Pray the Rosary every day in honor of Our Lady of the Rosary to obtain peace in the world . . . for she alone can save it. – Our Lady of Fatima, July 13, 1917
Because October is Rosary month and tomorrow, October 7th, is the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, I have been focusing on Our Lady of the Rosary in a few different ways. These include learning about the Rosary, saying a 54 Day Rosary Novena and designing a new Rosary pamphlet for my Etsy shop.
A Bit About Our Lady of the Rosary
I am just barely scratching the surface of all there is to learn about Marian apparitions and the Rosary but here are a couple of things I’ve learned so far.
In 1208, St. Dominic was sent to preach against the Albigensian heresy but had little success until the Blessed Mother appeared to him and gifted him with the Rosary. While there is no hard historical proof of this story, it is known that St. Dominic was a great champion of the Rosary and that the Rosary came into widespread use thanks to his efforts.
On October 7th 1571, a combined force of European nations triumphed over the Ottoman navy. Because the odds were against the smaller European force, Pope Pius V had called for all of Europe to pray the Rosary in petition just before battle. By all accounts, the Europeans shouldn’t have won and, as a result, many considered their victory nothing short of miraculous. This is why we honor Our Lady of the Rosary on October 7th to this day.
In 1917, at Fatima, the Blessed Mother appeared to three shepherd children on the thirteenth of the month for six months, beginning in May and ending in October. During the July apparition, Mary urged the children to say the Holy Rosary daily in honor of Our Lady of the Rosary because only she could bring peace.
About the 54 Day Novena
In Italy in the late 1800s, a girl named Fortuna Agrelli had been suffering for almost a year with a very serious illness. The doctors had given up but the family relied on their fatih and began a series of Novenas. About two weeks later on 3 March 1884, the Blessed Mother appeared before Fortuna and told her to pray a series of three Rosary Novenas for healing.
The girl directed her prayers to Mary, Queen of the Holy Rosary, and was healed. In the apparitions that followed, Mary taught the girl the full 54 Day Rosary Novena.
Since that time many people have had their petitions granted after saying the 54 Day Rosary Novena.
To see the trifold pamphlet I designed for Rosary month please see the following post: New Rosary Pamphlet or visit my listing on etsy!
