MANILA -- October is the month of the Holy Rosary, which the Catholic Church celebrates with fervor and holiness. It is considered a powerful weapon against evil, as well as the perfect prayer to bring peace to the world.
What makes 2017 doubly important is the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the famous Fatima Apparitions by the Blessed Virgin Mary at Fatima, Portugal for six consecutive months every 13th day from May to October 1917 at a time when World War 1 was raging in Europe.
The Blessed Mother has promised that those who pray the Holy Rosary will also obtain the great gift of bringing about a change of heart and conversion of sinners, apart from driving away many dangers and evils.
Those who pray the Rosary know that it is a “repetitive prayer” -- and indeed it is. Nonetheless, it is like two people in love, who repeatedly say the words: “I love you!”
For Catholics, the Holy Rosary is considered a perfect prayer because it is an awesome prayer of man’s salvation from eternal damnation.
As one faithful said, by saying the Rosary, “we meditate the mysteries of joy, sorrow, and glory of Jesus Christ and the Blessed Mary. It's a simple prayer, humble so much like Mary. It's a prayer we can all say together with Her, the Mother of God. With the Hail Mary we invite Her to pray for us. Our Lady always grants our request. She joins Her prayer to ours. Therefore, it becomes ever more useful, because what Mary asks, She always receives. Jesus can never say no to whatever His Mother asks for.”
As the late American Archbishop Fulton Sheen said, "The rosary is the book of the blind, where souls see and there enact the greatest drama of love the world has ever known; it is the book of the simple, which initiates them into mysteries and knowledge more satisfying than the education of other men; it is the book of the aged, whose eyes close upon the shadow of this world, and open on the substance of the next. The power of the rosary is beyond description."
During the month of October, Catholic churches in the Philippines will be filled with devotees to pray together the Holy Rosary for peace in the country, particularly at a time when there is a real security threat posed by terror groups, such as the Abu Sayyaf and Maute terrorists in Mindanao.
During her apparition at Fatima, the Blessed Mother urged the people to turn away from sin, especially the sin of the flesh, and pray daily the Holy Rosary for the world to have a lasting peace. (PNA)
