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Letter of encouragement from Bishop Guy Harpigny

Rosary for Faith, Life and Peace on 13th October 2018

From the first century onwards, the Church has always prayed to the Blessed Virgin Mary. In the 12th century, Christians praying the Ave Maria began the devotion of the “Psalterium Beatae Mariae Virginis” of 150 Ave Marias, just as the Psalter contains 150 psalms.

Henry Egher, a Carthusian monk, who died in Cologne in 1408, divided the 150 Ave Marias into 15 decades. Dominic de Prusse, also a Carthusian monk, who died in 1461, united the recitation of the decades with the contemplation of the mysteries of the life of Jesus Christ. The Dominican monk, Alain de la Roche, who died in 1475, spread the initiative of Saint Dominic de Guzman (13th century), founder of the Dominican order, who asked his faithful regularly to pray the Ave Maria.

The 150 Ave Marias include three rosaries, each one containing five decades. We call it the “Rosary”, in reference to the roses that can be seen on many paintings of Our Lady.

Popes have always recommended the recitation of the rosary. Pope Paul VI (in Marialis Cultus, 1974), who will be canonized on 14th October 2018, encouraged it strongly. Saint John Paul II (in Rosarium Virginis Mariae, 2002) added a fourth rosary (the luminous mysteries) to the existing rosary.

Since the addition of the fourth Rosary by Saint John Paul II, we have:

Joyful mysteries:

  • Annunciation to Mary
  • Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth
  • Nativity of Jesus in Bethlehem
  • Presentation of Jesus in the Temple
  • Jesus’ recovery at the Temple at the age of twelve

Luminous mysteries:

  • Baptism of Jesus in the Jordan
  • Marriage of Cana
  • Announcement of the Kingdom of God and call for conversion
  • Transfiguration of Jesus
  • Institution of the Eucharist

Sorrowful mysteries:

  • Agony of Jesus in the Olive Garden
  • Flagellation of Jesus
  • Coronation of thorns
  • Carrying of the Cross
  • Crucifixion and death of Jesus

Glorious mysteries:

  • Resurrection of Jesus
  • Ascension of Jesus
  • Effusion of the Spirit at Pentecost
  • Dormition and Assumption of Mary
  • Coronation of Mary in heaven

Not long ago, Catholic faithful from Ireland, the United Kingdom, Poland and other countries, gathered on the borders of their countries to pray the rosary.

Now, a group of Belgian faithful are encouraging all of us to pray the rosary in many places in Belgium on 13th October 2018 at 3pm, to ask Our Lady for the renewal of faith, for the protection of life and for peace of heart.

These faithful are joining with several similar initiatives which already exist in the diocese.

I encourage all those belonging to my diocese to pray the rosary together on 13th October for faith, life and peace.

+ Guy Harpigny,

Bishop of Tournai

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How to approach the Rosary on the borders?

The Rosary on the Borders is an initiative that was launched by a group of Catholics in Poland, and it slowly spread to various countries throughout the world. The idea was to respond to the first request of Our Lady at Fatima: “Pray the rosary every day to obtain peace in the world and the end of the war”.

The rosary is a perfect prayer

This request was repeated at each apparition of Our Lady in Fatima, before any other request. It seems clear this prayer was the cornerstone of the spiritual structure that God wanted to build, in order to save the world from the material, moral and physical evils of World War One, and to preserve us from an “even worse war, which would break out during the reign of Pope Pius XI” if we did not listen to Our Lady’s demands.

Why is the rosary so important?

The importance of the rosary arises from its very nature. All the Saints consider the rosary to be powerful, because it contains all the qualities of a perfect prayer, addressed to the most perfect creature, Our Lady, Mother of Our Lord and of all human beings.

Firstly, the rosary allows us to meditate upon the mysteries of the works performed by Our Lord and Our Lady in order to obtain our salvation.

The regular repetition of the different mysteries makes present to us in prayer the lives of Our Lord and His mother. This is a very powerful means, given by Our Lady to Saint Dominic, to help us remember these mysteries.

Through our union with the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Mother of God, we are able to deepen our knowledge of these mysteries, and to obtain the graces and the virtues that they contain. The great virtue of this prayer is that it helps us to understand the feelings of Our Lady, who “treasured in Her Heart all the things that She saw”.

