One of the strong points in the practice of the Holy Rosary is the remarkable unit it brings between personal and communal prayer. In saying together the Our Father and the Hail Mary, we are truly sharing what is deepest in the Christian soul. Accordingly, we are both within a very intimate spiritual exercise and in the midst of a stream of love and faith that inflows, covers and penetrates all of us. Regarding this point, we recall that the Catechism of the Catholic Church begins precisely joining the two expressions: “I believe – We believe.” This two-fold dimension of our faith has passed on to the Rosary, we can affirm.
Note as well that because of the well established form of the Rosary, it is easiest to everybody to simply “come in and join”–an aspect that not every pious practice features. Taking the beads and reciting the prayers becomes so natural for us that it is almost universally recognised as a sign of belonging to the Roman Catholic Church. A person holding, wearing or using a rosary is presenting herself as a Catholic.
Togetherness and belonging go hand on hand, as we could suspect. We pray with others and so we bear testimony of our inner beliefs. It looks so natural that you need a moment or two to grasp the richness that is implicit here.
Belonging is the one thing that many people seek nowadays, no matter what. From the over-extended use of tattoos, to wearing the T-shirt of the preferred sport team, to the variations and nuances of the jargon each one assumes as own, what can we say? People long for belonging. This is especially true when the accelerated transformations of the formerly so-established Catholic culture have left so many people without a spiritual home. In fact, so often they own houses they do not manage to transform into homes!
For generations of simple yet strong believers the Rosary was a home. The fireplace would bring together the family; the Rosary would gather their hearts. In the repeated exercise of beholding the same mysteries and praising the same love they realised they were but one. The Rosary was their anchor, their constant point of reference, even the way many of them would use to schedule the daily tasks.
Most of that world does not exist anymore. A sense of frustration menaces to depress our hearts as we are obliged to admit that the rule became the exception, so that very few hold the same truths and customs their grandparents did.
Nonetheless, failure is not an option for a committed Christian. Before we grieve so much over the loss of those sane customs, may I recall, that that world did not exist at some point. It came to existence because of the perseverance, the stubborn humility and unbeatable charity of a minority. Christians were a minority, and in some sense, will always be a minority, if we think of true Christians (and please do not hurry to include ourselves in the flock).
What I mean is: we believers already once created a wonderful social reality, a network of homes that shared the same faith, cult and morals. It cannot be too late, it will never be too late, to start again over, rekindling the fire of Divine love in the human soul. Among the tools and peaceful weapons we can make use of there exists the Holy Rosary. Let us experience the potential it enjoys to bring hearts together. Let us discover once more its amazing power.