Word to the Wise
Friday, October 7, 2016 - Oct. 7 - Our Lady of the Rosary
[Acts 1:12-14 and Luke 1:26-38]FRIDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2016 OUR LADY OF THE ROSARY [Acts 1:12-14 and Luke 1:26-38. Scriptures may vary at Dominican locations because of the importance of this feast to our Order] "Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you!" There are few more recognizable Catholic objects than the rosary. We Dominicans have been involved in the promotion of this prayer since its early development. Even the fifteen familiar mysteries (before St. John Paul II added five more) were organized into the list we know by a Domincan friar in the 15th century. Pope Pius V (a Dominican) officially approved the list in 1571. The rosary developed as a combination of teaching and praying. It is highly portable and can be available simply by using one's own fingers! Yet, there is something very comforting about holding those beads in one's hands or even the little circular rosary we might have in our pocket or the one we have hanging on our rearview mirror in the car, etc.. it gets into Catholic life in all kinds of ways. Each morning I take a long walk and pray the rosary for friends, family and the Beloved Congregation (all of you!). Besides the fifteen familiar "mysteries" plus St. John Paul's "mysteries of light," on one day I add five of the "I AM" sayings of Jesus from the Gospel of John. I encourage everyone to be creative with using the gospels in this prayer because we can race through it without realizing the goal of meditating on the "mysteries" that are announced at the beginning of each decade. The history of the rosary is long and fascinating, but I don't have space and time for it today. Suffice it to say that we celebrate a great gift of prayer and scripture in the rosary. For us Dominicans it is literally a part of our "habit" and we promote it everywhere. I hope you can join us in this. AMEN