📿Instituted by Pope St. Pius V in 1571 to commemorate the miraculous victory of the Christian fleet at the Battle of Lepanto, the feast of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary celebrates the power of Marian prayer. The victory was directly attributed to the intercession of the Virgin Mary, invoked through the recitation of the Rosary throughout Christendom. This commemoration reminds us that the Rosary is not just a devotion, but a powerful spiritual weapon against the enemies of the faith and for the salvation of souls. As St. Louis Marie Grignion de Montfort said, "the Rosary is the most excellent form of prayer and the most effective means of attaining perfection."
✝️Introit (Ps 44:2)
Let us all rejoice in the Lord, celebrating this day in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary; for her solemnity the Angels rejoice and praise the Son of God. Ps. My heart hath uttered a good word: I speak my works to the King. ℣. Glory be to the Father...
📖Reading (Prov 8:22-24, 32-35)
The Lord possessed me in the beginning of his ways, before he made any thing from the beginning. I was set up from eternity, and of old before the earth was made. The depths were not as yet, and I was already conceived. Now therefore, ye children, hear me: Blessed are they that keep my ways. Hear instruction, and be wise, and refuse it not. Blessed is the man that heareth me, and that watcheth daily at my gates, and waiteth at the posts of my doors. He that shall find me, shall find life, and shall have salvation from the Lord.
🕊️Gospel (Lk 1:26-38)
At that time, the Angel Gabriel was sent from God into a city of Galilee, called Nazareth, to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. And the Angel being come in, said unto her: Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. Who having heard, was troubled at his saying, and thought with herself what manner of salutation this should be. And the Angel said to her: Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found grace with God. Behold thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shalt bring forth a son; and thou shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the most High; and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of David his father; and he shall reign in the house of Jacob for ever. And of his kingdom there shall be no end. And Mary said to the Angel: How shall this be done, because I know not man? And the Angel answering, said to her: The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the most High shall overshadow thee. And therefore also the Holy which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. And behold thy cousin Elizabeth, she also hath conceived a son in her old age; and this is the sixth month with her that is called barren: because no word shall be impossible with God. And Mary said: Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it done to me according to thy word.
🤔Reflections
💬The Gospel of the Annunciation forms the heart of the prayer we ceaselessly repeat in the Rosary. The Angel's words, "Hail, full of grace," are not a simple greeting but the recognition of a unique divine fullness. St. Bernard of Clairvaux urges us to contemplate the magnitude of Mary's "fiat," upon which our entire redemption depended. Heaven, earth, and even those who had already died waited in suspense for her response. Every "Hail Mary" we pray in the Rosary is a union with her "yes," an act of faith in the power of God manifested through her humility, making her Co-Redemptrix and Mother of all who live by grace (St. Bernard of Clairvaux, Homily 4 on the Glories of the Virgin Mother).
💡The Reading applies to Mary the attributes of uncreated Wisdom, for She is the "Seat of Wisdom." She was established from eternity in God's plan to be the Mother of the Savior. The promise "He that shall find me, shall find life" is perfectly fulfilled in Our Lady. Devotion to Her, especially through the Holy Rosary, is a sure path to finding Christ, who is Life itself. By meditating on the mysteries, Mary instructs us and makes us wise, not with the wisdom of the world, but with the wisdom of the Cross and the Glory of her Son (St. Alphonsus Liguori, The Glories of Mary).
📜The practice of the Rosary as a meditation on the life of Christ and His Most Holy Mother has been exalted by numerous Pontiffs as an effective remedy for the evils of society. The meditation on the joyful, sorrowful, and glorious mysteries combats ignorance of the faith and the weakening of morals, nourishing the soul with eternal truths. The vocal repetition of the prayers, far from being vain, serves to keep the mind focused on contemplation, lifting the spirit to God and imprinting the virtues of Jesus and Mary on the heart of the faithful, making them a soldier of Christ prepared for the daily spiritual combat (Pope Leo XIII, Encyclical Supremi Apostolatus Officio).
🧐See English version of the critical articles here.
f1descatholica.blogspot.com