While Advent is our primary focus during the month of December, we notice that it also has a strong Marian flavor. On December 8th, we celebrated the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. On December 12th we celebrated the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The gospel for the fourth Sunday of Advent always focuses on Mary's role in the birth of Jesus. Mary is also very present on the Christmas event. The Sunday after Christmas is the feast of the Holy Family. So in a way we can say that December is very much a Marian month.
On Thanksgiving weekend, I read the Pope's Apostolic Letter on the Rosary. I must say I enjoyed it very much. Too often Papal documents and exhortations are not an easy read. The Apostolic Letter on the Rosary of Virgin Mary is both an easy and beautiful read, especially if one takes the time to read it in a meditative kind of way. In this column, I will share with you summary statements from the Letter and also several excerpts; but, I very much recommend that you read the unabridged version.
In his opening paragraphs, the Pope reminds us that the rosary, though clearly Marian in character, is at heart a Christ centric prayer. In the rosary, we are invited to sit at the feet of Mary and "contemplate the beauty on the face of Christ and to experience the depths of his love". In #2, the Pope shares with us , his own personal love for the rosary. He writes:
I myself have often encouraged the frequent recitation of the rosary. From my youthful years this prayer has held an important place in my spiritual life. I was powerfully reminded of this during my recent visit to Poland and in particular at the Shrine of Kalwaria. The rosary has accompanied me in moments of joy and in moments of difficulty. To it I have entrusted any number of concerns; in it I have always found comfort. Twenty-four years ago, on Oct. 29, 1978, scarcely two weeks after my election to the See of Peter, I frankly admitted: "The rosary is my favorite prayer. A marvelous prayer! Marvelous in its simplicity and its depth.
In #7, the Pope makes references to the apparitions of Mary (especially Lourdes and Fatima) during which she requested people to pray the rosary. The Pope's Letter has three chapters.
Article 10 is titled Mary, Model of Contemplation. This is what John Paul writes about this.
The contemplation of Christ has an incomparable model in Mary. In a unique way the face of the Son belongs to Mary. It was in her womb that Christ was formed, receiving from her human resemblance which points to an even greater spiritual closeness. No one has ever devoted himself to the contemplation of the face of Christ as faithfully as Mary. The eyes of her heart already turned to him at the Annunciation, when she conceived him by the power of the Holy Spirit. In the months that followed she began to sense his presence and to picture his features. When at last she gave birth to him in Bethlehem, her eyes were able to gaze tenderly on the face of her Son as she "wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger" (Lk. 2:7).
Thereafter Mary's gaze, ever filled with adoration and wonder, would never leave him. At times it would be a questioning look, as in the episode of the finding in the temple: "Son, why have you treated us so?" (Lk. 2:48); it would always be a penetrating gaze, one capable of deeply understanding Jesus, even to the point of perceiving his hidden feelings and anticipating his decisions, as at Cana (cf. Jn. 2:5). At other times it would be a look of sorrow, especially beneath the cross, where her vision would still be that of a mother giving birth, for Mary not only shared the passion and death of her Son, she also received the new son given to her in the beloved disciple (cf. Jn. 19:26-27). On the morning of Easter, hers would be a gaze radiant with the joy of the resurrection and, finally, on the day of Pentecost, a gaze afire with the outpouring of the Spirit (cr. Acts 1:14).
The Rosary, a Contemplative Prayer is the subject of #12. The Pope writes: The rosary, precisely because it starts with Mary's own experience, is an exquisitely contemplative prayer. Without this contemplative dimension, it would lose its meaning, as Pope Paul VI clearly pointed out: "Without contemplation, the rosary is a body without a soul, and its recitation runs the risk of becoming a mechanical repetition of formulas, in violation of the admonition of Christ: "In praying do not heap up empty phrases as the gentiles do; for they think they will be heard for their many words' (Mt. 6:7). By its nature, the recitation of the rosary calls for a quiet rhythm and a lingering pace, helping the individual to meditate on the mysteries of the Lord's life as seen through the eyes of her who was closest to the Lord. In this way the unfathomable riches of these mysteries are disclosed."
Article 16 speaks about the power of invoking Mary's intercession which is based upon Mary's intercession for the young couple at the wedding Feast of Cana (John 12:1-12). The Pope writes: "the rosary is both meditation and supplication. Insistent prayer to the mother of God is based on confidence that her maternal intercessions can obtain all things from the heart of her Son."
Later in #16, the Pope writes:
The supreme poet Dante expresses it marvelously in the lines sung by St. Bernard:
The Joyful Mysteries #20
The first five decades, the "joyful mysteries," are marked by the joy radiating from the event of the incarnation. This is clear from the very first mystery, the annunciation, where Gabriel's greeting to the virgin of Nazareth is linked to an invitation to messianic joy: "Rejoice, Mary".
