One hundred and fifty three years ago to the day St. Bernadette knelt in front of Our Blessed Mother in Lourdes, France. She prayed the Rosary as Our Lady watched. However, unlike the visits from Our Lady during prior days Our Blessed Mother noticed something was different and said "You have made a mistake," she smiled, "that Rosary is not yours." The rosary belonged to a friend of Bernadettes named Pauline Sans. These were strong words that Our Lady used with Bernadette. In reflecting on them a feeling comes. It is Love from Our Mother showing us how dear our rosary’s should be to us. Over time our own personal rosaries take on a personal expression of love for Our Lady. Because they have been blessed and have accompanied us on our daily journey here on earth they are a constant reminder of our devotion to Our Mother and her Son and also her love for us.
I am reminded of a day several years ago when I asked one of the women whom I pray a rosary with after daily Mass to bring my rosaries with her to an ordination to be blessed by a bishop. She agreed and after praying the Rosary I gave her my wooden rosary beads I purchased at age 13. It was a Friday morning. Over the weekend I used another pair of rosaries but thought often about my wooden pair. On the Monday morning I was entering church I saw this friend of mine. I asked her how the ordination had been and she politely answered well. Moments later as I was walking down the hallway to the chapel I heard her scream. She was praising the Lord. Hurrying back to her I asked what had happened. Apparently, she had lost my rosary beads and had prayed with another friend all weekend that she would find them. Her friend prayed with her and tried to reassure her that they would be found. Upon entering the church she saw my rosaries hanging over a banaster in an area rarely used to display lost items. When I heard of her suffering over the weekend as a result of the loss of the rosaries and the amazing discovery of them that morning I was overwhelmed at what a gift from God these rosaries were. It was as if Our Lady had placed them safely in my hand. From that moment on I began to feel about my rosaries as someone does about such things as a wedding ring. If a fire were to start in ones home and you could take only one thing what would it be. The answer for me would be my rosary beads.
Dear Mary thank you as a mother for showing us how special our rosary beads are for us. Please pray that we may always keep them close to our hearts. Amen
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| St. Bernadette |
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