THE VIA MATRIS LACRIMOSA "The painful journey of Mary"
Introduction
V. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Ramen.
V. We praise and bless you, Lord.
R. Because in the work of our salvation you associated the Virgin Mother with the suffering Son.
V. We contemplate your pain, holy Mary.
R. To follow you on the arduous journey of faith.
G. Brothers and sisters, we have come together to follow the tap-pe of sorrows, which the Holy Virgin sustained in union with the Redeemer. In fact, “by a disposition of divine Providence she was on this earth not only the alma Madre of the divine Redeemer, but also her totally exceptional generous Companion: for this she was for us mother in the order of grace. The Church looks to Mary as the perfect image of following Christ. Her example becomes even more persuasive for us, when we contemplate her in suffering, which she also met for having listened and lived the Word of the Lord to the full.
May his intercession obtain us to carry Christ crucified in the heart and in the flesh with dignity, knowing that if - following his example - we suffer with Christ, we will also be glorified with him.
Let us pray O God, you wanted the life of the Virgin to be marked by the mystery of pain, grant, please, to walk with her on the path of proven faith and to join our sufferings to the passion of Christ so that they may be an occasion of grace and instrument of salvation. For Christ our Lord.
T. Amen.
1st STATION
THE PROPHECY OF SIMEONE
God's word
The Lord you seek, the angel of the covenant you sigh, will enter his temple. Raise your voice with strength, happy messenger, raise your voice and cry out, without fear: "Behold your God" (Mal 3,1; Is 40,9).
L. When the time of their purification came, according to the Law of Moses, they brought the child to Jerusalem, to offer him to the Lord. Now in Jerusalem there was a righteous and God-fearing man, waiting for the comfort of Israel. The Holy Spirit was upon him. Simeon blessed them and spoke to Mary, his Mother: “He is here for the ruin and resurrection of many in Israel. Sign of contradiction, so that the thoughts of many hearts are revealed. And to you too a sword will pierce the soul "(Lk. 2, 22.25.34-35).
Silence break
Responsory (Psalm 39)
Rit. Here I am, Lord, let your word be fulfilled in me.
L. Sacrifice and offering you don't like, you didn't ask for burnt offerings and victim. So I said, "Here I am, God, to do your will." Here I am, Lord, let your word be fulfilled in me.
L. In the book of the law of me it is written to do your will my God, this I desire your law deep in my heart. Here I am, Lord, let your word be fulfilled in me.
Prayer
G. Hail Mary.
T. Santa Maria.
G. Woman of pain, Mother of the redeemed.
T. Pray for us.
2st STATION
THE ESCAPE TO EGYPT
God's word
I will be with you, to save you and free you from the hands of the wicked and the violent. I would bring you back to the land of your fathers (Jer 15, 20.21; 16,15).
L. The Angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said to him: “Get up, take the child and his Mother with you, and flee to Egypt. Stay there until I warn you, because Herod is looking for the boy to kill him. " When he woke up, Joseph took the child and his mother with him in the night and fled to Egypt, where he remained until the death of Herod (Mt 2,13: 15-XNUMX).
Silence break
Responsory (Psalm 117)
Rit. You are with me, Lord I fear no evil.
L. In anguish I cried to the Lord, the Lord replied and rescued me. The Lord is with me, I am not afraid. What can man do to me? You are with me, Lord I fear no evil.
L. My strength and my song is the Lord, he has been my salvation. I will not die, I will stay alive and announce the works of the Lord. You are with me, Lord I fear no evil.
Prayer
G. Hail Mary.
T. Santa Maria.
G. Woman of pain, Mother of the redeemed.
T. Pray for us.
3st STATION
JESUS REMAINS IN THE TEMPLE
God's word
Where has your beloved gone, beautiful among women? Where did he go, why can we search for it with you? (Ct 6,1).
L. His parents went to Jerusalem every year for the Easter feast. When he was twelve, they went up again, according to custom; but after the days of the feast, while they were on their way back, the boy Jesus remained in Jerusalem, without the parents noticing. Not having found him, they returned to Jerusalem in search of him. And after three days they found him in the Temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, listening to them and questioning them. And his Mother said to him: "Son, why have you done this to us? Behold, your father and I have been looking for you anxiously "(Lk 2,41-45.48).
Silence break
Responsory (Psalm 115)
Rit. In doing your will, O Father, it is all my joy.
