The Madonna of the Rosary by Tommaso Minardi, 1841

FROM an essay by Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira in commemoration of the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, which is observed on October 7th:

The feast day of Our Lady of the Rosary was instituted by St. Pius V in commemoration of the victory of the Battle of Lepanto on October 7, 1571 against the Turks who were threatening Europe. In 1716, the feast was extended to the entire Church in thanksgiving for the defeat of the Muslim Crescent in Hungary.

The devotion of the rosary was revealed to St. Dominic by Our Lady. It was born, therefore, in a private revelation. And we know that such revelations are abhorred by the enemies of the Church – internal and external. Although it came from a private revelation, the praying of the Rosary was extended to the entire Catholic Church, and was considered by St. Louis Grignion de Montfort as the characteristic devotion of predestined souls.

Before Vatican II, the habits of many religious Orders had rosaries that hung on their cinctures, and good Catholics used to carry the rosary with them all day. It was considered not only an item for counting the Hail-Mary’s, but a blessed object, the seal of a special liaison of the person with Our Lady. Many times, the mere physical presence of the rosary would repel the Devil and attract special graces. It became the classic religious object to fight against the Devil.

What is the rosary? The rosary is a series of mediations on the mysteries from the lives of Our Lord and Our Lady. These mysteries are simultaneously prayers that one says vocally and meditations that one makes mentally. This mixture of vocal prayer and meditation is a splendid thing, because while the lips pronounce a plea, the mind concentrates on a point of the mystery. It is a dual activity that intimately unites one with God.

The practice of praying the rosary to beg a grace from God supposes the theological truth that Our Lady is the Universal Mediatrix of all graces. It is, therefore, a small masterpiece of spirituality and Catholic doctrine as they should be understood. The rosary is not a religious custom relying on emotions, but rather a serious, solid, and meditative pious practice, which explains why the rosary has obtained so many graces. [cont.]

— Comments —

Ingrid writes:

Thank you for linking to the article on the rosary. While I actually find it quite difficult to pray the rosary (I almost always get distracted), I do pray it daily. Nonetheless, I love the rosary! I buy a rosary nearly every time that I visit a shrine or cathedral. I keep a rosary in my purse. I also keep a rosary in my pocket all day, and if I don’t have pockets, I wear one around my neck. I keep rosaries on the cribs of my daughter (we were given an extra one second-hand, so I keep it on the ground floor of our house), on a part of the crib that she can’t reach (for the time being, at least!). I have a rosary bracelet that I usually wear when I go out.

I joined the Universal Living Rosary Association a few months ago. If you are not familiar with this organisation, they assign members to pray one set decade of the rosary every day. In this way, members participate every day in the prayers of millions of rosaries! I typically pray my decade in addition to a complete five-decade rosary, but some days I only manage to pray one or two decades. (Some days I manage to get in 15 decades or even 20, but that is unusual.)

I don’t know if you have ever been to Pompei, or if you know this painting, but it is my favorite Marian image.

It might sound silly, but it changed my life. I realize that this painting is not on the same artistic level as much of Catholic art, but there was something about it that struck me. It is a popular image around here, so I’m not the only person on whom it made such an impression.

I’m very devoted to the Madonna of the Rosary of Pompei – it was while visiting that shrine I made a decision to convert and to change my life. I have copies of this painting in my bedroom and my kitchen. I used to visit the shrine frequently, but I haven’t been there in a few months.

Unfortunately, I don’t have a working rosary from this shrine at the moment…I fell asleep while praying the rosary that I had and somehow managed to smash a couple of the beads.

In the Sacred and Immaculate Hearts of Jesus and Mary,

Ingrid

Laura writes:

The Rosary is a mystical garden. If we enter it with child-like wonder, it’s okay if we get distracted. Don’t children always get distracted?

That is a remarkable painting. I can fully understand why it changed your life.

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