New Children's Rosary in Jensen Beach, FL

There is a new Children's Rosary meeting for the first time on Wednesday March 4th at St. Martin de Porres Church in Jensen Beach, Florida USA.  The new group leaders heard about the Children's Rosary prayer group movement from the Marians of the Immaculate Conception 13th of the month newsletter which featured the Children's Rosary.  In a special way we thank the Marian Fathers for helping to spread the Children's Rosary.  

This new group will be meeting March 4th at 6:15 PM ET in the Adoration Chapel.

This is our first Children's Rosary group that has formed in a parish named after St. Martin de Porres.  In a special way we pray for the intercession of St. Martin de Porres for this new group as well as all the members of the Children's Rosary.

"Open your soul in Confession as you would to Me, and I will fill it with My light"

"Today the Lord has been teaching me, once again, how I am to approach the Sacrament of Penance: My daughter, just as you prepare in My presence, so also you make your confession before Me.  The person of the priest is, for me only a screen....open your soul in confession as you would to Me, and I will fill it with My light"(Diary of St. Faustina, 1725).

This photo was taken just before we began one of Our Children's Rosary meetings.  The picture was taken by a child of a child in Confession.  Never before have I seen such a beautiful representation of Confession.  Indeed the light filling the soul is so beautifully represented streaming in through the stained glass windows upon the child.  The screen completely obscures the identity of the priest which is also beautiful as one can more easily envision Our Lord listening with a bent ear to each detail.

In the Catechism of the Catholic Church we are told that when the priest "celebrates the sacrament of Penance, the priest is fulfilling the ministry of the Good Shepherd who seeks the lost sheep, of the Good Samaritan who binds up wounds, of the Father who awaits the prodigal son and welcomes him on his return, and of the just and impartial judge whose judgement is both just and merciful.  The priest is the sign and the instrument of God's merciful love for the sinner." (Catechism #1466)

We are very grateful to the priests who give of their time to make this sacrament available to so many.  In the Archdiocese of Hartford, Connecticut USA,  each Monday evening every Church in the Archdiocese is open for Confession between 6-7PM ET.  We are very grateful for this precious gift.

Mass Offered Today for Seminarians

Today a Mass was offered for all seminarians that they will grow in holiness and lead us all in love.  This is something the Children's Rosary does on the first of each month. As our seminarians will be the future shepherds and our children are the future flock it seemed a beautiful way for the children to help. 

For the upcoming year this monthly Mass for seminarians will be sponsored by the Children's Rosary held at Sacred Heart Church in Middleboro, Massachusetts (pictured left).  We are very grateful to this group for such an important gift.

The Mass today was celebrated at St. Rose of Lima Church in Rochester, Massachusetts.

Jesus Make Us Holy

Children's Rosary at Immaculate Conception Church
North Delta, British Columbia, Canada
Photo taken on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception

Do we want to be holy?  Indeed it is a decision we make to ask for the graces to become holy.  We have to give Our Lord our yes as each of us is given free will.  If we wonder if Our Lord intended each one of us to be holy we have only to remember Our Lord's words: "Be perfect just as My Heavenly Father is perfect"(MT 5:48).  The Catechism of the Catholic Church also states "All are called to holiness."(Catechism #2013) 

Pope Francis, also encourages us "Do not be afraid of holiness, do not be afraid to aim high, to let yourself be loved and purified by God, do not be afraid to let yourself be guided by the Holy Spirit."

Today in the gospel we heard of the transfiguration "And He was transformed before them, and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no fuller on earth could bleach them"(Mark 9:3).  

Indeed let us ask Our Lord to make us holy.  Please know that your prayers are joined by the many children who are members of the Children's Rosary.  We pray in a special way for holiness. We stumble along but through the prayers of so many and the generosity of Our Lord we are assisted.  The road is not easy.  As Our Lord knows us so well, He probes us and tests us just as Abraham was tested in the readings today.  But this is done with love.  The Children's Rosary and its members are no stranger to suffering but we also have received so much grace and love that it is difficult to contemplate a different road.  Where else would we go but towards the loving embrace of God. 

We have many Children's Rosary groups meeting this week.  Please consider joining them in prayer from your home.  The children always pray for those unifying prayers with them.

