Today's Rosary | Holy Rosary University

Friends of the Rosary: To say “Christ is Lord” means to submit to His lordship, to freely enter into his dominion. It is like saying, in the words of St. Paul, Jesus Christ is my Lord, the very reason for my existence. We live for Him and no longer for ourselves. Today, the radical contradiction is between living for the Lord and living for oneself. And living for oneself means spiritual death. Av...

Friends of the Rosary: It's Christ who lives in each and every one of us. He acts on us. We belong to Him. It's not my mind, my will, or my desires, as our secular society imposes. "It's your life, you decide, you choose, it's all about finding your voice," we hear today. It's excessive self-regarding,  justification, and protection of the ego. Bishop Barron says that...

Friends of the Rosary: In today Sunday's reading (Mt 18:21-35), Christ Jesus illustrates to us the importance of forgiving our brother and showing mercy. Mercy is the characteristic of God, for God is love. And the divine mercy leads to the forgiveness of sins. Through the forgiveness of our sins and the sacrament of reconciliation, we are restored in divine friendship. Ave Maria! Jesus, I Tru...

Friends of the Rosary: Yesterday in the New Testament (Jn 19:25-27), we read how Jesus, nailed to the Cross, looked to His mother and the disciple whom He loved. He said to Mary, "Woman, behold, your son," and then to John the Apostle, "Behold, your mother." And from that hour, the disciple took her into his home. In entrusting Mary to John, Christ Jesus was, in a real sense, e...

Friends of the Rosary: Today is the Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows, also known as Our Lady of Seven Dolors, Our Lady of Dolors, or Nuestra Señora de los Dolores , in Spanish. This feast, which dates back to the 12th century, is dedicated to the spiritual martyrdom of Mary, Mother of God. It focuses on Mary's intense suffering during the passion and death of Christ. In her suffering as co-rede...

Friends of the Rosary: Today is the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, the instrument of our redemption and our glorious sign of victory over evil and all the demons around our lives. As humans, we are sealed with the Sign of the Cross. We belong to Christ. This day is also called the Triumph of the Cross, Elevation of the Cross, or Holy Cross Day. Observed in Rome since the seventh centur...

Friends of the Rosary: We remember today the sixth apparition of Our Lady of the Rosary in Fatima, Portugal. It took place on September 13, 1917, and this is how Sister Lucia, one of the three shepherds described it in her memoirs [Fourth Memoir (1941-12-08)]: "As the hour approached, I set out with Jacinta and Francisco, but owing to the crowds around us we could only advance with difficulty...

Friends of the Rosary: Today, we observe the Memorial Day of the Most Holy Name of Mary, inviting everyone to reflect upon all the graces received through the intercession and mediation of the Blessed Mother. This feast originated in Spain in the sixteenth century, in thanksgiving to Our Lady for the battle victory for Christian Europe against the Muslim Turks. The feast of the Holy Name of Mary ...

Friends of the Rosary: With tributes, moments of silence, and tearful words, we are remembering today the families of the victims of the 9/11 attacks. Twenty-two years ago, nearly 3,000 people were killed when hijacked planes crashed into the World Trade Center in New York, the Pentagon, and a Pennsylvania field. Evil terrorists, brainwashed by dark ideologies and ideas, killed innocent Americans....

Friends of the Rosary: Today's society attempts everything in its power to erase the meaning of sin. Sin just seems like another way of behaving. In this context, the necessary Christian correction of our brothers when they fall looks like an extravagance. Christianity seems like just another perspective, and sacraments are perceived as an extremely radical solution. In this Sunday’s Gospel (...

Friends of the Rosary: Jesus Christ respects our independence and free will but also wants to dwell in us and become the Lord of our lives, encouraging us to be perfect. In last Thursday's reading (LUKE 5:1–11), Jesus climbed into Peter's boat without asking permission. It was an invasion of grace. As Bishop Barron wrote, "When Jesus moves into the house of the soul, the powers of the...

Friends of the Rosary: Today, we celebrate the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, conceived and born immaculate and full of grace. Through her, all grace is given to men. Our Lady was born to be the mother of the Savior of the world, the spiritual mother of all men, and the holiest of God's creatures. In Mary, Queen of Heaven and of Earth, all human nature is exalted. Her nativi...

Friends of the Rosary: What can we do when we see evil deeds or sins among our friends or family members? We never approve sin, but we must continue to regard sinners as our brothers and do all in our power to guide them back onto the right path to heaven. We can achieve this through a good example and fervent prayer for their conversion. This may not be easy for human nature, but we can be certai...

