The Most Holy Rosary

The Sorrowful And Immaculate Hear Of Mary

The Rosary is, in form, a meditation of the chief mysteries of the life, death and glory of Jesus Christ and of His Blessed Mother.

The Rosary  is made up of two things:

• Mental Prayer - the meditation on the mysteries.

• Vocal Prayer - the recitation of the 15 decades.

Each decade is headed by an Our Father followed with 10 Hail Marys. With the recitation of the Rosary, one should  meditate on and contemplate the 15 principal virtues which Jesus and Mary practiced in the 15 mysteries of the Holy Rosary.

The Three Mysteries

• Joyful Mystery
• Sorrowful Mystery
• Glorious Mystery

Origin of the Rosary

Saint Dominic withdraw into a forest near Toulouse when he saw the gravity of the people's sins that hindered the conversion of the Albigensians. He prayed unceasingly for three days and three nights. He wept and did harsh penances to appease the anger of Almighty God. He used his discipline so much that his body was lacerated and he fell into a coma.

Our Lady appeared to him with three angels. She said, "Dear Dominic, do you know  which weapon the Blessed Trinity wants to be  used  to reform the world?"

"Oh, my Lady," Saint Dominic anwered, "You know far better than I do because next to your son, Jesus Christ, you have always been the chief instrument of our salvation."

Then Our Lady replied, "I want you to know that in this kind of warfare, the battering ram has always been the Angelic Psalter which is the foundation stone of the New Testament. Therefore, if you want to reach these hardened souls and win them over to God, preach my Psalter."

So he arose, comforted with so much zeal for the conversion of the people in that district, he made straight to the Cathedral. At once, unseen angels rang the bells to gather the people together and Saint Dominic began to preach.

At the beginning of his sermon, an appalling storm broke out, the earth shook, the sun darkened and there was so much thunder and lightning that all were much afraid. Their fear was greater when they looked at the picture of Our Lady, exposed in a prominent place, saw her arms raised to heaven three times to call down God's vengeance upon them if they failed to be converted and to amend their lives and seek the protection of the Holy Mother of God.

God wished by means of these supernatural phenomena, to spread the new devotion of The Holy Rosary and  make it more widely known.

At last, at the prayer of Saint Dominic, the storm stopped and he started preaching. So fervently and compellingly, he explained the importance and value of the Holy Rosary that almost all the people of Toulouse embraced it and renounced their false beliefs. In a very short time, a great improvement was seen in the town. People began leading Christian lives and gave up their former bad habits.

(Note: The picture of the SORROWFUL AND IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY  was somewhat mysterious in its origin. This was discovered at the time of the 1918 armistice in the cellar of the boarding school where Berthe Petit, a humble Franciscan Tertiary, had been educated. After the troops had departed, a Bernardine nun found a pornographic picture which she tore to pieces and threw to the flames.  To her astonishment she found this beautiful representation of the Blessed Virgin! It seemed to be a combination of the art of both the Eastern and the Western Rites. The facial features resembled those of the well known Pieta. Prayer before this picture has brought signal favors.

Confided by Our Lord to Berthe Petit, "Teach souls to love the Heart of My Mother pierced by the very sorrow which pierced Mine." (December 25, 1909).

"The Heart of my Mother has the right to be called Sorrowful and I wish this title be placed before that of Immaculate because she has won it herself. The Church has defined in the case of My Mother what I, myself, had ordained - Her Immaculate Conception. This right which My Mother has to a title of justice, is now, according to My express wish, be known and universally accepted. She has earned it by her identification with My sorrows; by her sufferings; by her sacrifices and her immolation in the Calvary endured in perfect correspondence with My grace for the salvation of mankind." (September 6, 1911).

"It is the heart that must be changed. This would be accomplished only by the Devotion proclaimed, explained, preached and recommended everywhere. Recourse to My Mother, under this title I wish for her universally, would be the last help I shall give before the end of time." (July 2, 1940).

Pray, Hope and Don't Worry

Padre Pio was born to Grazio Mario Forgione (1860 - 1946) and Maria Guiseppa de Nunzio (1859 - 1929) on May 25, 1887 in Pietrelcina Southern Italy. He was baptized day after he was born in the nearby Castle Church with the name of his brother who died in early infancy, Francesco.  He has an older brother named, Michele and three younger sisters: Felicita, Pellegrina and Gracia. Two other children died as infants.

Religion was the center of life for the family and Pietrelcina. Attended the daily mass, prayed the rosary every night and would fast three days a week from meat in Honor of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. Deep piety was evident in early childhood. At the age of five, he consecrated himself to Jesus. He also commented that in his younger years he had conversed with Jesus, the Madonna and his guardian angels. His parents learned of his desire to become priest in 1897.

