see the way to bring meaning to suffering. Mary remained with Jesus. She did not run or hide or ignore the suffering. She remained present with Jesus.
We too are called to remain, to be present to our sufferings, and to draw close to Jesus in the suffering we experience. Mary shows us how to suffer with Christ.
Jesus invites us to take up our cross and follow him (Matthew 16:24). With Our Lady, we can embrace our sufferings with hope. Uniting our sufferings with Christ transforms the experience of suffering into a means of prayer and brings peace and joy to the soul. In this way, Jesus transforms our cross into a triumph with his own.
Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows, pray for us in times of suffering. Helps us to unite our sufferings with those of your son and offer them as an intercession for the salvation of souls. Mary, keep us always close to Jesus so that the sufferings we experience will mold our hearts to be instruments of love, peace, and joy to others.
Sarah Pandl is a member of St. Christopher Parish in Verona. She works for the Evangelical Catholic and loves living in tune with the liturgical calendar of the Church.