Tag Archives: Rosary

Love for Mary, our Mother

Our Blessed Mother with the child Jesus

Before he died on the Cross, Jesus said to St John and to all of us: “Behold your Mother.” Mary is truly the mother of everyone. In this meditation we use texts of Scripture, St Bernard and St Josemaria to consider how:

  • In conceiving Jesus in her womb, and later giving birth to him in Bethlehem, Mary became the mother of all the members of Christ’s Mystical Body, the Church
  • At Calvary Mary suffered unspeakably with Jesus for all mankind and this moves her to love us all the more
  • Mary draws sinners to Jesus
  • Mary exercises her motherly role with the apostles and with all of us
  • Mary intercedes for us before Jesus in a powerful way
  • We can take Mary into our own keeping and love her, as St John did, through the various Marian prayers and customs, especially the rosary

The Rosary, a powerful prayer

The Rosary, which developed out of Christian piety over the centuries, has shown itself to be a very powerful prayer. In this meditation we consider how:
  • The Rosary gradually developed over the centuries
  • St Dominic used the Rosary to win over the heretics of his day
  • The Rosary has been credited with winning military battles, including that of Lepanto
  • Following Our Lady’s apparitions at Fatima, the Rosaries said for the conversion of Russia helped bring down the Communist regimes in Eastern Europe
  • The Rosary is powerful in uniting families
  • The  Rosary helps those who say it to grow in holiness

Praying the Rosary better

One of the most powerful and most loved devotions is the Rosary. In this meditation we use St John Paul II’s Apostolic Letter “Rosarium Virginis Mariae”, by which he introduced the Luminous Mysteries in 2002, to come to a deeper understanding of the Rosary so that we can say it better. We consider how:

  • The Rosary unites us with the liturgy
  • The Rosary, in addition to being a Marian prayer, is essentially centred on Christ
  • The Rosary is a contemplative prayer
  • The repetition of Hail Marys is an expression of love
  • Silence has a place in the Rosary
  • The beads have a symbolic meaning
  • The Rosary unites families and gives them peace

Prayer in Lent

Prayer is one of the three principal focuses of our Lenten discipline, along with fasting and almsgiving. In this meditation we consider how:

  • Christ himself gives us an example of fervent and assiduous prayer
  • Prayer unites us with Christ and helps us become true friends with him
  • Prayer can take four forms
  • Prayer requires effort
  • We can improve our prayer life in Lent in a number of ways

Holiness in ordinary life

Pope Francis has given the Church the Apostolic Exhortation Gaudete et Exsultate (“Rejoice and be glad”) on the call to holiness in today’s world. Today’s world is very much in need of holiness as it distances itself ever more from God, and the Pope proposes a way of holiness for everyone, for the “middle class”. In this meditation we use this document to consider how:

  • We are all called to holiness since God has loved each one of us and we should love him in return.
  • The Second Vatican Council stated clearly the universal call to holiness.
  • We do not need to withdraw from the world in order to be saints. We can find and love God right where we are in the world.
  • God has given us through the Church all the means we need to grow in holiness.
  • We can find and love God through the most ordinary activities of each day.

The power of the rosary

Our Lady of the Rosary

Our Lady asked the children at Fatima in 1917 to pray the rosary each day. We would all do well to heed that request, if only because it pleases our Mother. But we benefit too from praying the rosary, which is a very powerful prayer. In this meditation we consider how:

  • The rosary arose out of popular piety.
  • Our Lady urged us to pray the rosary at Lourdes and Fatima.
  • Many Popes and saints have recommended the rosary.
  • The rosary is a powerful prayer which contributed to the conversion of heretics by St Dominic,  victory in the battle of Lepanto, the collapse of communist regimes in the 20th century and the conversion of sinners.

The power of the Rosary

our-lady-of-the-rosary

Our Lady is our intercessor. And, we can ask her to intercede for us using the rosary.

The rosary is a beautiful prayer, in which we honour Our Lady in the Hail Marys and we meditate on the life of Christ in the mysteries. It is also a powerful prayer, which has brought about many great and small blessings over the centuries. In this meditation we consider how:

  • St Dominic used the rosary to win over the heretics
  • The battle of Lepanto was won with many people praying the rosary
  • The communist regime in Russia collapsed after many rosaries were said in response to Our Lady’s request at Fatima
  • Many people have been converted through the rosary
  • Families who pray the rosary find peace and harmony
  • The rosary is a great comfort to the sick and the dying
  • Those who pray the rosary are helped to grow in love for God and Our Lady

Witnesses for Christ

Christ sends the apostles

We are called to be witnesses to Christ. Here we see our Lorde sending out his disciples.

 

Christ has called all the baptised and sent us out to be his witnesses in the world, to bear fruit that will abide. If we are to fulfill this mission we must be branches very much united to the vine. We do this through our life of prayer, following a daily plan. In this meditation we will consider:

  • Our calling to be witnesses for Christ
  • How we must be branches united to the vine
  • The need for a daily plan of spiritual activities, just as we have a daily plan of meals, work, relaxation and sleep
  • The principal activities of this plan

Meditation – Love for the Rosary

In 1883, Pope Leo XIII declared October the month of the Rosary. The Holy Rosary is a traditional prayer, going back at least a thousand years. It is a prayer we should say often and well. In this meditation we consider:

  • How the Rosary came to be
  • The recommendation of the Rosary by popes and saints
  • Why the Rosary is such a powerful prayer
  • Why the Rosary is such a rich prayer
  • The importance of the family Rosary
  • How we can say it better

God in the family

 

We all want to have a happy, united family but it is not always easy to make our desires a reality. In this meditation we consider the importance of the family for society and some practical ways of strengthening family life, following words of advice from Pope Francis. We will consider:

  • the importance of the family for society
  • how husband and wife can strengthen their relationship
  • the importance of welcoming Christ into the home
  • generosity in bringing children into the world
  • how children are a gift from God
  • the importance of teaching children to honour and respect their parents and each other