Why pray the Rosary every day for a year?


Each time the Blessed Virgin has appeared-- whether it be to Saint Bernadette Soubirous at Lourdes; to Lucia, Jacinta, and Francisco at Fatima; or to Mariette Beco at Banneux-- she has asserted the importance, saving grace, and power of praying the Holy Rosary on a daily basis. Based upon her words, the Rosary is penance and conversion for sinners, a pathway to peace, an end to war, and a powerful act of faith in Jesus Christ. Pope Paul VI presented the Rosary as a powerful means to reach Christ "not merely with Mary but indeed, insofar as this is possible to us, in the same way as Mary, who is certainly the one who thought about Him more than anyone else has ever done."

To show us how this is done, perhaps no one has been more eloquent than the great Cardinal Newman, who wrote: "The great power of the Rosary consists in the fact that it translates the Creed into Prayer. Of course, the Creed is already in a certain sense a prayer and a great act of homage towards God, but the Rosary brings us to meditate again on the great truth of His life and death, and brings this truth close to our hearts. Even Christians, although they know God, usually fear rather than love Him. The strength of the Rosary lies in the particular manner in which it considers these mysteries, since all our thinking about Christ is intertwined with the thought of His Mother, in the relations between Mother and Son; the Holy Family is presented to us, the home in which God lived His infinite love."


As Mary said at Fatima, "Jesus wants to use you to make Me known and loved. He wishes to establish the devotion to My Immaculate Heart throughout the world. I promise salvation to whoever embraces it; these souls will be dear to God, like flowers put by Me to adorn his throne."



Our Lady of Beauraing: The Second Apparition

Posted by Jacob

Today, December 2, marks the anniversary of the second appearance of Our Blessed Mother to five children in Beauraing, Belgium in 1932. Our Lady of Beauraing, also known as the “Virgin of the Golden Heart,” 33 times in the garden of a convent school to the five visionaries: Fernande, Gilberte, and Albert Voisins and Andree and Gilberte Degeimbres.


On November 29, the children had seen a beautiful lady walking on the air above them, near a small railroad bridge. Dressed in a flowing white gown, the lady emanated a radiant glow, and smiled at them as she approached. She was observed to be praying, never spoke, and simply gazed upon them with beautiful blue eyes.

Following the apparition, the nuns at the convent, the children’s parents, and even their friends had scolded them and teased them. But the children maintained their story, and over the next several nights, witnessed the same apparition of Our Blessed Mother. Finally, the exasperated parents encouraged them to ask this figure for her name.

On December 2, the lady appeared as she had on previous evenings. She looked about eighteen years old. Her eyes were deep blue and there were rays of light shining about her head. Per the children’s report, she wore a long white pleated gown with a blue sash, and the dress reflected a blue glow. Her hands were held in prayer, although in later visitations she would carry a Rosary with her. Our Blessed Mother came to rest on the bows of a Hawthorn bush, and smiled gently at the children.

Albert was very anxious, but courageously spoke to her, the first to do so. "Are you the Immaculate Virgin?" he asked.

The Lady smiled and nodded Her head without speaking. After a moment, she said to the five visionaries: “Always be good.” And then, “Is it true that you will always be good?” The children assured her that they would be, and smiling, she disappeared—but not before asking them to return on December 8, the feast of the Immaculate Conception.

Our Lady would return to the children thirty-three times over the next 10 weeks, bringing with her a message of peace, penance, and prayer for the conversion of sinners. Our Blessed Mother graced us with her golden heart, encouraging us to sacrifice ourselves for the Lord, and for the salvation of the world. We pray today, in the words of Our Mother, to find the strength and virtue “to be good” in the eyes of the Lord.



Our Lady of Beauraing, Immaculate Virgin, bring to Jesus, your Son, all the intentions that we entrust to you today. Mother of the Golden Heart, reflection of the Father's tenderness, look upon the men and women of our time with love and fill them with the joy of your presence. You, who promised to convert sinners, help us discover the infinite mercy of our God. Awaken within us the grace of conversion so that our lives may be a reflection of that mercy. Make every moment of our existence "a yes" to the question you ask today: "Do you love my Son? Do you love me?" Then the kingdom of Jesus will come to the world. Amen.



Day 336 of 365
Prayer Intentions: To be good in the eyes of the Lord.
Requested Intentions: Healing of a family and son (S); Successful marriage (G); End to husband’s addictions; Son’s employment (M); Freedom from financial burdens (M); Healing after a miscarriage (E); For healing of friend; successful resolution of legal matter (A); For unity between estranged friends (E); For a son, falsely arrested (C); Successful employment (J); Successful employment (L); For a healthy child (L); Recovery from stomach illness of a friend (A); Employment and financial security (E); Conversion of sons (L); Freedom from financial stress, employment (C); Spiritual growth and family peace (A); Freedom to immigrate (D); End to debt (N); Restoration of a marriage (J); Complete recovery of son (P); Recovery of parish priest, health of mother, conversion of son (J); Successful employment, end to depression (J); Successful immigration and employment (S); Conversion of an unloving daughter (M); Recovery of husband, health of mother, economic freedom (R); Freedom from depression, restoration of family relationships (N); Restoration of a relationship (J); Healing of friends from cancer (J); Complete healing of a friend with pancreatic cancer (J); Healing of a father following stroke (S).

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