Why the Rosary is so powerful

Very often, solutions to our problems are simpler and more available than we realize. In Saint Luke, Jesus teaches his disciples “about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary” (Lk 18:1). Good advice, that.

I suspect that one of the reasons for the decline of Christianity in the western world is due in no small part to the fact that many people never pray. Life, they think, can be handled without God. This is true in families as well. For some families the only prayer that might be offered at all is the prayer before meals and some have even abandoned that. In my opinion, this is partly why a larger percentage of young people abandon the practice of their faith now than in past generations. Many simply don’t think faith is important. If it were, their families would have prayed together and helped their children to develop daily, personal prayer as a life-long habit.

Jesus urged us to pray always because our faith depends upon it. If we don’t pray, we will stop believing.

I would like to offer a simple, yet profoundly powerful corrective to this unhappy trend: Mary and the Rosary. I know, it sounds too simple, even a bit boring. The Rosary? Yes, the Rosary. I have yet to meet in my life a person who prayed the Rosary and left the faith. Never.

I have my own theories on why the Rosary is such a powerful prayer. First, it prays with the Word of God. The key prayers of the Rosary are taken from Scripture; the Our Father and the Hail Mary are from the Gospels. The Rosary also puts us into contact with the saving mysteries of Jesus. Like many adults, I came to realize that my mind and heart were formed over the years by the mysteries of the Rosary. I am disappointed that many of our youth are not familiar with the most basic events of salvation history. Yet, they would be if they prayed the Rosary!

But, here is my other theory as to why the Rosary is so powerful. When we pray the Rosary we invite Mary into what we are doing, and she is our Mother. She never fails. She is so good, so full of love for her Son, and for all of us. When we pray the Rosary, it is as if we are saying to Mary, “Mother, take my hand and help me.” And she does; she always does. She helps us encounter Jesus like no other.

The Rosary with its repetition can seem uninspiring, even boring. Many think of the Rosary the way Naaman the Syrian thought of the Jordan River in the Second Book of Kings, chapter 5. When told that his leprosy would be cured if he washed seven times in the Jordan, he scoffed. He was expecting something more exciting and significant; and if he were to wash in a river, there were better ones than the Jordan. Nevertheless, at the urging of his servants, he relented and was miraculously cured, and he returned home praising the God of Israel.

The Rosary is the same. Start praying the Rosary regularly and see.

Bishop James Vann Johnston Jr. of Kansas City, Missouri, United States.

The Catholic Key