Formerly known as the 'Seven Sorrows of Mary,' this feast was instituted in 1668 by the Servite Friars out of their devotion to Mary. In 1814, Pius VII extended the feast to the whole Western Church in commemoration of the sufferings he had endured during his captivity in France. The seven sorrows are: Simeon's prophecy at the presentation of Jesus in the temple, the flight into Egypt, the disappearance of the boy Jesus in Jerusalem, the road to Calvary, the crucifixion, the removal from the cross, and the entombment.

©2011 Living with Christ, Novalis - Bayard Press Canada Inc., http://www.livingwithchrist.ca/. Reprinted with permission.