Rosary Trivia
No doubt everyone recognizes the Rosary as a Catholic devotion. Presumably, most Catholics own at least one rosary. Chances are, they pray it while traveling or trying to fall asleep, finding it more comforting than lavender oil. Rosaries hang from rear view mirrors and are in hands of those in coffins. As I research the […]
The Rosary, Interesting Info
Last week I spoke about the Rosary at our Village because October is the month of the Rosary. In preparing, I came across information that I had not known or forgotten. I pass it on to you here. What famous people prayed the Rosary? Hadyn prayed the Rosary when he had trouble composing. Martin Luther […]
A Fresh Look at the Rosary
Mary asks us to pray the Rosary for peace.
The Rosary, a Lifeline
October is the month of the Rosary. Do you know its history and why we pray it?
St. Dominic Gives New Prayer Ideas
St. Dominic de Guzman, who lived in Spain from about 1170 to 1221, was a great preacher and can still teach valuable lessons to us moderns. He was a man devoted to prayer who would contemplate and fall into ecstasy. Someone compiled his prayer methods into a booklet. They have become known as the Nine […]
The Rosary: Prayer Power
My nephew Andy recently brought me a gift from Guatemala: the most beautiful rosary I’ve ever seen, the blue one pictured here. As its name implies, the rosary is a prayer comparable to offering Our Blessed Mother a garland of roses. Since we are in October, the month of the rosary, I offer you some […]
May, Mary, and the Rosary
During the past week on three occasions, people asked me about the rosary. On Saturday I was privileged to be at the Cleveland orchestra’s performance of a modern piece called “Mysteries of Light.” It had five movements, each one based on a luminous mystery of the Rosary. I’m taking these events as signs that my […]
Mary, May, Mothers, and Flowers
Well, spring is officially here! Despite the recent snow and cold weather, a few daffodils bravely appeared in front of my house. Did you know that a daffodil is called Mary’s star? In doing research for my book “The Catholic Companion to Mary,” I discovered that more than 700 flowers and plants have been named […]
Why Pray a Psalm at Mass?
At every Mass we pray or sing a psalm after the first reading. A psalm is a prayer-song taken from the Old Testament and attributed to King David, who, as you know, played the harp. I thought of blogging about psalms today because we are in the month of the Holy Rosary, a devotion that […]
Roses, Mystical Rose, Rosary
My mother was very proud of her roses. She knew them by name: the American Beauty rose, the John F. Kennedy rose, and so on. When roses were in season, her kitchen table was never without at least one gorgeous rose from her garden gracing it. Roses are the most popular flower. We present them […]