the rosary
The rosary is the most basic or should I say the most simple of prayers. It came to be when the lay people mostly uneducated could no longer pray as the monks did with the psalms in Latin. And so this prayer made do as a substitute. The recitation of the Our Father served as an antiphon while the Hail Marys served as the psalms. In a complete rosary then there were 150 Hail Marys as there are 150 psalms. And with the meditation of the mysteries of the Lord they fulfilled the very purpose why a Christian has to pray at various times of the day - as St. Hippolytus said: Semper Christum in memoria habere – that we may always be mindful of Christ - who he is, and what he had done for us. The Hail Mary’s, the Our Father’s, the Glory Be’s serve as a setting, the background music, so to say, for remembering what Christ has done for you and me in the joyful mysteries where he became man for our salvation; in the luminous mysteries where he labored in his public ministry to bring man back to the Father; in the sorrowful mysteries, where he suffered, and died for our sake; and in the glorious mysteries where he conquered death and brought life. Together with this remembrance is the cooperation of the Blessed Mother and her eventual glorification which will also be ours if we become faithful like her. The Hail Mary’s serve as a background to better facilitate our remembering of what Christ has done for you and me and what he will do for us at the time of fulfillment.
This implies therefore that the rosary becomes a handy, all around, anytime prayer and not just a formal prayer to be prayed solely in the formality of a chapel in community. This is the reason why I encourage you to bring at all times your rosary so that you can pray this wonderful prayer anytime and anywhere. The rosary should always be at hand – no specific time is needed. It is a spontaneous prayer whenever we find ourselves alone with God.
The venerable Pope John Paul II did this and so did Mother Teresa. When they find themselves alone and in silence their lips start moving praying the rosary with their rosary beads at hand. Why is this so? So that throughout the day, whether while walking in the garden, or just waiting for something, while in a jeep or under a tree, you will always be mindful of what Christ has done for you and for me - semper Christum in memoria habere.
Please pray the rosary with us in the Cathedral at 5 in the morning and at 6 in the evening. If you can’t make it pray the rosary in your barangay chapels, in your homes or alone. It is as I said a beautiful prayer, simple yet rich.
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I would like to thank the many people who have helped us welcome Lorenzo in this world. That one “mistake” made by the mother opened up the gates of affection from our parishioners. I was really touched by what one said to me in her concern. She said, “Father, life has to be defended at all cost.” I never thought of it that way before. For me it was just a natural instinct, that I believe each one has, to embrace a helpless child who comes to us in need of care. But as she said it was so and I believe it. All this talk againstthe evils of abortion, the evils of abandoning a child in the waste bin of an airplane or throwing him over a Restroom window is nothing compared to what and how this parish reacted for Lorenzo’s sake. The care, the affection, the welcome is an eloquent proclamation of the sacredness and beauty of human life.
This implies therefore that the rosary becomes a handy, all around, anytime prayer and not just a formal prayer to be prayed solely in the formality of a chapel in community. This is the reason why I encourage you to bring at all times your rosary so that you can pray this wonderful prayer anytime and anywhere. The rosary should always be at hand – no specific time is needed. It is a spontaneous prayer whenever we find ourselves alone with God.
The venerable Pope John Paul II did this and so did Mother Teresa. When they find themselves alone and in silence their lips start moving praying the rosary with their rosary beads at hand. Why is this so? So that throughout the day, whether while walking in the garden, or just waiting for something, while in a jeep or under a tree, you will always be mindful of what Christ has done for you and for me - semper Christum in memoria habere.
Please pray the rosary with us in the Cathedral at 5 in the morning and at 6 in the evening. If you can’t make it pray the rosary in your barangay chapels, in your homes or alone. It is as I said a beautiful prayer, simple yet rich.
_____________________
I would like to thank the many people who have helped us welcome Lorenzo in this world. That one “mistake” made by the mother opened up the gates of affection from our parishioners. I was really touched by what one said to me in her concern. She said, “Father, life has to be defended at all cost.” I never thought of it that way before. For me it was just a natural instinct, that I believe each one has, to embrace a helpless child who comes to us in need of care. But as she said it was so and I believe it. All this talk againstthe evils of abortion, the evils of abandoning a child in the waste bin of an airplane or throwing him over a Restroom window is nothing compared to what and how this parish reacted for Lorenzo’s sake. The care, the affection, the welcome is an eloquent proclamation of the sacredness and beauty of human life.
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