x Close
World at Prayer blog
Reflections of Family and Faith
"The family that prays together stays together." - Venerable Patrick Peyton
The-Rosary-In-Our-Hands | family prayer
Many years ago, when I began trying to pray the Rosary every day (I say trying because there are still days I miss), it began as a tedious chore that I would relegate fifteen of my final minutes of the day to accomplish. Sometimes, I wouldn’t even finish; I’d fall fast asleep first. I had to change my attitude towards the whole thing. It couldn’t be just something I did because a bunch of other Catholics did it and told me I should, too. I decided to modify how and when I prayed the Rosary and started praying in my car on my way to work. It’s a 30-minute drive, and I would use a Rosary app to pray at first, but then I switched to praying aloud by memory. After doing it for a while, I noticed that my driving behavior had changed. I was kinder, more likely to let the guy with his blinker on into my lane, less likely to tailgate the guy who just cut me off. It was having unseen effects already! I started to realize that the Rosary is more than just a rote prayer but a tool to use daily!
Share
The-Rosary-In-Our-Hands | family prayer
Growing up in Latin America, where there is a huge cultural devotion to Mary, you’d think that I had a devotion to the Mother of God. But I didn’t. It seemed a little superstitious to me and didn’t make much sense. I thought, "Why should I pray to Mary when I can just go straight to Jesus?" And when it came to the Rosary, I never really had a connection to it. Plus, I found it very hard to meditate on a Mystery of the life of Christ while at the same time focusing on the words of the prayers and adding an intention for someone or something on top of that. Too much! Then, about 10 years ago, I came across a beautiful story that forever changed my understanding of the Rosary.
Share
Brief and contemporary inspiration focused on hope and family prayer will be delivered to your inbox! Articles include live video, written word, and links to resources that will lead you and your family deeper into faith.
The-Rosary-In-Our-Hands | family prayer
“What about naming him John?” My husband had privately asked me this once or twice before, and I had vetoed it both times. Over the course of nine months, we debated and battled and strived and searched to find a name for our son and continued to come up empty. His name was a big, fat mystery. Might as well name him Question Mark. And now, in the throes of a 20-hour labor with this unnamed, transverse baby, I was feeling even less inclined to cooperate. “John sounds like an old man’s name,” I said, wincing through another contraction. “What about Anthony? Or Nicholas?” My husband didn’t have time to answer. The baby’s heart rate plummeted on the monitors, setting off a cacophony of alarms. Nurses rushed into my room, flipped my bloated body around, and pumped me with fluids to help soothe the baby and get his heart beating properly again. I knew the drill. We’d been doing this little song and dance every 2 to 3 minutes for half a day. My husband walked to the whiteboard that was hanging on the wall and wrote down two names. Nicholas Anthony Those were pretty solid names. Maybe they could even go together. Nicholas Anthony or Anthony Nicholas. Yeah, that sounded okay.
Share
The-Rosary-In-Our-Hands | family prayer
Louise stood at the foot of their staircase, not knowing how to put one foot in front of the other. She had only moments ago sent her husband out the door with his lunchbox and a kiss on that regular Monday morning. Now she had to make it to the top of those stairs to tell their six children that their dad would never come home. A heart attack ended his 42-year-old life and with that catastrophic news, her life as she knew it. Our Lady Gave Her the Courage My beautiful Nana always professed it was Our Lady herself who carried her up that staircase and gave her the courage to deliver that unspeakable news. And it was Our Lady, through the power of the Rosary, who supported her every day for the rest of her 48 years as a widow and single mother.
Share
The-Rosary-In-Our-Hands | family prayer
In my life, I haven’t always been close to Our Lady. In fact, even though I was usually all in for pretty much every youth group event, when they began the Consecration to Mary during my junior year of high school, I just sort of hung back … I didn’t get it. I couldn’t understand the need for a Mother in Heaven who lived a life so incredibly different from mine. I had a great relationship with my earthly mother and with Jesus, so I just didn’t feel a need to embrace a spiritual one. I had this image of her in my mind … you probably know the one I’m talking about; it’s usually the one we see on Christmas cards. The beautiful 20-something woman with perfect hair, flawless skin, looking so quiet and peaceful, hands delicately folded in prayer. Perfect. It was so far removed from the mess I saw when I looked in the mirror.
Share
Holy lives of inspiration | Learn more about our faith
Father Wilson Thoppilan, C.S.C., a priest of The Congregation of Holy Cross and Executive Director of Family Rosary Crusade Philippines, provides today's Homily Video Reflection. In addition to the homily video, we've included questions to encourage family discussion on this thought-provoking topic.
Share
