Today's Rosary | Holy Rosary University

Friends of the Rosary: In today’s Sunday — the fourth of Advent — we see how an angel of the Lord appeared to St. Joseph, in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus because he will save his people from their sin...

Friends of the Rosary: We read today (Matthew 1:1-17) about the genealogy of Jesus, the forty-two generations that stretch from Abraham to Christ. It means that the Word Incarnated dwelt among our dysfunctional human family. In the list of the ancestors of Jesus, we see a bit of everything: from Ruth, who was not an Israelite but a Moabite to Rahab, a prostitute in Jericho. Not a genealogy of sain...

Friends of the Rosary: Everything we do, knowingly or unknowingly, is for the Glory of God. Then, the Glory of God is reflected in us. We should understand that we are united forever with the Holy Mighty One. Nothing can separate us from Jesus Christ: not the Evil Doer, nor the flesh, nor the world with its tricks and lies. Not even our own unspeakable sins! The Holy Trinity gave us eternal life s...

Friends of the Rosary: This week, we celebrated Our Lady of Guadalupe. This feast highlights, as Archbishop Jose Gomez, said that “who we are, the dearest sons and daughters of God Our Lord.” We remember the words she addressed to St. Juan Diego: ‘Am I not here, I, who am your mother? Are you not under my shadow and shelter? Am I not the source of your joy? Are you not in the hollow of my mantle,...

Friends of the Rosary: December 14th is the memorial of St. John of the Cross, the 16th-century Spanish, Carmelite priest and Mystical Doctor of the Church. He reformed the Carmelite order together with St. Teresa of Avila, and wrote the classic spiritual treatise “The Dark Night of the Soul.” During his religious life, he was mistreated, humiliated, and incarcerated, but these trials brought him...

Friends of the Rosary: Today, we venerate a popular Sicilian Martyr and Virgin of the third century that is a living symbol of the light of Advent amid the darkness of the world. St. Lucy prepared herself for the reunion of the Lord like few people across history. St. Lucy made a vow of virginity and distributed her wealth to the poor. She was martyred for defending her virginity. She was tortured...

Friends of the Rosary: Today, we celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. On December 9, 1531, the Blessed Mother appeared, in her glorified body, to a poor Indian convert named Juan Diego in Tepeyac, a hill of Mexico City. The Mother of God left a marvelous portrait of herself on the mantle — the tilma — of Juan Diego as a sign for the bishop. The tilma has proved to be ageless, showing no s...

Friends of the Rosary: Today, the Third Sunday of Advent is known as Gaudete Sunday. The term Gaudete means "Rejoice." We light the rose-colored candle of Advent and emphasize our joy as Christmas draws near. We the faithful await the feast of the Lord's Nativity while praying to receive the joy of our salvation in Jesus Christ and share the glory of His Kingdom here on Earth. Ave Maria! Jesus, I...

Friends of the Rosary: Today, we celebrate the Memorial of Our Lady of Loreto. The title of Our Lady of Loreto refers to the Holy House of Loreto, the house in which Mary was born, and in which the Word was made flesh at the Annunciation. Tradition says that angels transported the little house from Palestine to Loreto, in Italy where it has been for centuries. Since the 14th century, this shr...

Friends of the Rosary: Today we remember Juan Diego, the Mexican saint who received a visit from Our Lady of Guadalupe in Cuautlitlán, today part of Mexico City. When he was 50 years old he was baptized by a Franciscan priest, Fr. Peter da Gand, one of the first Franciscan missionaries. On December 9, 1531, when Juan Diego was on his way to morning Mass, the Blessed Mother appeared to him. Our Lad...

Friends of the Rosary: We celebrate today the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of Mary, a holy day of obligation in the United States. Our Lady was immaculately conceived as it was defined by the solemn dogma proclaimed by Blessed Pope Pius IX on December 8, 1854. “The most Blessed Virgin Mary was, from the first moment of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege of almighty Go...

Friends of the Rosary: We asked ChatGPT, the latest breakthrough in Artificial Intelligence, a phenomenon these days, about the Rosary.  Explain the Mysteries of the Rosary, was the question. The answer of this tool — created by an Elon Musk San Francisco - based OpenAI company — wasn’t bad!   "The Rosary is a popular devotion among Catholics, which involves the repetition of prayers, ca...

