In the late sixteenth century the Christian world feared invasion by the Ottoman Turks. The Muslim armada was mighty and ruthless. Those who were not killed in battle by the Turks were captured and forced into a life of slavery.
In a last ditch effort to stave off the inevitable invasion of their countries by the powerful Ottoman navy, Pope Pius V called for the union of the naval forces from the Catholic European countries for one last battle. This Holy League was made up primarily of the naval forces of Spain, Venice and Genoa.
Before the Holy League embarked on their dangerous mission, Pope Pius V requested that each and every man aboard each of the vessels in their fleet, pray the Rosary and receive the Sacrament of Communion.
With a heavy heart he watched them embark on their journey, headed for the bay of Lepanto. But he was not done yet. He called on all of Europe to pray the Rosary for the success of the Holy League, for were they to fail, the Christian world would be crushed under the brute force of the Muslims.
Miraculously, the Christian fleet decimated the Turkish fleet, winning the unwinnable battle and saving the Christian world from being enslaved by cruel Muslim masters.
At the moment of victory Pius V, who was in a meeting at the Vatican, hundreds of miles away, walked over to the window and exclaimed: ‘The Christian fleet is victorious!’ And he knelt, offering prayers of thanksgiving to God.
That day was October 7, 1571, the day Pius V instituted as the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary because of her intercession for the success of the Holy League.
The power of the Rosary
Pope Pius XI describes the awesome power of the Rosary, the explanation behind the why of the miraculous victory of Lepanto: ‘The Rosary is a powerful weapon to put the demons to flight and keep oneself from sin… It not only serves admirably to overcome the enemies of God and of religion, but it is also a stimulus and an encouragement to the practice of the evangelical virtues, which it develops and cultivates in our souls. Above all it nourishes our Catholic Faith… If you desire peace in your hearts, in your homes, and in your country, assemble each evening to recite the Rosary. Let not even one day pass without saying it, no matter how burdened you may be with cares and labours.’
Despite the obvious power of the Holy Rosary, as demonstrated by the victory of Lepanto, we failed to recognize the importance of reciting this prayer every day.
In 1858 Our Lady appeared to Bernadette Soubirous and prayed the Rosary with her. As a result of the verification of these apparitions of Mary, a shrine and Church were constructed at Lourdes, France and pilgrims continue to flock there in search of healing through the intercession of Mary.
And yet, it seems, this was still not enough to convince our hard hearts. In 1917, Mary appeared again, this time in Fatima, Portugal, to three children; Francisco and Jacinta Marto and their cousin Lucia dos Santos.
During the first apparition, Lucia asked Our Lady if the children were going to go to Heaven. Lucia recounted in her memoirs that having been assured that both she and Jacinta were destined for eternal life with God, she asked if Francisco would get to Heaven and Mary replied: ‘Also, but he will have to say many Rosaries.’
Once again, from the very beginning of these apparitions, Mary stresses the importance of the Rosary, this time in relation to the saving of souls. She asked them and through them, the whole world, to pray the Rosary and do penance for the conversion of sinners.
It was as a result of these apparitions that the Fatima prayer was added to the recitation of the Rosary. The prayer: ‘O my Jesus , forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, and lead all souls to heaven, especially those in most need of Thy mercy,’ is now recited after the conclusion of each decade of the Rosary.
To Christ through Mary
In addition to its power to defeat enemies of the Church and religion and its work in the conversion of sinners, the Rosary also provides an opportunity for us to grow in our faith and meditate on the Gospels – the life of Christ.
Pope John Paul II, in his apostolic letter ‘Rosarium Virginis Mariae’ writes: ‘The Rosary, though clearly Marian in character, is at heart a Christocentric prayer. In the sobriety of its elements, it has all the depth of the Gospel message in its entirety, of which it can be said to be a compendium.’
In other words, whilst we may use the Rosary to pray for Mary’s intercession, the Rosary is not about Mary rather it is focused on Christ. Mary helps us to focus on her Son.
‘With the Rosary, the Christian people sits at the school of Mary and is led to contemplate the beauty on the face of Christ and to experience the depths of his love.’
The idea of the Rosary as the ‘school of Mary’ is a beautiful concept. Mary, our mother, is also our teacher and through her own unique experience as ‘privileged daughter, mother and spouse’ (Pius XII) our understanding of the life of Christ, and the work of redemption, is greatly heightened.
It is precisely her special relationship with the Trinity that provides her with the profound experiences of Christ that we could never possibly fully understand. Yet, bit by bit, decade by decade we gain some insight into these Mysteries of faith, from the Annunciation right through to the Coronation of Mary, from one who lived through it all and experienced in her own life the great power and majesty of God.
The Rosary bears much fruit
In his apostolic letter on the Rosary, John Paul II described the process by which we receive spiritual graces and fruit from Mary: ‘Through the Rosary the faithful receive abundant grace, as though from the very hands of the Mother of the Redeemer.’
From the recitation of the Joyful Mysteries we receive the Spiritual Fruits of: faith, kindness, humility, generosity and wisdom. The Sorrowful Mysteries provide us with: peace, self-control, mercy, joy and love. And the Glorious Mysteries bear the Spiritual fruits of: hope, victory, power, endurance and beauty.
From the Luminous Mysteries, which were added to the Rosary by Pope John Paul II in 2002 during the Year of the Rosary, we receive the fruits of: repentance, obedience, righteousness, glory and union with Christ.
All of these spiritual fruit bring us closer to Jesus Christ. Through the Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we are enabled with the very things we need to come closer to Christ and to make us holy. Mary is showing us the way to Heaven, encouraging us in holiness and interceding for us to her Son, all the while showering us with the spiritual fruit we need.
Meditating with Mary
St Paul, in his Letter to the Philipians instructs us: ‘Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.’ (Phil 4:8)
To meditate on the Mysteries of the Rosary is to do just this. For in each mystery is contained an important element of our faith.
When we reflect on the life of Mary, and of her Son, through the different decades of the Holy Rosary we are thinking about, and meditating on, that which is true, honourable, just, pure, pleasing, commendable, excellent and praiseworthy.
Further to this, meditating on these Mysteries of faith, show us the way to eternity, the way to Christ and in the meanwhile we are made holy by the continued recitation of our prayers.
The Rosary is far from being just a vocal prayer that we are obliged to say daily. The Rosary is a powerful weapon against sin and evil, a means for learning more about Christ and our Catholic faith, and is a chance for us to see the face of Christ through regular meditation and reflection.
Pope John Paul II eloquently summed up this idea of the beauty and depth of the Rosary and all that it offers for us when he wrote: ‘To recite the Rosary is nothing other than to contemplate with Mary the face of Christ.’
May we all continue to pray the Rosary daily, so that we might fix our gaze on the face of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour and, like Pius V, have faith in the power of the Rosary to defeat sin and evil in the world.
First published in Contact Magazine
Originally posted 2014-06-03 03:21:02.