Friends of the Rosary: September is the month of Our Lady of Sorrows, Nuestra Señora de los Dolores, in Spanish.  The sorrow of the Blessed Mother was immeasurable. It was surpassed only by her love. Her love was even stronger than death. It made her able to support the cruel death of Jesus Christ. The Stabat Mater — a 13th-century Latin hymn written by Franciscan friar and poet Jacopone da Todi —...

Friends of the Rosary: We honor today St. Teresa of Calcutta (1910-1997), affectionally called "Mother Teresa. This Albanian nun received the Nobel Prize in 1979 and founded in Calcutta, India, the Missionaries of Charity in 1950, established in 30 countries today. St. Teresa of Calcutta (Kolkata) proclaimed God’s thirsting love for humanity, especially for the poorest of the poor. She was a...

Friends of the Rosary: Reading a scroll of the prophet Isaiah in a synagogue on the sabbath day in Nazareth, where he had grown up, Christ Jesus proclaimed ( Lk 4:16-30 ): "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to procl...

Friends of the Rosary: Our human logic is very different from God’s thinking, as we learn in the Gospel today ( Mt 16:21-27 ). That’s why we have to learn the ways of the faith, which initially sound incomprehensible to us. Atheists and godless individuals try to take advantage of our limited understanding. The disciples themselves were shocked when Christ Jesus revealed to them this eternal truth...

Friends of the Rosary: Today, we are praying the Holy Rosary in San Francisco's Tenderloin district, an area avoided by tourists due to its reputation for drug dealing and violent crime. The Tenderloin is bordered by Geary to the north, Market Street to the south, Taylor Street to the east, and Van Ness to the west. Despite being advised against it, we felt compelled to see firsthand what was happ...

Friends of the Rosary: The month of September is dedicated to Our Lady of Sorrows, whose memorial is on September 15. We also celebrate two more Marian feasts: the Nativity of Mary (September 8) and the Holy Name of Mary (September 9). The Exaltation of the Holy Cross is on September 14. The Holy Mother Church sings of the triumph of the Holy Cross, the instrument of our salvation. Also, it thanks...

Friends of the Rosary: We honor today two saints mentioned in the Gospels who lived in the first-century in Jerusalem at the time of Christ: Saints Joseph Arimathea and Nicodemus. Joseph of Arimathea was a wealthy member of the temple council and a secret follower of Jesus. Nicodemus was a Pharisee and member of the Sanhedrin, who defended Jesus’ cause. Saint John even says that it was to Nicodemu...

Friends of the Rosary: Our lack of trust in the Savior, Christ, damages His sacred heart, not to mention our own souls. Without faith, there can be no hope, joy, or peace. Why do our hearts continue to remain as stones of unbelief? This thought arises when you observe and pray the Rosary while walking the streets of San Francisco, as we are doing this week. Jesus said to St. Faustina Kowalska: “My...

Friends of the Rosary: Today, August 29th is the Memorial of the Passion of St. John the Baptist. The Church celebrated the nativity of St. John the Baptist on June 24, and today honors the martyrdom of Christ's precursor and forerunner. Besides our Lord and our Lady, John the Baptist is the only one whose birth and death are thus celebrated. Today's Gospel relates the circumstances of his...

Friends of the Rosary: Today, August 28, the Catholic Church honors St. Augustine, one of the most influential theologians in the history of the Catholic Church. Born in the town of Thagaste (now Souk-Ahras in modern Algeria), Augustine lived a dissolute life of sin up until his conversion — written in the autobiographical brilliant book of  Confessions . He also wrote  The City of God.  His mothe...

Friends of the Rosary: Today, we celebrate memorial of St. Monica, which is superseded by the Sunday liturgy. St. Monica (333-387), the mother of St. Augustine, was a Christian, but her husband Patricius was a pagan. Monica's virtues and prayers, converted him, and he was baptized a year before his death. Monica's tears and prayers for his son son were incessant as well. She had the joy of...

Friends of the Rosary: Today, we commemorate Our Lady of Czestochowa, also known as the Black Madonna. It’s traditionally believed that this icon was painted by St. Luke the Evangelist on a cypress wood panel from a table used by the Holy Family in Nazareth. The painting was discovered by St. Helen, the mother of Emperor Constantine. The icon was then enshrined in the imperial city of Constantinop...