Saturday, October 10, 2009

Pope Leads "Prayer of the Rosary with Africa and for Africa"


Associated Press Sat Oct 10, 1:54 PM ET
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Pope Benedict XVI gestures to the faithful at the end of the 'Prayer of the Rosary with Africa and for Africa' in the Paul VI Hall, at the Vatican, Saturday, Oct. 10, 2009. (AP Photo/Pier Paolo Cito)

And from the Sun Star:

Lagura: A prayer, ever ancient, ever new
Saturday, October 10, 2009

By Fr. Flor Lagura, SVD

FOR Christian Europe, the prayer of the Holy Rosary during the Battle of Lepanto in October 7, 1571 turned the tide in favor of the Christian forces in their bitter naval battle against the much-feared and hitherto invincible navy and army of the Ottoman Empire. Our Lady, the Christian sailors and soldiers claimed, gave them victory.

Today, nearly 4 centuries later there are people who question the meaning and purpose of what they call “saying the beads.” However, great men and women do pray the rosary, and with much devotion as well as conviction.

The late Pope John Paul II fondly states in his apostolic letter, “The Rosary of the Virgin Mary,” (Rosarium Virginis Mariae): “The rosary has accompanied me in moments of joy and in moments of difficulty. To it I have entrusted any number of concerns: in it I have always found comfort. The Rosary is my favorite prayer. It is marvelous in its simplicity and depth.”

The late Mons. Simeon Valerio prayed the rosary every night for his priests in the Vicariate Apostolic of Mindoro regardless of how some of them felt or thought about his leadership.

Our own Benedict XVI, a great theologian in his own right, prays the rosary every time he walks around the Vatican gardens. For him the rosary contains a wonderfully succinct and beautiful summary of the Gospel.

To those who ask what do we pray the rosary for, the late Jesuit spiritual writer, Fr. Anthony de Mello, writes: “Until the next life we shall not realize how the destinies of persons and nations have been shaped, not so much by the external actions of powerful people and by event that seemed inevitable, but by the quiet, silent, irresistible daily prayer of persons the world will never know.”
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