Exultation is the keynote of the encounter with Elizabeth, where the sound of Mary's voice and the presence of Christ in her womb cause John to "leap for joy" (cf. Lk. 1:44). Gladness also fills the scene in Bethlehem, when the birth of the divine child, the Savior of the world is announced by the song of the angels and proclaimed to the shepherds as "news of great joy" (Lk. 2:10).
The final two mysteries, while preserving this climate of joy, already point to the drama yet to come. (a reference to the Passion of Christ. In the Presentation in the Temple, Simon spoke about a sword of sorrow that would pierce Mary's heart).
The Sorrowful Mysteries # 22
The Gospels give great prominence to the sorrowful mysteries of Christ. From the beginning Christian piety, especially during the Lenten devotion of the Way of the Cross, has focused on the individual moments of the passion, realizing that here is found the culmination of the revelation of God's love and the source of our salvation. The rosary selects certain moments from the passion, inviting the faithful to contemplate them in their hearts and to relive them_ _ _ _
The Glorious Mysteries # 23
"The contemplation of Christ's face cannot stop at the image of the crucified one. He is the risen one!" The rosary has always expressed this knowledge born of faith and invited the believer to pass beyond the darkness of the passion in order to gaze upon Christ's glory in the resurrection and ascension. Contemplating the risen one, Christians rediscover the reasons for their own faith (cf. 1 Cor. 15:14) and relive the joy not only of those to whom Christ appeared - but also the joy of Mary, who must have had an equally intense experience of the new life of her glorified Son.
The Mysteries of Light
In #19, the Pope states that he recommends the new mysteries because they highlight for us some key events in the life of Jesus between his baptism and passion. None of the other mysteries of the rosary invite us to contemplate these events in the public life of Christ. The five new mysteries are:
The Baptism of Jesus
The Wedding Feast of Cana
The Proclamation of the Kingdom
The Transfiguration
The Institution of the Eucharist.
I now quote in full #21 which deals with the Mysteries of Light.
Moving on from the infancy and the hidden life in Nazareth to the public life of Jesus, our contemplation brings us to those mysteries which may be called in a special way "mysteries of light". Certainly the whole mystery of Christ is a mystery of light. He is the "light of the world" (Jn 8:12). Yet this truth emerges in a special way during the years of his public life, when he proclaims the Gospel of the Kingdom. In proposing to the Christian community five significant moments - "luminous" mysteries - during this phase of Christ's life, I think that the following can be fittingly singled out: (1) his Baptism in the Jordan, (2) his self-manifestation at the wedding of Cana, (3) his proclamation of the Kingdom of God, with his call to conversion, (4) his Transfiguration, and finally, (5) his institution of the Eucharist, as the sacramental expression of the Paschal Mystery.
Each of these mysteries is a revelation of the Kingdom now present in the very person of Jesus. The Baptism in the Jordan is first of all a mystery of light. Here, as Christ descends into the waters, the innocent one who became "sin" for our sake (cf. 2Cor 5:21), the heavens open wide and the voice of the Father declares him the beloved Son (cf. Mt 3:17 and parallels), while the Spirit descends on him to invest him with the mission which he is to carry out. Another mystery of light is the first of the signs, given at Cana (cf. Jn 2:1- 12), when Christ changes water into wine and opens the hearts of the disciples to faith, thanks to the intervention of Mary, the first among believers. Another mystery of light is the preaching by which Jesus proclaims the coming of the Kingdom of God, calls to conversion (cf. Mk 1:15) and forgives the sins of all who draw near to him in humble trust (cf. Mk 2:3-13; Lk 7:47- 48) the inauguration of that ministry of mercy which he continues to exercise until the end of the world, particularly through the Sacrament of Reconciliation which he has entrusted to his Church (cf. Jn 20:22-23). The mystery of light par excellence is the Transfiguration, traditionally believed to have taken place on Mount Tabor. The glory of the Godhead shines forth from the face of Christ as the Father commands the astonished Apostles to "listen to him" (cf. Lk 9:35 and parallels) and to prepare to experience with him the agony of the Passion, so as to come with him to the joy of the Resurrection and a life transfigured by the Holy Spirit. A final mystery of light is the institution of the Eucharist, in which Christ offers his body and blood as food under the signs of bread and wine, and testifies "to the end" his love for humanity (Jn 13:1), for whose salvation he will offer himself in sacrifice.
In these mysteries, apart from the miracle at Cana, the presence of Mary remains in the background. The Gospels make only the briefest reference to her occasional presence at one moment or other during the preaching of Jesus (cf. Mk 3:31-5; Jn 2:12), and they give no indication that she was present at the Last Supper and the institution of the Eucharist. Yet the role she assumed at Cana in some way accompanies Christ throughout his ministry. The revelation made directly by the Father at the Baptism in the Jordan and echoed by John the Baptist is placed upon Mary's lips at Cana, and it becomes the great maternal counsel which Mary addresses to the Church of every age: "Do whatever he tells you" (Jn 2:5). This counsel is a fitting introduction to the words and signs of Christ's public ministry and it forms the Marian foundation of all the "mysteries of light".
