April 8, 2023
“We grieve. But we grieve with hope.”
– St. Paul
As a grieving mother brought to my knees, literally and figuratively, when I heard that my beautiful son, Paul, died, I had a very hard time understanding Michelangelo’s “Pieta.” As a Catholic who loved the Blessed Mother, I was supposed to get it, but I didn’t.
“Why? Why?” I wondered, was Michelangelo’s world-renowned “Pieta” sculpture recognized globally as the ultimate portrayal of Mary as a grieving mother? As a grieving mother, myself, I couldn’t relate. I even traveled to Rome to see it in person.
Why does Mary look so placid? Why does her face seep contentment and resignation, not anguish? Why doesn’t she look more like a Weeping Mary? Why is she not writhing in pain, as I was when I held my son in death? Is this how she really felt on Good Friday and Holy Saturday?
When Mary made her fiat at the Annunciation, she personified true faith, certain hope and surrender. After watching her perfect child grow into a beautiful man, who was so unjustly tortured that she had to wipe his blood from the floor, she carried on. She carried on because she embraced what Jesus taught her: There is more to this life than this world. On the third day, I will rise again and live. And, so too, will all of you.
When we are tempted to dwell on what we have lost, we are called by Mary and Jesus to focus on what we’ve been given… the promise of eternal life and the joyful, certain hope of reuniting with all whom we have loved. That day is definitely coming! And now I understand.
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(By Diane Monaghan, Co-Founder of the Emmaus Ministry for Grieving Parents, based in Boston, Massachusetts. The mission of this ministry is to serve the spiritual needs of parents whose children of any age have died by any cause, no matter how long ago. For more information, visit https://www.emfgp.org/ )