Friday March 27th 
Children's Rosasry at St. Mary's School in Orange TX 7:05 AM CT
Children's Rosary at St. Mary's School in Pontiac IL at 9AM CT
Children's Rosary at St. Augustine Church in Iba Estate Lagos, Nigeria 1PM ET
Saturday March 28th
Children's Rosary of St. Michael the Archangel Parish and held in the Kibera slum in Langatta Nairobi Kenya 10 local time
Children's Rosary at St. Michael's Church in Garden City, South Carolina at 10:30 AM ETChildren's Rosary at St. Mary's Church in Corvallis, Oregon 12 PM PT
Children's Rosary at St. Augustine Church in Iba Estate Lagos, Nigeria 1PM ET
Children's Rosary at the Daughters of Charity Convent in Bridgeport CT 2:30 PM ET
Sunday March 1st
Children's Rosary at Our Lady and St. Patrick's Church in Nottingham, England 9AM local time  (4AM ET)
Children's Rosary at Bl. Mother Teresa of Calcutta Parish in Nairobi, Kenya 6 AM ET
Children's Rosary at St. Luke's Church in Ogallala, Nebraska at 8:30 AM ET
Children's Rosary at St. Thomas Church in Thomaston, CT 11AM ET
Children's Rosary at Holy Trinity Church in Harlan, Kentucky 11:30 AM 
Children's Rosary at St. Augustine Church in Iba Estate Lago Nigeria 1PM ET
Children's Rosary at St. Bernard Church in Mount Lebanon, Pennsylvania at 2PM ET
Children's Rosary at St. Anthony Church in Lorain, Ohio 3PM ET in front of the Blessed Sacrament.
Children's Rosary at St. Joachim Parish in Madera, California 5:30 PM ET
Children's Rosary at Assumption Church in Umoja, Kenya 2PM local time 
Children's Rosary at Immaculate Conception Church North Delta, British Columbia 6PM ET
Monday March 2nd
Children's Rosary at Our Lady of Grace Home for Children in Meru, Kenya at 10 AM ET
Children's Rosary at Holy Trinity Academy in Shenandoah, PA 12:20 PM ET
Children's Rosary at St. Augustine Church in Iba Estate Lagos Nigeria 1PM ET
Children's Rosary at Holy Family Church in Gladstone Michigan 4:30PM  ET
Children's Rosary at St. John the Evangelist Church in Mahopac, New York 4:30 PM ET
Children's Rosary at Rose of Mystica House in Edmeston, NY 4:30 PM ET
Tuesday March 3rd
Children's Rosary at St. Augustine Church in Iba Estate, Lagos Nigeria 1PM ET

Children's Rosary at Holy Redeemer Parish in Menominee, Michigan 6PM EST

Children's Rosary at St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross in Lawrenceberg, Indiana 6:30 PM ET

Wednesday March 4th

Children's Rosary at St. Augustine Church in Iba Estate Lagos, Nigeria 1PM ET

Children's Rosary at St. Martin de Porres Church in Jensen Beach Florida.  The Rosary will be held in their Adoration Chapel at 6:15 PM ET (FIRST MEETING)

Thursday February 5th
Children's Rosary at St. Augustine Church in Iba Estate, Lagos Nigeria 1PM ET
The Children's Rosary at St. Martin Church in Kingsville, Texas will meet at 6:30 PM

Mass Offerd Today for Renewal of Family Prayer

A Mass was offered today for Renewal of Family Prayer. In a special way the Children's Rosary has been praying since our first anniversary for renewal of family prayer.  We have said over 850 Novenas to different saints asking for their intercession and help renewing family prayer in our families.  We also have a Mass offered on the first Saturday of the month for the same intention.  One of the members of the Children's Rosary was so kind to sponsor a Mass each month for this intention for one year.  As more and more children come together in prayer of the Rosary in their Children's Rosary prayer groups we pray that prayer also blossoms in their homes as well and throughout the world.  Pope John Paul II was fond of saying, "As the family goes, so goes the nation and so goes the whole world in which we live." 

And the Winner is.....

This past month members of the Children's Rosary were invited to submit drawings of the Annunciation in anticipation of the Feast next month.  The deadline for pictures was February 25th.  

Recently a women contacted us hoping to help spread word of the Children's Rosary.  After reading more about the prayer group movement on our Spanish site www.rosariodeninos.org she wrote to us with a generous offer.  She wanted to give the Children's Rosary a gift.  She wanted to offer one child per month for February, March and April 2015 the opportunity to pick one item from her website.   Maria also shared that she is originally from Mexico and was named after Our Lady of Guadalupe.  She now lives in California but has a deep devotion to Our Blessed Mother which began when she was a child.  In this small way she wanted to give back and help encourage more children to come together in prayer through the Children's Rosary prayer group movement.  During this past month pictures have been coming in.  On January 25th they were gathered and the names of the children were put on cards.  On January 26th after praying to the Holy Spirit to inspire the selection a child's name was randomly chosen.  Alek, age 8, from the Children's Rosary group at St. Thomas the Apostle Church in West Hartford, Connecticut USA was chosen.  Alek is pictured above at the Stations of the Cross last Friday where he helped the Children's Rosary in leading the readings at each Station.  Alek's mother shared that he had worked on the drawing all day during one of our recent snow days. It is a wonderful thing to see small children thinking and imagining what that moment was like for Our Blessed Mother when she humbly accepted God's Will for her.  

For those of you who would like to participate in our drawing submissions for March and April please see our earlier post HERE for directions.

First Meeting of the Children's Rosary in Shelbyville Illinois

There is a new Children's Rosary group at Immaculate Conception Church in Shelbyville IL USA.  They met for the first time on January 28thth 2015. This group has chosen to meet the last Wednesday of the month at 4:30 PM CT.  The group meets before the weekly catechism classes for the parish.  At their first meeting their Pastor Fr. Don Wolford attended and Consecrated the new group to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Immaculate Heart of Mary.  

We ask that each new Children's Rosary group be Consecrated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Immaculate Heart of Mary in that way each group is under the protection and guidance of Christ and His Mother. Usually the group leader Consecrates the new group but when a priest is able to attend this is an extra special blessing.  

The group leader shared that initially there were 7 children to begin the Children's Rosary put as they prayed more and more children folded in and joined the prayers.  By the end there were 22 children praying.  For there first time the children gathered at the table but this month the children will be encouraged to bring pillows which they will use as kneelers.  They plan to have the children gather in a semi-circle kneeling around a statue of Our Blessed Mother as they pray.

This new group will have their second meeting this evening.  Please consider joining them in prayer from your home.  The children pray for all those unifying prayers with them.