Reflection on the Holy Rosary

 During the month of October there are families in my parish who gather to recite the holy rosary together. The rosary is also recited prior to Mass by weekday Mass goers. This laudable devotion speaks very much of the heart of the people and their response to God's grace as well as their desire for peace in the world. As a result, it has occurred to me to offer some reflections to hopefully deepen our appreciation the tradition we have received and pray more faithfully this prayer.

Monastic Heart

The 150 Hail Marys of the rosary can be seen as imitating the 150 psalms that were sung during the week by the monks and nuns in their communities. In earlier times the people wer usually illiterate and were not able to recite the psalms whether in Latin of their own language. The friars, Dominicans and Franciscans, took the monastery and the proclamation of the world out to the people in their towns and villages. People, wanting to sanctify their lives through prayer and yet stay in their everyday situation, could join themselves to the devotion of the friars by practices such as wearing the scapular and praying the angelus at the appropriate times throughout the day. Those who joined the Third Order of the different religious communities sought to live out the charism of the consecrated life in their own life situation. Similarly, they could pray the rosary in place of the psalms. The Gloria, which concludes the psalms in the monasteries, was prayed a the conclusion of each decade. The Marian anthem which is usually Hail holy Queen (Salve Regina), at the conclusion of the five decades, likewise takes the place of the Marian anthems which conclude the day after Night prayer or Compline. 

Contemplation

The mysteries of the rosary give structure to the prayer. Prayers enter the mystery of the Incarnation by recalling key moments in the life of the Lord. In liturgy we are not bystanders or an audience. Just as with the Station of the Cross the rosary helps us to journey with Christ and to be united with him in his suffering as well as his glory. It is not a question of analysis. We contemplate the beauty of the God's love and his action in bringing about our salvation. As members of his Mystical Body, we are united with him. What Pope St Pius X wrote about the Psalter can also be applied to the mysteries of the Rosary: "Who is not fired with love by the faithful portrait of Christ the Redeemer whose voice Saint Augustine heard in all the psalms, singing, sorrowing, rejoicing in hope, sighing in distress?" (Apost. Const. on the Psalter in the Office of Readings)

History of the Incarnation and the Liturgical Year

When we consider the mysteries of the Rosary as a whole we can discern in them the from the Annunciation to the Coronation of Our Lady as Queen of Heaven the exitus - reditus, the Father sends the Son who bestows the Holy Spirit who takes us through Christ to the Father. The liturgical year is discernable with the Joyful Mysteries being Advent to Christmastide; Luminous Mysteries being the Feasts of the Lord in Ordinary Time and Holy Thursday; the Sorrowful Mysteries speaking of Good Friday and Holy Saturday; the Glorious Mysteries taking us from Easter Sunday through Eastertide to the Feast of Christ the King. The Coronation of Our Lady, which occurs on the Octave of the Solemnity of the Assumption, presumes the Feast of Christ the King. In the way we can consider the Rosary in its entirety is the liturgical year in microcosm. The key Christological moments unite us in contemplating the whole mystery of Christ and not just isolated elements as if they are unconnected events. They are all part of the salvific plan of the heavenly Father. The prayer: 'O God whose only begotten Son...' prayed subsequent to the Salve regina is a translation of the  the Collect taken from the Mass for the Holy Rosary in the 1962 Missal. This prayer has been replace by the Angelus prayer as the Collect for the present Missal which also makes the connection with the fulfilment of our Christian journey through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin.

Praying with Our Lady

St Bernadette Soubirous, starting from 11 February 1858, testifies that the apparition she experienced at Lourdes, who identifies herself as the Immaculate Conception, prayer the rosary with her. She moved the beads through her fingers but did not pray the Hail Mary's but did join her in the Our Fathers. Statues of Our Lady of Lourdes depict the Blessed Mother holding a rosary in her fingers.

At Fatima, Our Lady exhorted the visionaries to pray the rosary for peace. They were also instructed to pray the rosary daily and it was linked to the devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The prayer given by the angel "O my Jesus forgive us our sins..." was added to the end of the decades. In her final apparition on 13 October 1917 the vision identified herself as "the Lady of the Rosary."

From this we can be confident that Our Lady wishes us to pray with her and through her so as to unite us to the mission and power of her divine Son.

Conclusion

The Holy Rosary is a beautiful devotion which helps to enter more fully into the mystery of Christ. It is not a static prayer rather it invites us to journey through the drama of salvation and ask that we share ultimately in its glory.