Friends of the Rosary: Today, we celebrate the memorial of St. Nicholas of Myra, a 4th-century bishop born in Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey), one of the most popular saints honored in the Western world, and known as Saint Claus in the U.S. But the story of Saint Nicholas came to America in a distorted fashion, brought by the Dutch Protestants. Popular legends portrayed St. Nicholas as a North Pole...

Friends of the Rosary: We also pray today’s Rosary in Madrid, Spain. In addition to the Christmas tree, during the Advent and Christmas seasons, we enjoy the nativity scenes — belenes , in Spanish. These nativity scenes reflect the wonder of the divine littleness — God making himself small, not born in the splendor of a palace but in genuine poverty, on a stable. For what? To be closer to each of...

Friends of the Rosary: Today, on the Second Sunday of Advent, we read about the preaching of John the Baptist on the desert of Judea (Mt 3:1-12) His main message: "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!" Many followed his request and were baptized by him in the Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins. Others refuse to follow the truth. To them, the warning was clear: “Every tree that d...

Friends of the Rosary: Today, we honor St. Francis Xavier, the greatest missionary after St. Paul the Apostle. Born in Navarre, Spain, in 1506, to a noble Basque family, he gave his life to bring the Good News to people who had never known Christ, mostly in western India, the coast of China, Malaysia, the Island of Mindanao, Japan, and other parts of Asia. He loved the poor, and the sick, and show...

Friends of the Rosary: In this month dedicated to the Immaculate Conception, we reflect upon the mystery of Mary, the most perfect human being ever created. St. Irenaeus compares the virginity of the pure earth from which Adam was drawn to the virginity of the immaculate humanity of Mary, from which the Second Adam, Jesus Christ, was drawn. “He who is the Word, recapitulating Adam in Himself, righ...

Friends of the Rosary: The dogma of the Immaculate Conception was defined by Blessed Pope Pius IX on December 8, 1854. "The most Blessed Virgin Mary was, from the first moment of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege of almighty God and by virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ, Saviour of the human race, preserved immune from all stain of original sin." Mary, full of grace, reflects the...

Friends of the Rosary: On November 30th, Catholics worldwide celebrate the feast of St. Andrew, apostle and martyr. He was a fisherman from Bethsaida, a former disciple of John the Baptist, and the brother of Peter. He was the one who introduced his brother Peter to Jesus, saying, “We have found the Messiah.” Overshadowed by his brother, Andrew nevertheless appears in the Gospels as introducing so...

Friends of the Rosary: This Sunday, November 27, in addition to the First Sunday of Advent, was the feast of the Miraculous Medal, which represents the coming triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. On November 27, 1830, the Virgin Mary appeared to St. Catherine Laboure in a small chapel in Paris. Our Lady was clothed all in white. She was standing on the earth. Under one of her feet was the head...

Friends of the Rosary: Advent is an opportunity to grow in grace by cultivating the virtue of humility, in imitation of the Most Holy Virgin Mary, as we learn in the first Joyful Mystery. We await the coming of Christ, either at Christmas, in His Second Coming, or when He calls us to the House of the Father. We adopt the attitude of the Centurion, as we read today in the Gospel of Matthew (8:5-11)...

Friends of the Rosary: Today is the First Sunday of Advent and the start of the new Liturgical Year, which means a renewed commitment to the faith by all who follow Christ. It’s an awakening in our Christian life, remembering that the one true God is coming today. In the Season of Advent, we reflect upon and welcome the mystery of the Word Incarnate. The true light enters into the world throu...

Friends of the Rosary: Our secular society pushes us to avoid any silence, solitude, and prayer and encourages us to jump into the social scene, with all the noise and worldly values. This invitation keeps us often separated from the eternal truth. For spiritual growth and healthy meditation and reflection — never mindfulness — we need some detachment, as we learn in the third joyful mystery of to...

Friends of the Rosary: Yesterday, we celebrated Thanksgiving. Being forgiving and thanksgiving is a sign of wisdom and hope. As John said in Revelation 7:12, “Whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” In truth, we should live in a state of gratitude to the Lord, seeing God in everything. Recognizing His gifts and sh...

Friends of the Rosary: Today, the fourth Thursday in November, is Thanksgiving Day, a U.S. annual celebration. Families getting together, counting their blessings, and showing gratitude to the Lord is great. As G.K. Chesterton said, "Thanks is the highest form of thought." Although is not on the Church calendar, let's celebrate a Catholic Thanksgiving. Ave Maria! Jesus, I Trust In You! + Mikel A.&...