# St. John Paul II’s Homily on the Tears of Mary at Syracuse
*2015-10-22*

> In this episode we hear the homily that Pope John Paul II gave at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Tears in Syracuse, Sicily, reflecting on the weeping of Christ, Peter, and the Virgin Mary and what their tears mean for the Church today.

## Opening and Context

Good morning, I’m Bill Young. Today, October 22, we celebrate the feast of St. John Paul II and share the homily he delivered during a Eucharistic celebration at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Tears in Syracuse, Sicily. He began by recalling the traditional site on the Mount of Olives where, according to tradition, Christ wept over Jerusalem, expressing both his love for the holy city and his sorrow for the suffering that was to come.

## Christ’s Tears and the Promise to Peter

John Paul II reminded us that the Gospel tells how, moved by the Holy Spirit, Jesus rejoiced in the divine paternity that he would reveal especially to little children. He then turned to the “tears of Peter.” In the Gospel, Christ says to Simon Peter, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh or blood, but by my Father in heaven.” He also warned Peter that before the rooster crows he would deny Him three times, a prophecy that Peter fulfilled, leading him to weep bitterly afterward. Those tears were the tears of sorrow, conversion, and the deepening of his profession of faith.

## Mary’s Silent Tears

The homily noted that Scripture does not record the Virgin Mary weeping—neither at the Nativity, nor at the foot of the Cross, nor at the Resurrection. Yet the Church knows that Mary wept both in sorrow and in joy: sorrow at the suffering of her Son, joy at the triumph of the Resurrection. She is the “spouse of the Lamb,” and her tears accompany the Church through the liturgical seasons—Christmas, Holy Week, and Easter. John Paul II linked this to the apparition of Our Lady of Tears in Syracuse, which occurred after World II amid great tragedy, massacres, and the threat of atheistic communism in Europe.

## The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Tears

He described how the sanctuary, dedicated to Mary’s tears, has become a place of pilgrimage. The image of Our Lady of Tears wept in solidarity with the suffering of her children, both spiritual and physical. The bishop of Rome, as successor of Peter, came with joy to celebrate the community, greeted by Monsignor Giuseppe, who continues the tradition of his predecessors. John Paul II praised the priests, religious, and lay faithful for their courageous service, urging them to bear witness to the Spirit’s presence in the world.

## Christ’s Words to Peter for Our Times

Concluding, the Pope recalled Christ’s words to Peter: “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church… I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” He emphasized that this supreme authority, given to Peter and his successors, is rooted in the redemptive sacrifice of Christ and calls all believers to a life of self‑sacrificial love, fidelity to the faith, and openness to the Holy Spirit.

*Mary’s tears remind us that the Mother Church weeps with the world, calling us to share in Christ’s compassion and to build His Church with courage and love.*