October is the month in which we celebrate the gift of the Most Holy Rosary. According to CatholicCulture.com, in the year 1206 St. Dominic received the Rosary from the Blessed Virgin Mary in response to his prayers for aid, during a period in which he was losing his battle against heretics.
A good overview of its history is available here: https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/overviews/months/10_1.cfm
As I was praying the Rosary today, I was impressed with the “strategy” in creating this sacred prayer. Mary, our Mother, knew what we needed. Her goal in gifting mankind with the Rosary was to keep us focused on the life of Christ and the scriptures. I was thinking, now that my own parents are gone, that I should create a timeline of their special moments. I don’t want to write a biography, but rather would like a more succinct way to pass on the milestones of their blessed lives to our children and our grandchildren – a way to really remember not only them, but why their lives matter so much to us. Of course, that’s what all the Sunday family dinners were about. Dad would tell the same stories over and over again. There were times when I tuned out and shouldn’t have. Because now, those stories are getting more vague in my own mind. How am I to pass them to our children, and someday our grandchildren? And who knows how closely they will listen. I know little about my great grandparents’ real lives. Eventually, their stories will be forgotten.
With the Rosary, Mary has given us a gift and a request. She has given us the beautiful Rosary marking the most important moments in history, and she has also requested that we actually pray it. When she gave it to St. Dominic, she asked him to teach others to pray it. In virtually every apparition she has told the seers to pray the Rosary and to ask others to do the same. The Blessed Virgin Mary, through the gift of the Rosary, leads us to the reflect on the life of Jesus and the glory of God.
While saying to Rosary this afternoon I was listening to a download of “The Most Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary,” led by Baseball Hall of Famer and former Dodger Baseball Broadcaster Vin Scully, produced by Catholic Athletes for Christ. Scully does a wonderful job reading the details of each of the mysteries of the Rosary and then leading each prayer. There is an audience that is also praying along. I have found it to be a helpful way to pray the Rosary without getting lost in other thoughts, and therefore distracted.
I am hoping to bring more knowledge about the Virgin Mary to the world, especially during these times when we need her most. Please consider sharing this post, this site, or its social media pages on Facebook and Instagram. I invite you to subscribe to this site (below) to be notified of new posts. Thank you.
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