A Creative Use for Last Year's Religious Calendar

The Children's Rosary group leader in Fulda, Germany, had a lovely idea. She took the images from her Our Lady of Fatima calendar and made them into angels, which she gave as gifts and also shared with the children of her Children's Rosary group.

The text of the stickers in English reads, "Merry Christmas."

The wings are a portion of the calendar cut in a half circle.

The ribbon is glued. The body of the angel is created by bending the image and gluing the corners. 

The West of Ireland Covered in Snow

On November 21, the Feast of the Presentation of Mary, the west of Ireland was blanketed with snow. Some areas receiving 5 inches of snow. The timing of this snowfall seemed heaven-sent. Two mothers who were part of a large Consecration journey led by Fr. Marius O'Reilly of Cork. The 33 Day Consecration journey utilized the book Child Consecration: To Jesus through Mary—Following in the Spirit of St. Thérèse, the Little Flower. As the Feast of the Presentation fell on a school day, both mothers were wondering and praying how they could get their children to Mass and Confession on Consecration day. The blanket of snow answered those prayers. School was canceled this day only, but the roads were still passable, and both families were able to make their Consecration, attend Mass, and also go to Confession. 

The two pictures above were taken at the Knock shrine on November 21. Interestingly the prior year there had been no snow days in this region where school had been canceled. Such a snow fall in November in the west of Ireland is unusual. There was even enough snow to make a snowman.

The pictures below were shared by one of the families participating in the Consecration journey. A short testimony is provided below. For those interested in making this consecration journey, visit childconsecration.com

Our family were very blessed to be consecrated to Jesus through Mary using the Child Consecration, following the spirit of St Thérèse.
It is beautifully written in a way that is easy to understand for both adults and children.
The day of consecration for us was on the feast of the Presentation of the Virgin Mary in the Temple. It was a very appropriate feast day especially because our children were being consecrated so it was as if we (parents) were presenting our children to God at the temple also.
Providentially we had a snow day on November 21st (unusual for Ireland to get snow at that time of year) so schools were closed and we all got to Mass and confession on the day! (Karen Clancy)

Children's Rosary at St. Patrick's Primary School in Castledawson, Ireland

The Children's Rosary at St. Patrick's Primary school has been meeting weekly during Advent. Twenty children have given up their lunchtime break to come together in prayer. 

One of the group leaders recently shared that she has noticed the strength of the children's prayers growing, and they were getting louder. With each decade more hands have been going up; more children wanted to have a turn in leading the prayers. Below is a note from Lynn Gallagher one of the group leaders:

"Yesterday's Rosary group was really lovely. Lots and lots of children again, all giving up their lunch break. At the beginning, my co-lead Helen urged the children to be missionaries of God and to individually go out and encourage others to pray the Rosary. We asked each child to lay a handful of straw on the manger bed to represent their prayers and sacrifices in order to make Jesus' bed really soft. At the end they got a book mark and wrapped cookie.  After the lunchtime group, I heard that 3 girls made a poster about which I've included. The words spoken at the beginning of our meet seemed to stay with them. Thank God!"

This is the flyer that the three girls made themselves which they wanted to share with the other children who were not part of the Children's Rosary. Truly the children had captured the spirit of evangelization through the Rosary!

 

1,250 Children Gather for a Children's Rosary Day of Prayer

On December 15, 2024, a Children's Rosary Day of Prayer was held at Mulajje Parish in the Luweero Diocese of Uganda. Members of the Children's Rosary attended from the main parish and the 20 outstations. 

Prior to the start of Mass, there was singing and dancing and a procession with the children taking a statue of Mary into the Church. Mass began at 8:30 AM. The parish priest, Fr. Gerald Wamala celebrated the Mass. Rev. Fr. Ssekimpi Tonny assisted. Deacon Sserunkuma Bruno, catechists, and animators helped in supervising the children. Group leader Madame Betty shared, "Mass was so massive we had 1,250 children." The children helped with the liturgy. In addition, the children sang, did the readings and intentions as well as doing the offertory. They also made a Consecration to Jesus through Mary during the day of prayer.

