Bishop requests rosary as Lenten focus

Posted February 27, 2003

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

"The contemplation of Christ has an incomparable model in Mary. In a unique way the face of the Son belongs to Mary. It was in her womb that Christ was formed, receiving from her a human resemblance which points to an even greater spiritual closeness. No one has ever devoted himself to the contemplation of the face of Christ as faithfully as Mary." (Pope John Paul II, Apostolic Letter, "On the Most Holy Rosary," Oct. 16, 2002)

I write to you this year at the beginning of Lent to speak a few words about the rosary. The Holy Father has declared the year 2003 as the Year of the Most Holy Rosary. It is also the 25th year of his Pontificate. He has called the rosary his favorite prayer, and in the course of his new letter, he has enriched this wonderful custom with five new mysteries of the rosary, which he has called: "The Mysteries of Light." We are perhaps familiar with the Joyful, Sorrowful and Glorious Mysteries of the rosary, the points of meditation that have saturated our meditation and prayer as we say the decades, or ten Hail Mary's of each mystery.

What the Holy Father has done is to propose to the Christian community five significant moments in the public life of Jesus between the joyful mysteries of his conception and birth and the sorrowful/glorious mysteries of his Passion and Resurrection. These "luminous" mysteries focus our attention on a special truth of Christ "the Light" during this time of teaching, miracles, healing and proclamation. The five new mysteries are (1) The Baptism in the Jordan; (2) His self-manifestation at the wedding of Cana; (3) His proclamation of the Kingdom of God, with His call to conversion; (4) His Transfiguration; and (5) His Institution of the Holy Eucharist.

The only way for us to approach the best and deepest contemplation of Christ 's face is by our listening in the Spirit to the Father's voice. No one knows the Son except the Father (Matthew 11:27) and "flesh and blood alone" cannot reveal Jesus' true identity. It is the result of revelation from above and attentiveness to that revelation. Only the experience of silence and prayer offers the adequate setting for the growth of a true and faithful knowledge of the mystery of Christ. The rosary is a traditional and excellent path of Christian prayer towards such knowledge.

The Holy Father likens the rosary to a "compendium of the Gospel." It is a Gospel prayer that meditates on the life of Christ through salvation moments or mysteries. In the succession of Hail Mary's there is formed a litany of Gospel praise. He is Son of God, and Son of the Virgin Mary.

The origin of the rosary was based on the number 150, the number of the Psalms in the Psalter. If one celebrated the Joyful, Sorrowful and Glorious Mysteries, there would be 15 decades, or 150 Hail Mary's. What the Holy Father has done is to broaden the Christ content of the Rosary by adding significant moments of Jesus' public life, thus generating a more complete "compendium of the Gospel" as the Rosary's principal substance.

I believe that the Holy Father has given fresh life and renewed interest in the rosary. He has brought to our attention the essential need for private and personal prayer and contemplation as the basis for our spiritual growth and pastoral effectiveness. The call of the rosary is a call to listening, to attentiveness, to praise and contrition, to thanksgiving and intercession: it is a call to holiness and faithfulness.

If the Lenten season is anything in our Catholic faith, it is call to conversion, renewal and holiness. Only on this basis are our pastoral activities and work in behalf of the Kingdom of God fruitful. Only on this basis does our solidarity with others, our dedication to the poor, and our engagement with the world gain grounding and stability. The great maternal counsel of the Blessed Virgin Mary, uttered at the wedding at Cana, sums up the Gospel prayerfulness of every Christian: "Do whatever He tells you." (John 2:5)

It is my prayerful request that the Catholics of this diocese focus their Lenten efforts this year on the rosary. A large number of our parishes recite the Rosary on weekdays, and even Sundays, before Mass. I applaud this custom and ask all to rededicate their efforts to this simple but profound way of preparing for the Lord's Sacrifice.

I also ask our schools and Religious Education/Youth Ministries to utilize this season of Lent catechetically by explaining the Rosary, the meaning of litany -like prayers as helps to contemplation, and the meaning of the five new Mysteries of Light in the celebration of the Rosary. I would ask our Pastors to arrange one major public celebration of the Rosary during Lent this year as a visible sign of the need for ongoing prayer and personal holiness on the part of all the People of God.

May I also ask that the prayerful celebration of the Rosary lead us to a deeper recognition of the face of Christ in the poor, and that we take action to be in their service. In this light the Lenten practice of almsgiving could focus on the face of Christ revealed in institutions that bring help, counsel and dignity to those who are poor, especially to our Catholic Charities.

During these days of the Lenten and Easter Season, I promise to pray for all the church here in Northwest Iowa. Please remember our catechumens and candidates who are approaching Baptism and entry into the church. Remember our priests, deacons, religious and seminarians. Remember our young people. Remember, above all, to pray for peace, for peace in the world and for peace in our families!

There are many ways to characterize the crisis of abuse in our beloved church these past months. Perhaps one way to see it is a crisis of forgetfulness. The entire meaning of the rosary is a path of remembering the face of Christ, a remembrance based on the extraordinarily beautiful description of Mary in the Gospel of Saint Luke: "And Mary remembered all these things, pondering them in her heart."

May the living, active energetic and completely Christ focused memory of the Blessed Virgin Mary, as shining through the rosary, be your treasure, gift and challenge this Lenten and Easter Season.

Sincerely yours in Christ,

†Most Rev. Daniel N. DiNardo
Bishop of the Diocese of Sioux City