Back in January I posted a picture of my great great grandmother’s funeral card – it’s one of many in my father’s possession, and I have scans of all of them, but only one side. So, during my recent trip back to New Zealand, I went and re-scanned them all, front and back. (Actually, I’m not sure which side is “front” and which is “back”!)
One side:
Margaret Gaffaney, funeral card 1927
And now the other side:
Margaret Gaffaney, funeral card, 1927
MATER DOLOROSA
Holy Mother, pierce me through,
In my heart each wound renew,
of my Saviour crucified.1
According to Wikipedia:
Our Lady of Sorrows (Latin: Beata Maria Virgo Perdolens), the Sorrowful Mother or Mother of Sorrows (Latin: Mater Dolorosa, at times just Dolorosa), and Our Lady of the Seven Sorrows or Our Lady of the Seven Dolours are names by which the Blessed Virgin Mary is referred to in relation to sorrows in her life. As “Mater Dolorosa”, it is also a key subject for Marian art in the Catholic Church.2
- Margaret Gaffaney funeral card, Temuka, South Canterbury, New Zealand; digital image; scan from Gaffaney family papers, Feb 2011; original privately held by [NAME AND ADDRESS FOR PRIVATE USE], great grandson of deceased.
- Wikipedia, “Our Lady of Sorrows”, article, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Our_Lady_of_Sorrows : accessed 18 Mar 2011.