L. Yes, I am your servant, Lord, I am your ser-vo, son of your handmaid. I will offer you sacrifices of praise and invoke the name of the Lord. In doing your will, O Father, it is all my joy.
L. I will fulfill my vows to the Lord before all his people in the halls of the house of the Lord, in your midst, Jerusalem. In doing your will, O Father, it is all my joy.
Prayer
G. Hail Mary.
T. Santa Maria. g.
Pain woman, Mother of the redeemed.
T. Pray for us.
4st STATION
JESUS MEETS HIS MOTHER
God's word
To what will I compare you Daughter of Jerusalem? What will I equal to you to console you, virgin Daughter of Zion? your desolation is as great as the sea; who can console you? (Lam 2,13:XNUMX).
L. Tell the Daughter of Zion: "Behold, your savior arrives." Who is he who comes with the red-tinted robes? he is a man despised and rejected by men, a man of pain who knows well how to suffer. it is like someone in front of which you cover your face, and nobody cares about him. Yet he has taken on our sufferings, he has taken on our pains. And we judged him chastened, beaten by God, and humiliated (Is 62,11; 63, l; 53, 3-4).
Silence break
Responsory (Psalm 26)
Rit. Show us, Father, the face of your love.
L. Listen, Lord, my voice I cry: "Have mercy on me!" Answer me. Your face, Lord, I try not to hide your face. Show us, Father, the face of your love.
L. I am sure I contemplate the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Hope in the Lord, be strong, get your heart back and hope in the Lord. Show us, Father, the face of your love.
Prayer
G. Hail Mary.
T. Santa Maria.
G. Woman of pain, Mother of the redeemed.
T. Pray for us.
5st STATION
JESUS DIES ON THE CROSS
God's word
They will look at him who has pierced, they will mourn him, as is done for an only child; they will mourn him as the eldest son mourns (Zac 12,10:XNUMX).
L. When they arrived at Calvary, they crucified Jesus and the two evildoers, one on the right and the other on the left. They were at the cross of Jesus his mother, his mother's sister, Mary of Cleopa, and Mary of Magdala. Then Jesus, seeing the Mother and there beside her the disciple whom he loved-went, said to the Mother: "Woman, behold your son!". Then he said to the disciple: Here is your mother. It was three o'clock in the afternoon. Jesus, shouting loudly, said: "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit". Having said this, he expired (Lk 23, 33; Jn 19, 25-27; Lk 23, 44-46).
Silence break
Responsory (Psalm 24)
Rit. Father, in your hands I entrust my life.
L. Remember, Lord of your love and eternal faithfulness. Remember me, in your mercy, for your goodness, Lord. Father, in your hands I entrust my life.
L. You see my misery and my pain, it alleviates all the anxieties of my heart, because you are the God of my salvation: in you I have hoped Father, in your hands I entrust my life. Father, in your hands I entrust my life.
Prayer
G. Hail Mary.
T. Santa Maria.
G. Woman of pain, Mother of the redeemed.
T. Pray for us.
6st STATION
JESUS IS DEPOSITED BY THE CROSS
God's word
I have no more peace. I forgot the happy days. And I say: "my strength and the hope that came from the Lord has disappeared". All I do is think about this, and my soul is downcast. But there is something that gives me hope: the goodness of the Lord has not yet ended, his immense love is not exhausted. The Lord is good with those who hope in him, with the soul that seeks him. It is good to keep the Lord's salvation in silence. (Lam 3,17-22; 25-26).
L. There was a man named Giuseppe, a good and fair person. It was from Arimatea. He too was waiting for the kingdom of God. He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. He lowered it from the cross and wrapped it in a sheet (Lk 23, 50.52-53).
Silence break
Responsory (Psalm 114)
Rit. My soul hopes in the Lord.
L. I love the Lord because he listens to the cry of my prayer. Sadness and anguish overwhelmed me and I called on the name of the Lord. My soul hopes in the Lord.
L. Return, my soul, to your peace, for the Lord was good to you: he took me away from death, he wiped my eyes from tears. My soul hopes in the Lord.
Prayer
G. Hail Mary.
T. Santa Maria.
G. Woman of pain, Mother of the redeemed.
T. Pray for us.
7st STATION
THE BURIAL OF JESUS
God's word
Truly I say to you: If the grain of wheat fallen into the ground does not die, it remains alone. On the other hand, if it dies, it produces much fruit (Jn 12: 2.4).
