Pray and Fast for Peace
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At numerous times and places during the history of the Church, Our Blessed Mother has appeared to encourage the faithful and promote devotion to her Son Our Savior. Oftentimes, the Rosary has played an important role in these visits by Our Blessed Mother.
When Our Blessed Mother comes to us with a message from Heaven, that message always points us to her Son and so, too, does the Rosary that she so lovingly promotes. As Pope Saint Paul VI observed in his 1974 Apostolic Exhortation Marialis Cultus: “As a Gospel prayer, centered on the mystery of the redemptive Incarnation, the Rosary is therefore a prayer with a clearly Christological orientation. Its most characteristic element, in fact, the litany-like succession of Hail Mary's, becomes in itself an unceasing praise of Christ, who is the ultimate object both of the angel's announcement and of the greeting of the mother of John the Baptist: "Blessed is the fruit of your womb" (Lk. 1:42).”
When Our Blessed Mother first appeared to Saint Bernadette in Lourdes, France on 11 February 1858, she was holding a Rosary. “I saw a Lady dressed in white, wearing a white dress, a blue girdle and a yellow rose on each foot, the same color as the chain of her Rosary,” Saint Bernadette would later report. Instinctively, Saint Bernadette took her Rosary from her pocket and prayed the Rosary prayers.
The Rosary played an important part of Our Blessed Mother’s appearances at Garabandal, Spain in the early 1960s. The visionaries frequently prayed the Rosary and would often fall into ecstasy at the sight of Our Mother while praying the Rosary. On one occasion, Our Blessed Mother instructed the visionaries on how to pray the Rosary more piously.
Our Blessed Mother has appeared numerous times to a group of young people in Medjugorje since 1981. Now in middle age, a couple of these visionaries receive monthly visits from her while others receive annual visits or on special occasions. On numerous occasions, Our Blessed Mother encouraged us to pray the Rosary. For example, on 25 June 1985, she said, “I invite you to call on everyone to pray the Rosary. With the rosary you shall overcome all the adversities which Satan is trying to inflict on the Catholic Church. All you priests, pray the Rosary! Dedicate your time to the Rosary! ”
On 13 May 1917, Our Blessed Mother appeared to three peasant children in Fatima, Portugal, urging them to “Pray the Rosary every day to obtain peace for the world and an end to the war.” She repeated this call to pray the Rosary daily during each of her five further appearances to them. During her 13 June 1917, Our Blessed Mother taught us a new prayer to be added to the Rosary. She said, “And after each one of the mysteries, my children, I want you to pray in this way: ‘O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fire of hell. Lead all souls to heaven, especially those who are most in need.’” Then at her final appearance on 13 October 1917, she declared “I am the Lady of the Rosary.”
When Our Blessed Mother appeared to Sister Agnes Sasagawa in Akita, Japan, she conveyed a message of warning and urged us to pray the Rosary. According to Sister Agnes, Our Mother said on 13 October 1973,
“As I told you, if men do not repent and better themselves, the Father will inflict a terrible punishment on all humanity. It will be a punishment greater than the deluge, such as one has never seen before. Fire will fall from the sky and will wipe out a great part of humanity, the good as well as the bad, sparing neither priests nor faithful. The survivors will find themselves so desolate that they will envy the dead. The only arms which will remain for you will be the Rosary and the Sign left by My Son. Each day recite the prayers of the Rosary. With the Rosary, pray for the Pope, the bishops and priests. Pray very much the prayers of the Rosary. I alone am able still to save you from the calamities which approach. Those who place their confidence in me will be saved.”
It is very important to note that Our Mother’s appearance to Sister Agnes occurred on the 55th Anniversary of her final appearance at Fatima…a series of apparitions that both encouraged praying the Rosary and offered warnings about humanity’s conduct and Divine justice.
Jesus sends his Blessed Mother periodically to bring us back to God and seek His Mercy for us and the whole world. Like she did at the Wedding of Cana, she directs us to "Do whatever he tells you” (John 2:5).
Over the centuries, the Rosary has been an important part of Catholic devotion, the importance of which has been reiterated time and time again when Our Blessed Mother has made her appearances on behalf of her Son Our Savior.
Our Lady of the Rosary, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our deaths. Amen.
Bryan J. Dickerson is an author and historian specializing in military and naval history, and Catholicism. He earned his BA in History from Rowan University (NJ), MA in American History from Monmouth University (NJ) and a graduate Certificate in Archival Studies from Louisiana State University. His writings have appeared online and in print in such publications as Columbia (the magazine of the Knights of Columbus) and Celebrate Life (the magazine of the American Life League). He is a 4th Degree member of the Knights of Columbus and a Past Grand Knight of a council in New Jersey. His book The Liberators of Pilsen: the U.S. 16th Armored Division in World War II Czechoslovakia was published by McFarland Books in 2018 and his book Dive Bomber Down: James A. Nist Naval Aviator in the Pacific War is now available from McFarland Books. He has also self-published sixeen books, including In the Name of COVID: The Assault on Religious Freedom in 2020. A former U.S. Navy Reserve Religious Program Specialist 1st Class (Fleet Marine Force), he mobilized and deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom twice. He and his wife Lisa have four children and live in southern New Jersey.
