Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary
What is the strength of the rosary?
Saint Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort said that the words of the Hail Mary are the most beautiful congratulations that Archangel Gabriel has given to Mary. These words still make the devil run: they are the hammer that crushes him.
Why the rosary?
From the very beginning, the rosary became a prayer that was approved and, above all, beloved in the Church. We see it in the lives and history of saints, especially the founders of religious orders or congregations, but also in the lives of simple and ordinary people. During many of her apparitions, Mary herself exhorted people to pray the rosary and she promised that whoever prayed in this way would be saved and would save the world from the misfortunes caused by sin. Saint John Mary Vianney used to say that one "Hail Mary", spoken rightly and in faith, shakes all hell. It is worth considering what happens there when we pray the whole rosary, when a whole group of people prays with it, or when the whole Church prays with these words.
Many Saints have said that the rosary destroys every work of Satan. Saint Louis Grignion de Montfort also said that the words of the rosary prayer are the most beautiful congratulations that the Archangel of Mary has given, and we express our personal congratulations to Mary. These words still make the devil flee: these words are a hammer that crushes him, the sanctification of the soul, the joy of the angels and the singing of the elect. St. Francis of Assisi (one of the October patrons): When I say the Hail Mary, all heaven smiles at me, the angels rejoice, the earth rejoices and Satan tremble. One of the important moments in the history of the world or the Church is the naval battle of Lepanto in 1571, which turned out to be victorious - as it was believed thanks to the power of the rosary. The intention of this prayer was to defend Christianity, including the Church. It was not directed against man, but against what threatens humanity - against the hostility generated by sin.
Pius V, aware to whom he owes the miraculous saving of Europe, made October 7 the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary and allowed it to be celebrated in those churches where the Brotherhood of the Rosary existed. Clement XI, in gratitude for another victory over the Turks at Belgrade in 1716, extended this feast to the whole Church. In 1883, Leo XIII introduced the invocation "Queen of the Holy Rosary - pray for us" to the Litany of Loreto, and two years later he recommended that the rosary should be prayed in churches throughout October.
Therefore, praying the rosary is not so much moving the beads, but putting oneself onthe protection of the Blessed Virgin Mary in times of danger. By entrusting ourselves to Mary's protection, we allow her to take us to the Throne of God. For when we pray the rosary, we invoke her intercession and together with her we say the words of the prayer, and we glorify God with her.
By saying the words of the rosary prayer and repeating the same words cyclically, we also respond to the words of St. Paul, who encouraged the first Christian communities to pray constantly. Already in the first centuries, people prayed the same prayer several dozen times. The hermit, Paul of Thebes, in order not to get lost in this repetition, would put stones on his knees and, after reciting a given prayer, he would drop one of them. Saint Pachomius or Saint Benedict of Norcia - the fathers of prayer - made a rope with loops - which resembled today's rosary.
Slow down!
The present-day form of the rosary, with its fixed parts and arranged mysteries, invites us to something deeper and more important than just the seemingly boring shifting of colloquially named beads. This prayer is also about more than treating it from time to time as if it had magical powers. More and more often we succumb to the temptation to just say it and may even accept challenges with even good intentions, like the Pompeian novena, but at the same time we lose and lose what becomes its essence. Sometimes I also get the impression that in the Church we forget about it when we accept this prayer in October, and at the same time we approach it on the basis of "passing it on", saying it quickly - because we must, but we do not dedicate too much time for it. The Rosary needs and invites us to stop, slow down and let ourselves be led by God's Spirit, as Mary did in her life. It is impossible to understand the rosary, constantly rushing somewhere and just wanting to do something.
The meaning of understanding this prayer is the word that Pope Saint John Paul II used so often in the apostolic letter Rosarium Virginis Marie, announcing the Year of the Holy Rosary and adding the extra mystery of the rosary. That word is contemplation. The strength of this prayer is not in the quantity - how much we say it, but how much it will draw us in and how it will inflame our hearts. If we lose the contemplative nature of the rosary, we will constantly approach it either out of force or in a magical way. Individual mysteries invite us to live the history of salvation with Mary and to see God's magnificent work in this story. Contemplating the mysteries of the lives of Mary and Jesus, we are invited not only to admire what once happened, but also to accept these situations in our lives. Repeating word by word and gazing with Mary at the heart of God makes us endowed with fullness of graces just as she is. Complimenting to Mary and giving her roses are a moment of wonder how good God is. This habitual repetition of words is filling our heart with Good News.
Not only October
October is not the only month for the rosary. It is only a motivation and an invitation to open our heart every day to meet God. It is a remedy for our anxieties, fears, that we carry in our hearts and telling them that God is with us - as He is with Mary. It is an invitation from God to our joys and successes and a thank you that they are really the fruit of God's grace working in our lives. Praying the rosary then does not become a compulsion or a magical work, but a privilege. Praying the rosary is an honor to which God invites us.
Until Tomorrow
fr. george