The Prayer of The Rosary

Dear readers, good morning. Today I would like to talk about the rosary. This very famous Catholic prayer, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, is known among Catholics for being specially beloved by the Heavens.

Beginning with the Creed, then an Our Father, then three Hail Maries and a Glory Be, followed by series of an Our Father, ten Hail Maries, and a Glory Be, each of such series being prayed while meditating one of the misteries of the life of Christ and Mary. It is then finished with a Hail Holy Queen.

Many saints, such as Padre Pio (of Pietrelcina), and the Virgin Mary herself, in apparitions such as that of Fátima (1917), have always strongly recommended the prayer, preferably daily, of the rosary:

“One day through the Rosary and the Scapular I will save the world.”
-Blessed Virgin Mary to St. Dominic

“Say the Rosary every day to obtain peace for the world.”
-Our Lady of Fatima, 1917

“The greatest method of praying is to pray the Rosary.” .
-St. Francis de Sales

“Those who say the Rosary daily and wear the Brown Scapular and who do a little more, will go straight to Heaven.”
-St. Alphonsus Liguori

“Among all the devotions approved by the Church none has been favored by so many miracles as the devotion of the most Holy Rosary. ”
-Pope Pius IX

“The rosary is the scourge of the devil”
-Pope Adrian VI

“The Rosary is THE WEAPON.”
-St. Padre Pio

“The rosary is the most powerful weapon to touch the Heart of Jesus, Our redeemer, who loves His Mother.”
-St. Louis Marie Grignion de Montfort

“If there were one million families praying the Rosary every day, the entire world would be saved.”
-Pope St. Pius X

“There is no surer means of calling down God’s blessing upon the family than the daily recitation of the Rosary.”
-Pope Pius XII

“We put great confidence in the Holy Rosary for the healing of evils which afflict our times.”
-Pope Pius XII

“The Rosary is a school for learning true Christian perfection.”
-Pope John XXIII

Of course, such as with any other prayer, the efficiency and fruits of it will depend not as much on the prayer itself as on your level of faith. Therefore, it's not like the rosary is some kind of magical amulet, but rather, it is a great way of devoting the Catholic faith and expressing it. First must come the faith, and then the prayer.

One might ask: but hasn't Christ warned against vain repetitions? Yes, he has. Against VAIN repetitions. That is, pointless and superstitious repetitions, as if conjuring a magic spell. A repetition that is practiced as a result of fervour and faith, on the other hand, is greatly powerful and dear to God.

Merely remember the man who cried, repeatedly, "Son of David, have mercy on me!", asking Christ to cure him, insistently crying the same words. Christ, far from reprimanding him, helped him, rewarding him for his faith.

Another example is the one that Christ Himself gives us through the parable of the pharisee and the publican, in which the latter, insistently, begs God to have mercy on him. Once again, this is not a vain repetition, but a fervorous repetition, resulting from the ardent desire of salvation. And Christ Himself gives such example as a lesson on how to call upon you God's favour.

Others accuse Catholics of idolatry when we devote ourselves to the Virgin Mary or any other saint. Well, first, they should be attentive to how the angel Gabriel, and then her cousin Elizabeth, all honor her greatly, in virtue of the maternity of Christ. For the same reason do we.

Plus, idolatry is THE WORSHIP OF FALSE GODS. Not every act of devotion, prayer, genuflexion is an act of worship. We don't worship Mary, we don't think she's a goddess. We honor her below Jesus Christ, but above the others, in virtue of her maternity and perfect obedience to God. Therefore we praise her as one more means of praising, ultimately, God Himself.

The power of intercession is possessed by all. We can all pray for each other, and are invited to do so. The reason why the saints are special in this regard is that they are already in Heaven, directly close to God, plus their merits obtained before Him during their lives. Yes, because though everything good comes from God and not men, it is up to men the choice of becoming instruments to such goods, and here lies their merit. The saints are those who did this in a particularly intense way. That's it.

The Virgin has the most of such merits, for in absolutely everything she was united to God and obediently His instrument in the plan of redemption, in which she had a fundamental role, as mother of Christ and, by His extension, at the cross (before St. John), of the entire mankind.

That is why the Christians have always honored her greatly, since the earliest times of the Church.

Rio de Janeiro, January 17th, 2021.