It is also a communal prayer. The rosary makes Our Lady present amongst us, the Queen of Heaven and Our Mother – more as a Mother than as a Queen.

An image used by the Curé of Ars to describe the rosary, is that of a piece of straw on fire. It burns without producing much light or heat, but when many pieces of straw are gathered together and burned, they generate a great amount of light and heat. The aim of the Rosary on the Borders is to gather around Our Lady all Her human children, scattered and dispersed by sin.

The rosary is a school of Christian life

Secondly, the perfection of the rosary arises from the fact that it is more than a school of prayer; it is also a school of virtue.

The repeated meditation of the mysteries of the rosary enables us to admire the work of Jesus and His Mother, undertaken for our salvation. Our admiration leads us towards gratitude for such a Divine love for us, poor sinners, and finally to the complete consecration of ourselves to the Hearts of Jesus and Mary, in order to serve Them more generously. This love can lead us to renew our baptismal vows, when our godparents promised, in our name, to avoid sin, not to offend Our Lord and to imitate Him by practicing the Christian virtues.

That is why the rosary, apart from being a school of prayer, is also a school of virtue, as Our Lord told us: “I am meek and humble of heart”. Humility and kindness are the real marks of Christianity, and the sole basis for peace between people, among families and within countries.

Many Popes throughout the centuries have encouraged the recitation of the rosary, on account of its great power. Their teachings can be summarized in a few words: the rosary is a school of Christian education, a school that forms spiritual and moral standards, a divine method, an unsurpassed school of Christian life.

In one of many encyclicals dedicated to the rosary, and a very good summary of all of them, Pope Leo XIII describes the efficacy of the rosary: “Those who pray the rosary experience the same feeling as they would if they were listening to the Mother of Mercy explaining all these mysteries to them, and talking to them about their salvation”.

Finally, let us recall the words of Saint Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort: “Through the Ave Maria, sin will be destroyed, and Jesus will reign over us”.

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How to approach the Rosary on the borders?

The Rosary on the Borders is an initiative that was launched by a group of Catholics in Poland, and it slowly spread to various countries throughout the world. The idea was to respond to the first request of Our Lady at Fatima: “Pray the rosary every day to obtain peace in the world and the end of the war”.

The rosary is a perfect prayer

This request was repeated at each apparition of Our Lady in Fatima, before any other request. It seems clear this prayer was the cornerstone of the spiritual structure that God wanted to build, in order to save the world from the material, moral and physical evils of World War One, and to preserve us from an “even worse war, which would break out during the reign of Pope Pius XI” if we did not listen to Our Lady’s demands.

Why is the rosary so important?

The importance of the rosary arises from its very nature. All the Saints consider the rosary to be powerful, because it contains all the qualities of a perfect prayer, addressed to the most perfect creature, Our Lady, Mother of Our Lord and of all human beings.

Firstly, the rosary allows us to meditate upon the mysteries of the works performed by Our Lord and Our Lady in order to obtain our salvation.

The regular repetition of the different mysteries makes present to us in prayer the lives of Our Lord and His mother. This is a very powerful means, given by Our Lady to Saint Dominic, to help us remember these mysteries.

Through our union with the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Mother of God, we are able to deepen our knowledge of these mysteries, and to obtain the graces and the virtues that they contain. The great virtue of this prayer is that it helps us to understand the feelings of Our Lady, who “treasured in Her Heart all the things that She saw”.

It is also a communal prayer. The rosary makes Our Lady present amongst us, the Queen of Heaven and Our Mother – more as a Mother than as a Queen.

An image used by the Curé of Ars to describe the rosary, is that of a piece of straw on fire. It burns without producing much light or heat, but when many pieces of straw are gathered together and burned, they generate a great amount of light and heat. The aim of the Rosary on the Borders is to gather around Our Lady all Her human children, scattered and dispersed by sin.

The rosary is a school of Christian life

Secondly, the perfection of the rosary arises from the fact that it is more than a school of prayer; it is also a school of virtue.

