Today is Oct. 7, the memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary.
Today’s feast of the Virgin Mary is an especially beautiful one. Traditionally the entire month of October is dedicated to the Holy Rosary. But today, Oct 7, marks the days when Our Lady’s intercession in the battle of Lepanto saved Rome (in fact, it’s not too much to say, the entire Christian West!). At the instigation of Pope St. Pius V, Rome’s churches were kept open day and night and the faithful were encouraged to pray the Rosary. The pope attributed the victory to Our Lady’s protection.
Today the battles we face are different from Lepanto, to be sure. But we would be fools not to take up the Rosary as our great spiritual weapon. How does Our Lady’s Psalter, as the Rosary is sometimes called, help us?
First, praying the Rosary guides our prayer. It can be difficult to collect your thoughts when you sit down to pray. But I’ve always found the Rosary helps quiet my anxieties and direct my focus. I’ve found that meditating on the mysteries really intentionally (sometimes reminding myself at the beginning of each Hail Mary which mystery I’m on) to be of great help in prayer.
Second, the Rosary grows with us. You might have learned to pray the Rosary years ago, but it’s the sort of prayer you can always turn to. I’ve found I continue to discover new insights every time I pick up my beads!
Finally, the Rosary is a prayer of hope. The Rosary tells the story of God’s grace, of his goodness, reminding us of his love! So confidently turn to the Virgin Mary and pick up your Rosary today — and every day this October!
Prayer to the Virgin Mary:
Pour forth, we beseech you, O Lord, your grace into our hearts, that we, to whom the Incarnation of Christ your Son was made known by the message of an Angel, may, through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, by his Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of his Resurrection. Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.
My Daily Visitor spiritual reflections are a dose of daily Catholic inspiration from Our Sunday Visitor magazine.
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