On what day of the week should one pray the new mysteries. Prior to the Pope's Letter, the Joyful Mysteries were prayed on Mondays and Thursday, the Sorrowful on Tuesdays and Fridays, and the Glorious on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday. The Pope suggests the following reshuffle: Joyful on Mondays and Saturdays, The Mysteries of Light on Thursdays, the Sorrowful would remain on Tuesdays and Fridays and the Glorious would be prayed on Wednesdays and Sundays. While suggesting the above distribution, the Pope gives us freedom to recite mysteries on other days for personal and community reasons
CHAPTER THREE: "FOR ME TO LIVE IS CHIRST"
In this chapter the Pope looks at the method of praying the rosary and offers practical suggestion:
1. Each mystery should be announced before recitation. If possible use a suitable icon or image to remind us of the event being contemplated.
2. Read from scripture a brief account of the event or mystery being contemplated.
3. Silence. After announcing the mystery or reading the scripture, take a moment to reflect on the event before moving onto the recitation of the Our Father and Hail Mary's.
In chapter three # 32-35, the Pope also offers a brief reflection on the three main prayers of the rosary. Concerning the Our Father her writes:
After listening to the word and focusing on the mystery, it is natural for the mind to be lifted up toward the Father. In each of his mysteries, Jesus always leads us to the Father's bosom (cf. Jn. 1:18) he is continually turned toward him. He wants us to share in his intimacy with the Father, so that we can say with him: "Abba, Father" (Rom. 8:15; Gal. 4:6)._ _ _ _
On the Hail Mary, the Pope writes:
This is the most substantial element in the rosary and also the one which makes it a Marian prayer par excellence. Yet when the Hail Mary is properly understood, we come to see clearly that its Marian character is not opposed to its Christological character, but that it actually emphasizes and increases it. The first part of the Hail Mary, drawn from the words spoken to Mary by the angel Gabriel and by St. Elizabeth, is a contemplation in adoration of the mystery accomplished in the virgin of Nazareth. These words express, so to speak, the wonder of heaven and earth; they could be said to give us a glimpse of God's own wonderment as he contemplates his "masterpiece" - the incarnation of the Son in the womb of the Virgin Mary. If we recall how, in the Book of Genesis, God "saw all that he had made" (Gn. 1:31), we can find here an echo of that "pathos with which God, at the dawn of creation, looked upon the work of his hands." The repetition of the Hail Mary in the rosary gives us a share in God's own wonder and pleasure: In jubilant amazement we acknowledge the greatest miracle of history. Mary's prophecy here finds its fulfillment: "Henceforth all generations will call me blessed" (Lk. 1:48).
The center of gravity in the Hail Mary, the hinge as it were which joins its two parts, is the name of Jesus. Sometimes in hurried recitation this center of gravity can be overlooked and with it the connection to the mystery of Christ being contemplated. Yet it is precisely the emphasis given to the name of Jesus and to his mystery that is the sign of a meaningful and fruitful recitation of the rosary.
From Mary's uniquely privileged relationship with Christ, which makes her the mother of God. Theotokos, derives the forcefulness of the appeal we make to her in the second half of the prayer, as we entrust to her maternal intercession our lives and the hour of our death.
On the Gloria, the Popes writes:
Trinitarian doxology is the goal of all Christian contemplation. For Christ is the way that leads us to the Father in the Spirit. If we travel this way to the end, we repeatedly encounter the mystery of the three divine Persons, to whom all praise, worship and thanksgiving are due. It is important that the Gloria, the high point of contemplation, be given due prominence in the rosary. In public recitation it could be sung as a way of giving proper emphasis to the essentially Trinitarian structure of all Christian prayer.
The Rosary Beads #36
In # 36, the Pope offers us a beautiful reflection on the symbolic meaning of the beads themselves. An excerpt:
As a counting mechanism, marking the progress of the prayer, the beads evoke the unending path of contemplation and of Christian perfection. Blessed Bartolo Longo saw them also as a "chain" which links us to God. A chain, yes, but a sweet chain, for sweet indeed is the bond to God who is also our Father. A "filial" chain which puts us in tune with Mary, the "handmaid of the Lord" (Lk. 1:38) and, most of all, with Christ himself, who, though he was in fhe form of God, made himself a "servant" out of love for us (Phil. 2:7).
In the conclusion of his Letter, the Pope suggests that we especially pray the rosary for peace (#40) and the family (#41). He urges us to be creative when praying the rosary with children and young people. Finally, the Pope tells us that he sees the Rosary as a treasure to be rediscovered by the Christian Community.
The Pope ends his Letter with a quote from Blessed Bartolo Longo, who was a great advocate for the rosary.