The repeated meditation of the mysteries of the rosary enables us to admire the work of Jesus and His Mother, undertaken for our salvation. Our admiration leads us towards gratitude for such a Divine love for us, poor sinners, and finally to the complete consecration of ourselves to the Hearts of Jesus and Mary, in order to serve Them more generously. This love can lead us to renew our baptismal vows, when our godparents promised, in our name, to avoid sin, not to offend Our Lord and to imitate Him by practicing the Christian virtues.

That is why the rosary, apart from being a school of prayer, is also a school of virtue, as Our Lord told us: “I am meek and humble of heart”. Humility and kindness are the real marks of Christianity, and the sole basis for peace between people, among families and within countries.

Many Popes throughout the centuries have encouraged the recitation of the rosary, on account of its great power. Their teachings can be summarized in a few words: the rosary is a school of Christian education, a school that forms spiritual and moral standards, a divine method, an unsurpassed school of Christian life.

In one of many encyclicals dedicated to the rosary, and a very good summary of all of them, Pope Leo XIII describes the efficacy of the rosary: “Those who pray the rosary experience the same feeling as they would if they were listening to the Mother of Mercy explaining all these mysteries to them, and talking to them about their salvation”.

Finally, let us recall the words of Saint Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort: “Through the Ave Maria, sin will be destroyed, and Jesus will reign over us”.

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The origins of the Rosary at the borders

Interview of  Maciej Bodasiński, one of the organizers of the “Rosary at the Borders” in Poland.

      “This year, now in 2017, in the 100th anniversary of the revelations of the Mother of God in Fatima, we want to follow her call to pray the rosary for the rescue of the world. The Rosary to the Borders is not a crusade because we don’t want to fight with anyone. It is a giant commotion for, not against, something. We firmly follow her command, and we will pray at the borders of our country, going out in prayer and witness to the whole world, so that the Mercy of God is not confined to any border. (…)

In the face of growing tension, threats of war, and terrorism, we want to pray for peace for the world. But peace is understood not just as lack of war but as the peace of God, the peace of the heart. Many people who have converted say that this is the greatest gift that they have received from the Creator — peace of heart. Whatever happens, you trust [in God], and you are calm. We pray for peace for people, among people, and among nations.

It isn’t and can never be prayer against someone. Prayer is never against someone, it is always FOR someone. Otherwise it would be a curse.

With our prayer we are not trying to “force” some concrete action on God. Simply we ask the Lord through His Mother to heal our roots, so (we) can give fruit once again. (…)

We don’t try to define any concrete people or group who might pose a threat. The most important intention is to convert, to save the souls of people in Poland and the whole world.

We entrust everything to Mary, and we leave up to her what the fruits of this prayer will be. We try to be more like children: Mother has asked us to pray the rosary, so we pray the rosary. She asked for penance, so we do penance. We try to believe in her unreservedly, having absolute certainty that if we entrust the fate of Poland and the whole world to her, we will be saved.

(…)Who knows? Maybe a network of these rosaries will cover the whole world.”

Source:  https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/1-million-catholics-expected-to-pray-rosary-to-save-poland-and-the-whole-wo

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With Mary…

With Mary.

People pray a lot. Thanks to God. Praying is an answer to the grace of God and to keep in touch with the channel of his love. Praying is showing your belief in the fact that the best is that God reigns over our life and society.

However, there is a shortage of that belief and trust, more than we should want. With our eyes, we see a lot and even so , we notice what is going  wrong. A lot is running in a way that we don’t like or that Jezus shows us in his Holy Word.  Perhaps it could be good to be attached to Mary’s belief and to pray with her.

Those who recite the Rosary, consider the mysteries of happiness God wants to give to all the people. He shows it in Jezus Christ. Mary has been inspired by this salvation;  she said ‘yes’ to God’s will with her whole life.

She was the first worshipper of the New Testament and she is with us when we pray the Rosary.  The way of the happy, the sorrowful and glorious mysteries.

Mary was there at that time. She saw it with her own believing eyes.

She accompanies us in all the divine and human experiences of Salvation and she is helping us to look as a real believer.

In that way, as a church-society, as beloved children of God, as goodwilling people,  we want to pray with Mary and believe that God’s will is the best in our life.

From the place of pilgrimage in Scherpenheuvel, we want to support that initiative wholeheartedly.

Canon Luc Van Hilst, Rector of the Sanctuary of Scherpenheuvel.