On the holy Rosary

It's a wonderful thing that something so simple divides people. There were times past when our parents, grandparents, our great-grandparents had rosary beads in their pockets or in their bags, and they could perhaps draw them out faster than they could their wallets. There is a legend that says that the rosary used to be said by the poor and unlettered, who could not join in with the psalms sung in the churches and chapels in Latin; people still call it the 'poor man's psalter.' Now, with some pride, we say to ourselves that there has never been a time in history that more people were as educated as today. Or could read so well, in such great numbers. That may be true. But, for all that, it is still difficult to find people who read many books, who read them front-to-back, and who read more than novels. 

And we say to ourselves that there has never been a time in the history of the church that more people could follow the divine liturgy, now no longer even in Latin for most of the time, but in their own native languages. But, for all that, even those who frequent the churches and chapels today don't always follow closely the readings or the prayers of the Mass, and it is still difficult to find many who read about and study their own religion, who read more than the parish newsletter and a few other small devotional messages that may circulate within the communities in some form or other.

The point I wish to make is this: we cannot vainly say that the rosary is for the poor and unlettered only, stupid and simple people who cannot read. Where are people such as these? Rather there are those cannot read or who cannot understand the statements of the Faith and about religion that the priests, say, take for granted. It is no secret that catechesis is getting more and more difficult today, because the very vocabulary of faith is fading from our homes and from the collective memory of our community and our families. In terms of faith and religion, we are today generally poor and unlettered. In such a situation, where people cannot read even the Bible, even if they want to with all their hearts, such devotions as the holy Rosary arrive with the same freshness they had when they were first brought to the consciousness of the Church. 

Because not all of us will study Scripture, and read long essays on Mariology (the science or theology of devotion to the Blessed Virgin), Mary herself and her humble servant, Saint Dominic, have given us this prayer as a tool, to centre our hearts upon Christ, while keeping the blessed Lady always in the picture.

Do say your rosaries, alone or, even better, in your families. It takes me about an hour to say the whole rosary in church every day; it shouldn't take most people more than twenty minutes to say the typical five decades daily.