Rosaries which the Children's Rosary had sent were given to the children who did not have rosaries and to replace old broken ones. 

Join Us for a Christmas Novena Starting December 16, 2024

Prayer to the Miraculous Infant of Prague

In anticipation of Christmas December 25th consider saying this 9 day Novena from December 16th-December 24th.  

O Divine Infant Jesus, Who said: "Ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall find, knock and it shall be opened to you." Through the intercession of Mary, Your Most Holy Mother, I knock, I seek, I ask that my prayer be granted.

(Make your request.)

O Divine Infant Jesus, Who said: "Unless you become like little children, you will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven." Grant me the simplicity and wonder, the tenderness and gentleness of a child. Fill me with innocence, hope and love. Grant me the grace that I need.

(Make your request.)

O Divine Infant Jesus, help me know how close You are to me and how powerful is Your embrace. Help me to trust that You hold the whole world in Your hand. I place my every need and care in Your hands. I ask that you fulfill my request according to Your holy will.

(Make your request.)

Miraculous Infant of Prague, have mercy on us.

We humbly ask that you join us in praying this novena and include as one of your intentions: for all those who help the Children's Rosary through time, talent or treasure may they receive Christmas peace and joy. 

This is spiritual gift we would like to share with all those who have supported the Children's Rosary this year. In addition, a Mass will be celebrated for all the members of the Children's Rosary and all who help the Children's Rosary on December 25th.

Patiently Waiting in Ireland, France, and Canada

Join the Children's Rosary by putting a "Patiently Waiting" sign in your window as a beautiful reminder of where our hearts can be found as we prepare ourselves for the coming of Christ. On Christmas replace the sign with one that reads, "Christ is Born". This marks the tenth anniversary of the Children's Rosary Patiently Waiting Campaign. We have been receiving pictures from different countries showing their Patiently Waiting signs. The picture above is from the Derry diocese in Ireland. The picture below is from a school classroom in Tullamore, Ireland. 

We have even had participation in France. The picture below was submitted by one of our Children's Rosary group leaders in Cahors, France.

Zosia a member of the Children's Rosary from Ontario, Canada shared her creative sign which showed a donkey from the manger scene waiting for the birth of Our Lord.

It is not too late to put up a "Patiently Waiting" sign in your window.

Fr. Paul Miapkwap of Nigeria Visits Children's Rosary Group in Iowa, USA

On September 4, 2024, Fr. Paul Miapkwap of the Shendam Diocese of Nigeria was able to visit the Children's Rosary at Sacred Heart School in Boone, Iowa. The Children's Rosary at Shendam Cathedral and the Children's Rosary in Boone united in prayer together via Zoom in 2022, and a wonderful relationship was created between these two groups. 

Deb Franzenburg, who helped bring the Children's Rosary to Sacred Heart School, has worked closely with Fr. Paul Miapkwap, who brought the Children's Rosary to the Shendam Diocese of Nigeria. Both are shown above. 

Deb Franzenburg shared, Fr. Paul arrived in Boone Tuesday evening, but our day "officially" began on Wednesday, Sept. 4, in our church (Sacred Heart). Fr. Paul was introduced to the children, and we allowed for some question-and-answer time as a whole school. Following that, we prayed part of the Children's Rosary (picture included). We toured the school and visited with the children in three groups (middle school, upper elementary, and lower elementary). Fr. Paul shared about life in Nigeria, his current academic status, and even the color of the plane he flew in. He enjoyed recess and played Gaga Ball for the first time. Lastly, he celebrated Mass with us as a school before we took him back to Minnesota.   

Fr. Paul was touched to see pictures of the students from Nigeria grace our hallways. We also made several videos for him to take back for sharing.

I was honored to have the opportunity to meet Fr. Paul in person (after being introduced to him just a few years ago). I could never have predicted that we would be blessed with this opportunity. My husband and I were also privileged to drive him back to Minnesota allowing us another four hours of visiting time.

