The Holly martyr
Was the Blessed and Immaculate Mother of God a martyr? Unlike Saint Peter, she was not crucified upside down. Unlike Saint Paul, she was not decapitated. Unlike Saint Lawrence, she was not burned alive. Rather, Sacred Tradition holds that she fell asleep peacefully surrounded by the Apostles of Christ her Son. So then, it seems that Mary is not a martyr. Yet, Saint Bernard and many eminent saints and doctors of the Church have described her as the greatest martyr of the Catholic Church – “the more than martyr” to use the words of Saint Bernard. The prophet Simeon prophecied of the Blessed Mother’s martyrdom when he said to her: “And your own soul a sword shall pierce, that, out of many hearts thoughts may be revealed” (Lk 2:35). What did Simeon mean when he told Mary that a sword would pierce her soul. The Church has unanimously taught that this occurred when she looked upon her Son’s dead body on the cross, pierced withe lance of the Roman. Her motherly soul was so sorrowful, s