How, precisely, is Mary Queen of Martyrs? Yes, she is Queen of the universe and therefore of everything therein, including martyrs. But is she also Queen of martyrs in the sense of being the pre-eminent martyr, even though she did not die for the Faith?
The most familiar draws upon Simeon’s prophecy in the Temple, when he received the infant Jesus into his arms, that Mary’s heart would be pierced by a sword (Lk 2:35).
Thirty years later, Mary stood at the foot of her Son’s cross, still living when His corpse was pierced by the soldier’s lance. She experienced that pain as she had experienced His entire Passion. His agony was over, but hers continued. As Pope Benedict XV wrote in 1918, “She suffered and nearly died with her suffering and dying Son in such a way … that it can justly be said that she herself redeemed humanity with Christ.”