30th Sunday in Ordinary Time

 Today Jesus summarizes the law in response to the challenge of the Pharisees. He manages to integrate both the demands of love and the law by citing Deuteronomy 6: 5 and Leviticus 19: 18. He is not teaching anything original, in the Jewish context. So where does Jesus innovate? He does so by revealing the awesome depth and power of God's love for us: "God's love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins." (1 Jn 4: 9-10) As a result, our motivation and capacity to love God and one another is increased, since we no longer live by our own power but through the transforming action of the Holy Spirit: "For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." (Gal 2: 19-21). The litmus test for how much we love God is given in how we love one another: "We love because he first loved us. Those who say, 'I love God,' and hate their brothers and sisters, are liars; for those who do not love a brother or sister whom they have seen, cannot love God whom they have not seen. The commandment we have from him is this: those who love God must love their brothers and sisters also." (1 Jn 4: 19-21) 

29th Sunday in Ordinary Time

 Jesus, in response to the question of the Pharisees and Herodians, natural enemies who have united against him, asks them to see the coin for taxation and replies: "Whose head is this, and whose title?" (Mt 22: 20) He knows, as do his opponents, that the Roman emperors thought of themselves as divine. Furthermore, the conversation takes place in the Temple which is God's resting place on earth. His interrogators are forced to reply: "The emperor's" (Mt 22: 21) In doing so they break the first Commandment: "... you shall have no other gods before me" (Ex 20: 1) and the second: "You shall not make for yourself an idol..." (Ex 20: 2). Jesus acknowledges the emperor to own that which bears his image, money. The rest: "The earth is the Lord's and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it; for he has founded it on the seas, and established it on the rivers" (Ps 24: 1-2), especially human beings: "So God created humankind in his image..." (Gen 1: 27) belongs to God. How do I respond to human authority? Just because something is legal it does not mean it is moral, especially when it comes to issues like abortion and euthanasia: "For all of us must appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive recompense for what is done in the body, whether good or evil." (2 Cor 5: 10)

Who is Praying?

 With the recent presentation of Fr Paul Turner, Ars celebrandi, it occurs to me that both priests and people need to pay more attention to the details in the liturgy including when the different parties are called to pray. This can help us better understand the dynamic of the Eucharistic liturgy and enter more deeply into the mystery of Christ present in the people, the priest, the Word, the Blessed Sacrament, and the sacrament.

1. Prayers of the Priest

The priest is ordained to administer the sacraments. Acting in persona Christi capitis, that is, in the person of Christ the Head, he has prayers proper to him. This includes the: liturgical greeting, Collect, and a range of other prayers some of which are spoken for the people to hear and others which are secret. Some of the prayers are spoken as part of a dialogue with the people, who respond accordingly, and it makes no sense for the priest to speak them. Likewise, these cannot be spoken by a layperson who cannot respond to themselves. The priest will also speak those prayers proper to a deacon when there is no deacon present. This is all obvious. The key thing, though, is that the priest does not pray those things that belong to others when they are present.

2. Prayers for both Priest and People

Some of the prayers in the Mass are for both priest and people. This is one of the changes that makes the Mass in the ordinary form so different from the Mass in the extraordinary form. In this category we find the: Confiteor, Gloria, Alleluia, Credo, Sanctus, Non Sun Dignus and Pater Noster.

3. Prayer of the People 

These prayers are spoken or sung by the people. These are prompted by the ordained or by the action in the liturgy itself. They give us an insight into the theology of Vatican II with regard to the baptized as the being a priestly people. The key text is found in Lumen gentium, 10:

Christ the Lord, High Priest taken from among men, made the new people "a kingdom and priests to God the Father". The baptized, by regeneration and the anointing of the Holy Spirit, are consecrated as a spiritual house and a holy priesthood, in order that through all those works which are those of the Christian man they may offer spiritual sacrifices and proclaim the power of Him who has called them out of darkness into His marvelous light. Therefore all the disciples of Christ, persevering in prayer and praising God, should present themselves as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God. Everywhere on earth they must bear witness to Christ and give an answer to those who seek an account of that hope of eternal life which is in them.

Though they differ from one another in essence and not only in degree, the common priesthood of the faithful and the ministerial or hierarchical priesthood are nonetheless interrelated: each of them in its own special way is a participation in the one priesthood of Christ. The ministerial priest, by the sacred power he enjoys, teaches and rules the priestly people; acting in the person of Christ, he makes present the Eucharistic sacrifice, and offers it to God in the name of all the people. But the faithful, in virtue of their royal priesthood, join in the offering of the Eucharist. They likewise exercise that priesthood in receiving the sacraments, in prayer and thanksgiving, in the witness of a holy life, and by self-denial and active charity. 

With this in mind we can look at the prayers, other than short responses to greetings or dialogues prompted by the ordained, to see how this theology is enacted in the Mass. These prayers are: Mysterium Fidei, Great Amen, Doxology (completing the Pater Noster), and the Agnus Dei.

(a) Mysterium Fidei

This prayer is prompted by the priest, however, it is the people who make the response. These, in the vocative, are directed towards Jesus:

 - We proclaim your death, O Lord, and profess your resurrection until you come again.

 - When we eat this Bread and drink this Cup, we proclaim your death O Lord, until you come again.

 - Save us, Saviour of the world, for by your Cross and resurrection you have set us free.

The acclamations speak to both what the Lord has done and what the response of the people to the miracle which has been performed in their midst. Other prayers from the pre-2010 liturgy which do not function in this way should not be used.

(b) Great Amen

This acclamation which completes the Great Doxology, led by the priest, is the climax of the Eucharistic Prayer. It gives voice to the acclamation of the people who give their assent to all that has been prayer by Jesus Christ through the ministry of the priest to the glory of God the Father. The people will then proceed to make a personal Amen when they come forward to receive the Host and Precious Blood at the hands of the priest and other ministers.