This is a lovely example of how the Children's Rosary is creating friendships and fellowship through prayer.

Invitation from Bishop Donal McKeown to Join 33 Day Consecration Journey

Join Bishop McKeown and priests of the diocese of Derry, Ireland for a 33 Day Consecration Journey starting January 9, 2025 and concluding on February 11, the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes. 

Bishop Donal has recorded a lovely invitation video which can be viewed HERE.

There is also more information on the Diocesan website page: 

https://www.derrydiocese.org/consecration

The Derry Diocesan magazine the Net has also been including information and articles about the upcoming Consecration journey. Two of the articles are included below:

To view the December issue of the Net click HERE.

December 2024 Meeting of the Children's Rosary in Fulda, Germany

Today we received some lovely pictures from the Children's Rosary in Fulda, Germany. 

They are prayerfully preparing for the coming of Christ. 

Children Gather as Shepherds and Angels

The Children's Rosary in Crossboyne, Ireland, wanted to humbly invite other Children's Rosary groups to consider making meetings in December more special by dressing up as shepherds and angels as they meet to hold their Children's Rosary. The Children's Rosary at Knock Shrine will be holding such a Rosary with the children dressed as angels and shepherds on December 23, 2024. 

Children's Rosary at the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Waterbury, Connecticut Turns Twelve!

 

The first meeting of the Children's Rosary at the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Waterbury, Connecticut, was held on December 8, 2012. It was among some of the first Children's Rosary groups to form. The first group was located in West Hartford, Connecticut, and met on April 10, 2011.

The two pictures above are from the meeting of the Children's Rosary on December 7, 2024, at the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception. This group has faithfully met on the first Saturday of the month before the Vigil Mass. Many parishioners come early to Mass to pray along with the children. We thank this group and the group leaders that have sacrificed so much to allow this Children's Rosary to turn twelve!

Reflections from the first meeting at the Basilica can be viewed HERE.

Day of the Little Candles Celebrated in West Hartford, Connecticut, USA

On this the eve of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, we wanted to share pictures of the lanterns honoring Our Blessed Mother placed on our doorstep. This is a Colombian Tradition which we have been participating in since 2012.

To learn how to make the lanterns, click HERE.

A Colombian Tradition for the Eve of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception

In 2012 we became aware of a lovely Colombian Tradition: the Day of the Little Candles or Día de las Velitas.  On the eve of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception lanterns are set out with candles inside.  The lanterns often depict Our Blessed Mother.  Three years ago the Children's Rosary participated for the first time in this tradition by making lanterns.  We have continued this tradition and again set out lanterns tonight.  We said a little prayer to Our Blessed Mother that she would bless all the members of the  Children's Rosary. The picture above was taken at our home in 2015. We try to participate each year.

For those of you who may like to participate we have posted step by step instructions of how to make these lanterns.

Anniversary Celebration for Bishop Philip Davou Dung

On November 29, 2024, Bishop Philip Dung of the Shendam Diocese of Nigeria celebrated 40 years of being a priest. The Children's Rosary arranged for a Mass to be celebrated for him on November 29, 2024. Members of the Children's Rosary from the United States, Germany, Belgium, and Ireland contributed to a spiritual bouquet of 54 decades of the Rosary for Bishop Dung. The Children's Rosary in Germany also arranged for 9 consecutive Masses to be celebrated for him. The Children's Rosary in Cahors, France prayed for Bishop Dung during their meeting in November. They shared the picture below.

We received this lovely picture at the top of this post from the celebration where one of the members of the Children's Rosary from Nigeria presented him with a card. We thank Bishop Dung for his strong support of the Children's Rosary.

New Children's Rosary in Saint Maximin, France

We received some lovely pictures from the new Children's Rosary at the Basilica of St. Mary Magdalene in Saint Maximin, France. They meet weekly each Wednesday evening in front of the Blessed Sacrament. These pictures are from their December 4th meeting.

This Children's Rosary had their first meeting on October 17, 2024. Two families attended with 7 children total.

We warmly welcome this new Children's Rosary group.