Mary Our Mother and Queen // Why Pray the Rosary?
Image by thesaintsproject.org
There are many reasons to pray the rosary. It is cathartic, it’s simple to keep track of, and best of all, Mary offers fifteen promises to those who pray the rosary.
Here are the promises, as she told them to St. Dominic.
1. To all those who shall pray my Rosary devoutly, I promise my special protection and great graces.—Holy moly! Starting off strong right off the bat, huh? Special protection and great graces! Sign me up!
2. Those who shall persevere in the recitation of my Rosary will receive some special grace.—This is Mary telling us we need to make it a daily commitment.
3. The Rosary will be a very powerful armor against hell; it will destroy vice, deliver from sin and dispel heresy.—Imagine how peaceful and calming it is to know that when you’re praying the Rosary, you have one extra special piece of armor against Sin and Hell!
4. The Rosary will make virtue and good works flourish, and will obtain for souls the most abundant divine mercies. It will draw the hearts of men from the love of the world and its vanities, and will lift them to the desire of eternal things. Oh, that souls would sanctify themselves by this means.—We get an abundance of divine mercies and again, Mary urges us to do this regularly!
5. Those who trust themselves to me through the Rosary will not perish.—Mary is promising the safety of our souls if we trust in the Rosary.
6. Whoever recites my Rosary devoutly reflecting on the mysteries shall never be overwhelmed by misfortune. He will not experience the anger of God nor will he perish by an unprovided death. The sinner will be converted; the just will persevere in grace and merit eternal life.—As overwhelming as life gets, those who pray the Rosary daily won’t be inundated by stress and misfortune. She’ll be the life raft for us. By "unprovided death," the promise means that your soul will be prepared for the final judgement before you die.
7. Those truly devoted to my Rosary shall not die without the sacraments of the Church.—What a wonderful gift and promise! We’ll be able to receive last rites, and be anointed before our death. The most important benefit of receiving this sacrament is that it prepares you to enter into heaven by forgiving your sins and cleaning your soul which has been stained due to the effects of sin.
8. Those who are faithful to recite my Rosary shall have, during their life and at their death, the light of God and the plenitude of His graces, and will share in the merits of the blessed.—I can’t think of anything more reassuring and rewarding than being showered with God's grace and receiving the prayers of the saints already in heaven.
9. I will deliver promptly from purgatory souls devoted to my Rosary.—Purgatory is where we go to cleanse our souls before we get to the gates of Heaven. Mary’s basically giving us a get out of jail free card. Don’t pay $200, go ahead and pass Go, and get on up to Heaven!
10. True children of my Rosary will enjoy great glory in heaven.—This one seems pretty self-explanatory! Great Glory in Heaven? Sign me up, please!
11. What you shall ask through my Rosary you shall obtain.—Ask and we shall receive! Whatever we ask for help with, Mary is here to help us!
12. To those who propagate my Rosary, I promise aid in all their necessities.—Everything we need, even if we forget to ask for it, Mary is going to help us! Thanks, Mom!
13. I have obtained from my Son that all the members of the Rosary Confraternity shall have as their intercessors, in life and in death, the entire celestial court.—As our mediator, Mary is telling us she’ll be the go-between for all of us and her Son, as well as the saints already in Heaven!
14. Those who recite my Rosary faithfully are my beloved children, the brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ.—This isn’t to say that those who don’t pray the Rosary faithfully aren’t Mary’s spiritual children, just that those who do receive a special place in her heart.
15. Devotion to my Rosary is a special sign of predestination.—Praying the rosary faithfully keeps one in such a peaceful state of grace, it’s a sign of where they’re headed.
With all of these promises and wonderful gifts from Mary to those who pray it faithfully and daily, why WOULDN’T we try to pray the rosary? Our Mother Mary wants us to be close to her, and a daily rosary is the surest way to achieve this closeness.
Reflection question 1: Which of these promises is most appealing to you?
Reflection question 2: How often do you currently pray the rosary?
Act: Make some time to incorporate the rosary into your day. In the morning, on a lunch break, or even just before you fall asleep. Starting out simply would seem less daunting. Try a decade a day for a few days, then build up from there.
Pray the Rosary with Heart of Mary free downloadable audio rosary