L. Nicodemus, the one who had previously gone to him at night, carried a measure of myrrh and aloe of about a hundred pounds. Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus then took the body of Jesus and wrapped it in bandages together with aromatic oils as it is customary to bury for the Jews. Now, in the place where he had been crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new sepulcher in which no one had yet been laid. There, therefore, they laid Jesus (Jn 19,39: 42-XNUMX).
Silence break
Responsory (Psalm 42)
Rit. My soul thirsts for you, Lord.
L. O God, you are my God, at dawn I look for you; my soul yearns for you as a deserted, arid land, without water. My soul thirsts for you, Lord.
L. When I remember you at sunset, and I think of you in the night watches, you who have been my help, my soul tightens. My soul thirsts for you, Lord.
Prayer
G. Hail Mary.
T. Santa Maria.
G. Woman of pain, Mother of the redeemed.
T. pray for us.
CONCLUSION
If we die with Christ, we will also live with him. If we persevere with him, we will reign with him (2 Tim 2,11: 12-XNUMX).
L. After Saturday, Maria di Màgdala, Maria di Giacomo and Salome bought aromatic oils to go to embalm Jesus. Early in the morning, on the first day of the week, I came to the sepulcher. The sun was rising. They said to each other: "Who will roll the boulder away from the entrance of the tomb?". But looking they saw that the boulder had already been rolled away, although it was very large. Entering the tomb they saw a young man, dressed in a white robe, and they were afraid. But he said to them, "Don't be afraid. You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, the crucifixion. It is not here; It has risen! (Mk 16, 1-6).
Silence break
Responsory (Sof. 3).
Rit. Rejoice, Virgin Mother Christ and risen.
L. Rejoice, Daughter of Zion, exult Israel, rejoice with all your heart, daughter of Jerusalem, the Lord has lifted the sentence, has scattered the enemy, you will no longer see the misfortune. Rejoice, Virgin Mother Christ and risen
L. The Lord your God is a powerful savior: he will renew you with his love, he will rejoice for you with shouts of joy, as on feast days. Rejoice, Virgin Mother Christ and risen
Prayer
We recommend our life and that of all our brothers to the protection of Mary, Mother of Christ and Mother of the Church. May she herself present our prayers to God.
L. Remember, Virgin Mother of God, of the whole Church, scattered throughout the world, born and sanctified by the blood of your Son.
T. Remember, Virgin Mother.
L. Remember, Virgin Mother of God, of all the people redeemed by the blood of your Son. They live in justice, harmony and peace.
T. Remember, Virgin Mother.
L. Remember, Virgin Mother, of those who govern the nations; hold back peoples seeking war. Help and make Christians strong, so that we can all spend a peaceful and honest life, glorifying the name of Christ the Redeemer.
T. Remember, Virgin Mother.
L. Remember, Virgin Mother of God, of those who ask for a propitious time, beneficial rains and abundant harvests, safe work and serenity in families.
T. Remember, Virgin Mother.
L. Remember, Virgin Mother of God, of all the elderly and invalids, the sick and those who suffer, prisoners and emigrants, exiles and those who are persecuted because of their love for peace, or for reasons of the name of Christ.
T. Remember, Virgin Mother.
L. Remember, Virgin Mother of God, of those who do not have a home to welcome them, of those who are hungry or suffer from family discord: console them God in their afflictions, and put an end to their pains.
T. Remember, Virgin Mother.
L. Remember, Virgin Mother of God, to pray for us, who are sinners and unworthy servants of yours. Come and help us, because where our guilt abounded, the grace of your Son abounds.
T. Remember, Virgin Mother.
L. Remember, Virgin Mother of God, that you are our Mother by the will of your dying Son. Do not forget that you have suffered for us and pray that we may obtain the firmness of faith, the joy of hope, an ardent love and the gift of unity.
T. Remember, Virgin Mother.
G. Hear, O Father, the People who, united with Mary, have remembered the work of the Redemption. Grant your servants to live united with her in this land, to reach with her the full joy of your kingdom.
The cross of Jesus, to whose mystery the Virgin Mother was associated, is comfort for our arduous journey: so that - in the footsteps of the Mother - we too can suffer with Christ, to be able to enjoy with him in eternal glory.
T. Amen.