The rattling of the rosary beads is a familiar sound for many Catholics. St. Dominic helped to popularize the use of the rosary in the 13th century, which tradition says that he received it from the Blessed Mother, and today it is used by Catholics to draw deeper into prayer and grow in holiness. There are some criticisms that it is man-made, but if we look closely, we will see that it is in fact rooted in Sacred Scripture as each prayer and mystery is taken directly from the Bible. So, every time we pray the rosary, we are reflecting on Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection! This month’s saint, Louis de Montfort, helped to bring about a deeper devotion to the rosary and even inspired St. John Paul II to adopt the motto Totus Tuu which means “all yours”.
Born on January 31, 1673 in Montfort, France as the eldest child of eighteen, Louis was taught at a young age the value of the sacraments. He took those teachings to heart to the point where he attended adoration on a regular basis. At the age of 12, he was sent to the Jesuit college of St. Thomas Becket, where his uncle was a parish priest, to study as a day pupil. Even then the young Louis was faithful as he never failed to visit the church there before and after classes. He also joined a fraternity of young men who would minister to the poor, comfort the sick, and read to the bedridden during their days off.
However, what truly influenced Louis was the local priest, Abbe Julien Bellier, who told stories which helped him to develop a love for preaching and a devotion to the Blessed Mother. So, at the age of 19, he decided to travel by foot to Paris to study theology. Along the way, he was moved to give alms and exchange clothing with the poor. He even made a vow to only live off the charity of others from that point on. He was ordained as a priest at the age of 27 and was assigned as a chaplain at a local hospital, but it was only at the age of 32, he discovered his true vocation to travel and preach the Gospel. Though he experienced some difficulties his life was full of virtue because he practiced constant prayer, love for the poor, living a life of poverty, and joy in suffering.
Louis describes the rosary as a true devotion to the Blessed Mother and compares it to the relationship a child has for his mother. When we are devoted to the Blessed Virgin, we
“implore our Mother's help always, everywhere, and for everything. We pray to her to be enlightened in our doubts, to be put back on the right path when we go astray, to be protected when we are tempted, to be strengthened when we are weakening, to be lifted up when we fall into sin, to be encouraged when we are losing heart, to be rid of our scruples, to be consoled in the trials, crosses and disappointments of life.”
This is why in the Secret of the Rosary, Louis gives us some advice to help us to best recite the Rosary:
Purity of Intention – Louis often said that one Hail Mary said with fervor, purity, and respect is worth more than many that are poorly said. It was also important to have contriteness for sin, otherwise, he calls its mere lip service which takes on a false form of devotion by hiding under Mary’s mantle. However, it is by reflecting on the life of Jesus, especially the sorrowful mysteries, we must be moved to repentance for sin.
Paying attention – “How can we expect God to listen to us if we ourselves do not pay attention to what we are saying?”
Ask for a special grace - a “big fault a lot of people make when saying the Holy Rosary is to have no intention other than that of getting it over as quickly as possible.” A good way to counter this is to ask for a special grace before you begin the rosary.
Perseverance - “God’s generosity is shown in His making us seek and ask for, over a long period of time, the grace which He wishes to give us and quite often the more precious the grace, the longer He takes to grant it. There are three reasons why He does this: 1. To thus increase this grace still more: 2. To make the recipient more deeply appreciate it; 3. To make the soul who receives it very careful indeed not to lose it-for people do not appreciate things that they can get quickly and with very little trouble.”
Here is a good short Marian prayer from St. Louis de Montfort:
O Holy Spirit,
give me great devotion to Mary,
Thy faithful spouse;
give me great confidence in her maternal heart
and an abiding refuge in her mercy,
so that by her Thou mayest truly form in me Jesus Christ,
great and mighty, unto the fullness of His perfect age.
Amen.
Be awesome and blossom 🌱
By: anh Daniel
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