Sound familiar?
“I am worried by the Blessed Virgins messages to Lucy of Fatima. This persistence of Mary about the dangers which menace the Church is a divine warning against the suicide of altering the Faith, in Her liturgy, Her theology and Her soul. I hear all around me innovators who wish to dismantle the Sacred Chapel, destroy the universal flame of the Church, reject Her ornaments and make Her feel remorse for Her historical past.
“A day will come when the civilized world will deny its God, when the Church will doubt as Peter doubted. She will be tempted to believe that man has become God. In our churches, Christians will search in vain for the red lamp where God awaits them. Like Mary Magdalene weeping before the empty tomb, they will ask, “Where have they taken Him?”
— Msgr. Eugenio Cardinal Pacelli, the future Pope Pius XII, as Secretary of State under Pius XI
All this could have been avoided, not to mention more stuff that hasn’t yet happened, if only people would pray the Rosary. If you don’t believe that, you’re calling the Mother of God a liar. If you don’t do something about it, you’re part of the problem, not part of the solution.
Pray it every day. It will change your life like nothing else. If you are searching for that transformative element that seems to be missing, the thing to get you over the hump, so to speak, this is it. I didn’t believe it either. I was incredulous when a priest first explained it to me — in the confessional.
The trick is to find the time during an activity where it fits perfectly and you’re not distracted or tempted by something else. If you are lucky enough to get to daily Mass, arriving a little early or staying after is perfect. Or on your commute… turn off the radio and tune in the mysteries. You’ll be surprised how easy it is. Drive time is actually really good for all sorts of prayer, even really long drives. Try it.
For me, my daily hikes on the mountain are what get it done. Leaving the iPod at home has the added benefit of no ringing of the ears and being better able to regulate my heart rate by hearing my breathing. But really it’s the awesomeness of being able to lose myself in the prayers. You’re going to be amazed how contemplating the mysteries over and over always gleans new insights from them. You find yourself drawn in deeper and deeper. I don’t know how else to describe it.
Look. We are at war. Prayer is the single greatest weapon we have. Would you go into mortal combat using water balloons while having an AR strapped to your shoulder the whole time? We have to use the best weapons available. Do you really believe what you say you believe? Do you live your life according to the real? Mary has instructed us to use the Rosary as the best means to defeat evil and make reparation for sin. Shouldn’t you at least be trying?
Thank you…
Christ crucified gave His mother to us, and her mother’s heart is capable of a love that none of us can begin to comprehend. Think, then, of the sorrow! If we cannot comprehend that love then we likewise could not endure, for even a quarter of a second, the sorrow she bears over the sins of our world. This is why reparation is so crucial to the moment. The least act is an acknowledgement of our recognition of her love, of her sorrow, so the smallest thing we might do is magnified many fold. Reparation is the key therefor to the renewal of everything. Give up on the dead wood and embrace, that is to say EMBRACE, the living part of the Vine. Through reparation we will see the triumph of the Immaculate Heart, and may live to see, or perhaps our children will live to see, the great renewal and the promised period of peace.