(c) Doxology (after the Embolism)

The people pray subsequent to the priest saying: "Deliver us Lord, we pray, from every evil..." to which the people say:

 - For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours now and for ever.

Again, the people are replying not to the priest but to the Lord who has been made present in the sacrament. This prayer is not found in Sacred Scripture. In The Didache the Pater Noster is concluded: "... because yours is the power and glory forever." (Didache 8.2)

(d) Agnus Dei

Subsequent to the Pax (Sign of Peace) the priest directs his attention to the breaking of the Bread and the other elements required to prepare for the distribution of the Communion Rite. He has secret prayers proper to his office. Meanwhile the people, prompted by the action, acclaim:

 - Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us (x2) Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, grant us peace.

The people, as in the other prayers, acclaim their Messiah, present substantially in the Holy Eucharist, using the testimony of John the Baptist (Jn 1: 29) and concluding with the petition for peace, which is the gift of the Lord promised to his disciples at the Last Supper (Jn 14: 27) and bestowed by the Risen Lord (Jn 20: 21).

4. Conclusion

My brief analysis of these prayers leads me to conclude that the people are not to be seen in the liturgy as accessing the Lord mediated solely through the priest. Rather they address Him directly. They, fed by the Word and nourished by the Holy Eucharist, function as a people present to the sacrificial action. They are united with the ordained in the offering of the sacrifice which is to be presented to the heavenly Father. Their participation in the Mass Parts tells us that they are attentive to the action and joined to it in faith. This is an advance on the Mass in the Extraordinary Form where the people, for the most part, sit as spectators watching the servers fulfilling their function for them in a language which they did not know.

28th Sunday in Ordinary Time

 I think it is permissible to understand the wedding feast, in today's parable, as the great banquet at the end of time: "Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb." (Rev 19: 9) In this way the parable can be seen as a summary of the history of salvation. The first group of slaves, sent to invite the guests (Mt 22: 3), is the judges: "Then the Lord raised up judges, who delivered them out of the power of those who plundered them. Yet they did not listen even to their judges; for they lusted after other gods and bowed down to them." (Jg 2: 16-17). The second group of slaves (Mt 22: 4) is the prophets: "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it!" (Mt 23: 37) The destruction of Jerusalem is foretold: "He sent his troops, destroyed those murderers. and burned their city." (Mt 22: 7) The third group of slaves sent out is the Christian apostles and evangelists: "Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad; so the wedding hall was filled with guests." (Mt 22: 10) The man found to be not wearing a wedding garment is someone who is not clothed in good works or who has not been baptized. he is condemned: " 'Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' " (Mt 22: 13) In this way Jesus gives a stern warning to us his disciples not to be complacent or entitled regarding the grace given us: "For many are called, but few are chosen." (Mt 22: 14)

27th Sunday in Ordinary Time

 It is significant that the parable today is directed towards the chief priests and elders of the people. (Mt 21: 23) Having entered Jerusalem on the back of a donkey, thus declaring his messianic status, Jesus as the Messiah proceeds to put the chief priests and elders on trial for their deficiencies. The genius of this present parable is that our Lord gets the hierarchy to pronounce judgment on themselves: "'Now when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?' They (the chief priests and elders) said to him, 'He will put those wretches to a miserable death, and lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the produce at the harvest time'." (Mt 21: 40-41) No wonder the Temple authorities were infuriated and looked to destroy him: "When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they realized that he was speaking about them. They wanted to arrest him, but they feared the crowds, because they regarded him as a prophet." (Mt21: 45-46) What is the message for us in 2026? Surely, it is for us to give the produce of the Kingdom to our heavenly King. Is this cause for self-congratulation? Jesus tells us: "So you also, when you have done all that you were ordered to do, say, 'We are worthless slaves; we have done only what we ought to have done!' " (Lk 17: 10)

26th Sunday in Ordinary Time

 Today's gospel reminds us of the importance of John the Baptist and therefore of his message of personal conversion. In Matthew's gospel, John the Baptist appears in the wilderness saying: "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near" (Mt 3: 2) while Mark has Jesus, coming in from the wilderness, preaching: "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent and believe in the good news." (Mk 1: 15) Jesus' proclamation gives further urgency: "the time is fulfilled." Many people, regarded as sinners and treated as outcasts, responded to this call and changed their lives. The Pharisees and Sadducees, watching critically, rather than change their conduct, sought ways to question John's legitimacy: "They (the Pharisees) asked him, 'Why then are you baptizing if you are neither the Messiah, nor Elijah nor the prophet?' " (Jn 1: 20) Yet they were unable to answer Jesus' question as to the origins of John's ministry (Mt 21: 27) Applying this text to ourselves, we are challenged to see what fruit the Gospel has yielded in our lives. Do we sit on the sidelines analyzing the Church and finding fault in others? Or do we respond with humility by recognizing our own faults and asking for forgiveness? After all, Jesus points out: "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.' For I have come to call not the righteous but sinners." (Mt 9: 12-13)