He was tutored privately until his entry into the Capuchin Friars at the age of fifteen. He took the habit of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin on January 22, 1903.  On the day of his investiture, he took the name of Pio in honor of St. Pius V, the patron saint of Pietrelcina. He was called fra (for brother) until ordination of priesthood.  On January 22, 1904,  Fra Pio knelt the altar and made his first profession of the Evangelical Counsels of poverty, chastity and obedience.  He took his final vows in 1907 and at the age of 23 and by grace completed his studies and was ordained priest in 1910 by Archbishop Paolo Schinosi at the Cathedral of Benevento. His first celebration of the Mass was done four days later at the Parish Church of Our Lady of the Angels. Within the month of ordination, Padre Pio was praying in the Piana Romano on September 7, 1910 when Jesus and Mary appeared to him and gave him the wounds of Christ, the Stigmata. He asked Jesus to make it invisible, "I do want to suffer, even to die of suffering, but all in secret." The wounds went away and supernatural life remained a secret for awhile.

From the end of 1911 - 1916 Padre Pio was separted from his religious community due to on going health issues. He returned to his community life on September 4, 1916 and was assigned to San Giovanni Rotondo.  There were only 3 friars left at Our Lady of Grace on the outbreak of the war. His responsibility included teaching at the seminary and spiritual director of the students. He later on became in charge of the college when another friar was drafted into war. Padre Pio was also inducted into the service in August 1917 and was assigned to the 4th Platoon of the 100th Company of the Italian Medical Corps. He became a spiritual director on return to San Giovanni after he was dismissed in March 1918. He had observed five rules for spiritual growth: weekly confession, daily communion, spiritual reading, meditation and examination of conscience. Padre Pio's motto, "Pray, Hope and Don't Worry" is the synopsis of his application of Theology into his daily life.

Betwen August 5 - 7, Padre Pio had a vision of Christ. As a result, Pade Pio experienced a "transverbaration" or piercing of the heart indicating the union of love with God.

As his spiritual influence increased, so did his detractors. Accusations against him led to restricting public access to Padre Pio. His celebration of mass was varied each day without any announcement to diminish the crowds. Despite though of these restrictions and controversies, his ministry continued to flourish. Various statements were made to deny supernaturality of Padre Pio's phenomena. He was also ordered to desist all activities except the celebration of the mass which was to be made private. It was only Pope Pius XI who reversed its ban on public celebration of mass on early 1933.

The health of Padre Pio deteriorated in the mid-1960s, however, he continued his daily mass and hear 50 confessions daily. He was almost bedridden by July of 1968. On the 50th anniversary of the stigmata, he celebrated mass, attended public recitation of the Rosary and benediction. In the early morning hours of September 23, Padre Pio called his superiors to make his confession. He renewed his vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. Padre Pio died in his cell at 2:30 AM. He lived sick but died healthy with the stigmata healed, as he foretold.

BILOCATION & ODOR OF SANCTITY

The most remarkable gift attributed to him was the phenomenon of Bilocation which enables a person to be present in two places at the same time. Bilocation must not be confused with omnipresence - being present everywhere at the same time belongs only to God.

Click the link  The Bilocation for testimonies on this topic.

THE STIGMATA

The prayer of his profound desire to identify with Christ crucified not only by participation in the priestly apostolate but in some mysterious way in that supreme immolation of Our Lord on Calvary (cf. Le Stimmate di P. Pio, G. Cruchon, SJ, Colana "Spiritualità", No. 1, p. 102). "I am dying of pain because of the wound and because of the resulting embarrassment which I feel deep within my soul. . . Will Jesus who is so good grant me this grace ? Will he at least relieve me of the embarrassment which these outward signs cause me" (Ep., V. 1, p. 1904).

Click the link  The Stigmata.

THE POOR SOULS

Millions of souls climbed to Mt. Gargano to the Capuchin Friary of Our Lady of Grace seeking for his intercession with God. Majority of these souls though were not of the living but that of the poor souls of the dead confined  to Purgatory for the expiation of the temporal punshiment due to their forgiven sins.

Click the link  The Poor Souls.

GUARDIAN ANGELS

God granted him the vision of his guardian angels and also of others. It was through the guardian angel of a person that their need was brought  to Padre Pio's attention, who then prayed for this person. Padre Pio never abandons his spiritual child . Even if he did not visit them personally, they would receive help through his guardian angels no matter what danger they were in.

Click the link Guardian Angels.

Resource:  Thanks to EWTN.COM.