Whenever I look at my rosary beads, I am reminded of my entire diocesan family. We are all bound together by the commonality of our faith and we are all united by Christ on the Cross. We begin praying the rosary from the Cross and we end it with the Cross. The rosary is a powerful weapon against the devil; it draws us close to Christ through the intercession of our Blessed Mama Mary.
The rosary has been prayed for many centuries; it dates back even before the 12th century. Even though it is known to be a Marian prayer, the rosary is a meditation on the life of Jesus. We meditate on his birth (joyful), life (luminous), passion, death (sorrowful) l and resurrection (glorious), out of which only two decades (fourth and fifth) of the glorious are dedicated to Our Lady, post her life on earth. We will never be able to comprehend the power of the rosary until we are in heaven. It has changed people’s lives and drawn them back to Christ. It has been a favourite prayer of many Saints.
Here I would like to quote from a very important apostolic letter: Rosarium Virginis Mariae written by St John Paul II: “While praying the Rosary, two things happen: one sits at the “school of Mary,” led by her to contemplate the beauty in the face of Christ while experiencing at the same time the depths of his love and receiving abundant grace, “as though from the very hands of the Mother of the Redeemer”.
I encourage you my dear sisters and brothers, to spiritually join me in praying the rosary daily during this month of May. I request you to kindly pray for the following intentions:
- For the formation of religious and seminarians.
- Poor souls in purgatory and deceased members of our diocese.
- For the peace, good health and unity of all our families.
- For our priests and religious women and men.
I want you to be assured that I will be praying for you and your families. Let us all be united through the power of the Rosary.
Your Shepherd in Christ,
+Bishop Alwyn Barreto