The Sorrow of Our Lady: Out of Egypt I called my son
Reading: Matthew 2:13 -15
“When they had gone (Magi), an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.” So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: “Out of Egypt I called my son.”
Firstly, I would like to thank the prayers team for entrusting me with their faith to share and speak with you all about the second of the seven sorrows experienced by The Blessed Virgin Mary. I believe that most of you are aware of the seven sorrows of The Blessed Virgin Mary of which one of her sorrows relates to Simeon’s prophecy (Luke 2:35). During that time, within the holy temple of God in Jerusalem, the prophet Simeon prophesized the suffering and death of Jesus Christ and that a sword will pierce Mary’s heart. Simeon’s prophecy would eventually come true and forced Jesus and his family to flee to Egypt. This will be reflected during the second sorrow of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Jesus’s flight into Egypt occurred after his family was visited by the Magi from the east. These Magi came from the east to worship Him. Before seeing Jesus and his family in Bethlehem, they had time to rest in Jerusalem in which they met King Herod. The Magi told King Herod that they had come to Jerusalem to worship the birth of a new king. Hearing this, King Herod was angered and ordered his soldiers to kill all male children under the age of two within Jerusalem and Bethlehem. So, upon hearing this news from the Angel, Jesus, Mary, and Joseph took refuge in Egypt. During their trip to Egypt, they faced challenging situations. Here, we can see that Jesus as the Son of God would begin running for his life from His homeland, yet another indication to Mary of the difficult road Jesus was destined to walk.
Important figures: Jesus, Mary, and Joseph
The figure of Joseph. Joseph’s character serves as an important and unique figure within Jesus’ Family. Based on what we know from the Gospel of Matthew, an angel of God descended from the heavens and appeared in Joseph’s dream and said: “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.” (Matthew 2:13). We can probably imagine Joseph’s thoughts upon hearing the orders from the Angel that night. He must have felt fear and confusion, but as a responsible father, he was more than prepared to follow God’s commandment. The Gospel of Matthew stated that on that night, Joseph immediately raised from the bed, took the infant Jesus and Mary, and took refuge in Egypt. They were also forced to flee that night due to King Herod’s decree that endangered his family and the infant Jesus.
I remember Pope Francis wrote the “Patris Corde”, as an Apostolic Letter to honor the 150th anniversary of the Proclamation of Saint Joseph as Patron of the universal Church. For Pope Francis, St. Joseph is a responsible father. He wrote:
“In the second dream, the angel tells Joseph: “Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him” (Mt 2:13). Joseph did not hesitate to obey, regardless of the hardship involved: “He got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod” (Mt 2:14-15). In Egypt, Joseph awaited with patient trust the angel’s notice that he could safely return home. In a third dream, the angel told him that those who sought to kill the child were dead and ordered him to rise, take the child and his mother, and return to the land of Israel (cf. Mt 2:19-20). Once again, Joseph promptly obeyed. “He got up, took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel” (Mt 2:21). During the return journey, “when Joseph heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. After being warned in a dream” – now for the fourth time – “he went away to the district of Galilee. There he made his home in a town called Nazareth” (Mt 2:22-23).
Joseph’s obedience as a father could not be separated from the two figures who were beside him at that time, namely Our Lady and her Son Jesus. He obeyed God’s will because of his boundless love for Mary and the Infant Jesus.
The figure of the Virgin Mary was reminded by the prophet Simeon that a sword would redeem his heart. This is the sword of sorrow that was first experienced by the Virgin Mary. We can imagine the state of a young mother who has just given birth. Humanly speaking, Mary was still physically weak, and had not mentally prepared to make the long journey that night. But Mary herself had made a promise to God “I am the Lord’s servant; May your word to me be fulfilled.” (Luke 1:38). Within this event, Mary did not question God. Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart (Luke 2:19).
The figure of Jesus the baby, as the Son of God, knows of all this. Suffering as the Son of God who was born in Bethlehem with no place to stay so and was born in a drum and laid in a manger, a place for animals to eat and drink. Jesus, who was still a baby, had begun to suffer, had Calvary for him after Bethlehem. The events of Bethlehem and Calvary in Jerusalem served as a single unity. Jesus experienced rejection since birth, which forced him to flee to Egypt, and ultimately died on the cross.
Virgin Mary’s sorrow within this event
The second sorrow for Mary seems light but is actually heavy. As I said earlier, Mary was not physically and mentally ready to take the Infant Jesus to Egypt with her husband Joseph, but because of her love and obedience to God’s will, she was prepared to do so. Grief and sacrifice as a mother for Jesus will last to the end. Her love for her Son Jesus will also last to the end. And Mary proves her love by accompanying the infant Jesus to travel from Bethlehem to Egypt. The distance between Bethlehem and Cairo is 747 km or 464 miles. They had to walk through the desert passed the dangerous cobras, scorpions and other dangerous animals. Not to mention the strong winter winds blowing desert sand towards them. How hard it must have been for Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. But one thing’s for sure, Mary dared to do it not only because of the selfishness and stupidity of King Herod but because she loved Jesus the Son of God.
I remember a reflection of Saint Albert the Great when contemplating this event and the sorrow of Our Lady: “Dear Lord, must He depart from man, He who came to save man? Then the grieving Mother knew that Simeon’s prophecy regarding her Son had already begun to be fulfilled, “Behold, this Son is destined to be a sign that causes controversy.”
Saint John Chrysostom wrote how the gesture of cruel refuge for the Virgin Mary and her Son had caused sorrow in his heart. Mary left her friends in Bethlehem for strangers in Egypt, from the Temple to the idol temples. Is there greater suffering than the suffering of a newborn baby, who is still suckling at his mother, and whose mother is also in poor condition, forced to take refuge with him?”
After the tiring and frightening journey, they finally arrived in Egypt. In this foreign land, the family must try to survive. Joseph and Mary had to work to raise the baby Jesus. St. Peter Chrysologus said, “Joseph and Mary had neither male nor female servants; they are both master and servant.” They are strangers, unknown, without income, money, or relatives. They simply survive their persistent struggle. Saint Basil said that because they were poor, they must have struggled to make ends meet. While Ludolph of Saxony wrote that “Mary lived there in such poverty that sometimes she did not even have a loaf of bread to give to her Son when He asked for it because he was hungry.”
After Herod’s death, St. Matthew records, the angel appeared again to St. Joseph in a dream and asked him to return to Judea. St. Bonaventure considered this return to cause even greater suffering to the Blessed Virgin considering that Jesus had grown older, about seven years of age. Jesus was too big to be carried, but not strong enough to walk long distances on his own without help. They returned to Nazareth, the place where Jesus himself would be addressed: “Jesus of Nazareth”.
What did we learn?
Mary’s sorrows are the sorrow of mankind. We have always found many people who experienced rejection in their families or from their own country because of the selfishness of their leaders. The leaders or rulers of the country are too comfortable in their seats and are willing to sacrifice the common people. From Mary, we learn about how sublime and valuable a mother’s love and sacrifice are. This example is what we should follow, especially during this pandemic. May all the families survive and become stronger together. God bless us all.
P. John Laba, SDB