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October 1, 2005

The Rosary: A Tool of the Saints

Here's a post from Brian to celebrate the month of the roasry.

The Rosary: A Tool of the Saints

The month of October is also the month of the most "Holy Rosary." It is a time for Catholics to strengthen their relationship with the Blessed Virgin Mary and re-commit themselves to praying the rosary.

I have often mentioned, in past articles, that the rosary is a spiritual weapon that wages war against the forces of evil. It is a weapon that many saints have used to battle the enemy, including St. Dominic, St. Louis Marie De Montfort and Bl. Bartolo Longo. Yet the rosary is more than just a weapon. If prayed well and faithfully, it will become a staircase pointing straight to Heaven.

I am sure many of you know a little something about the story of Fatima; in 1917, the Blessed Virgin appeared six times to three shepherd children. Whenever I hear about or reflect upon the event, I am always drawn to what Our Lady said during her first apparition when Lucia asked if she and her two cousins would go to Heaven. Our Lady responded by saying, "Yes." However, she added that Lucia's cousin Francisco Marto would first have to pray many rosaries.

What is surprising is that Our Lady could have mentioned a number of spiritual remedies to help Francisco, such as, attending daily Mass, making a holy hour each day, or beginning a new apostolate for children. Rather, she simply suggested that Francisco pray many rosaries if he wanted to enter God's Kingdom.

This reminds me of a story that Pope John Paul I, while still a Cardinal, told about the connection between the rosary and gaining Heaven. The story went something like this - there once was a group of people who were stuck outside the gates of Heaven. They desperately wanted to enter the Kingdom, but no one would let them in. A young woman from amongst the crowd approached the gates and carefully analyzed the lock. As she looked at the design of the lock, she got an idea. She opened her purse pulled out her plastic rosary, placed the crucifix within the lock, turned it and the gates started to open.

In another example, the holy Capuchin friar, Padre Pio, was considered by many to be a "living rosary." His zeal and love for the rosary, which he called a "weapon," was simply incredible. He prayed it constantly and encouraged others to pray it as well. In fact, before he died he was quoted as saying that people should "always recite the rosary." Was this just a pious sentiment from a holy friar? No! These words were pure truth. St. Pio recognized the spiritual connection between praying the rosary and eternal salvation.

Another saint whose spiritual life was deeply rooted in the rosary was Bl. Bartolo Longo. He, like St. Pio, prayed the rosary constantly and encouraged others to pray it as well. His love and confidence in the rosary was so great that when becoming a third order Dominican, Bartolo took the name Brother Rosary.

One day, while praying to Our Lady, Bartolo zealously proclaimed, "I shall not depart from this earth without first displaying before you, the triumph of your rosary." Bartolo knew that those who faithfully prayed the rosary would not perish and at the moment of their death they "would participate in the merits of the saints in paradise."

I firmly believe that Our Lady's request at Fatima to pray the rosary daily was a mandate that came directly from Heaven. For those who ignore this mandate all I can say is - Please re-consider your position. For those of you who do pray the rosary, all I can say is - Praise God. Keep it up!

Our Lady of the Rosary, pray for us!

God bless.

Need a rosary? Let us know and we'll get one to you. (Make sure to write "rosary" in the comment box. Thanks!)

Posted by bobbi at October 1, 2005 8:13 AM

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