Children's Rosary Tomorrow

Children's Rosary Tomorrow at St. Thomas Church in Thomaston, CT USA

Please consider joining the Children's Rosary tomorrow, January 20th, at 11AM EST for the Rosary.  If you live far away join your prayers to those of the children from your home.  The children always pray for the intentions of all the members of the Children's Rosary.  

A small reception of food will be provided after the Children's Rosary by members of the Legions of Mary.

Do you have thirty minutes a month?

This past weekend at our Children’s Rosary at St. Thomas Apostle Church in West Hartford, we had two new members Anna age 6 and Clare age 3.  They were brought by a mom of one of our regular members, Conner. The girls took their place kneeling in front of the Statue of Mary.  During the Rosary they kept reaching out to touch the statue of Mary.  The older sister Anna went and got her coat so it was softer as she would reach forward to touch Our Lady.  Her younger sister followed along as little sisters are fond of doing.  

Connor who usually sits in the pews and places a rose at the end of one of the decades was watching all this very closely.  As we were finishing the rosary I heard Connors voice behind me.  He was saying the prayers.  This was a new and very surprising thing as Connor has a disability.  When I turned around he had his hands together in prayer and was smiling at me as he said the words to the Hail Mary.  I handed the last rose to him as we finished the final decade.  He went forward with his mom and placed it at Our Lady’s feet.  Then he did something which left us all speechless.  He knelt down next to the two girls and put his elbows on the step where the statue of Mary was placed.  He put his hands together and began to say the prayers for the Pope that we say at the end of the Rosary.  His mother asked if he wanted to stay kneeling and he said, yes! 

When we had finished praying I went over to Connor and the girls.  Little Clare looked up at me with the most innocent eyes.  She smiled and looking at the three of them I felt for a moment as if I were looking at angels.  They were silent and only smiled.  I kept repeating to them that they were so special to Our Lady and were our little angels.  Connor was so happy and I asked him if next month he wanted to lead a decade of the rosary.  He pointed at the podium and said, yes.  His mom was beaming, too. 

A photo taken of the children after the rosary.  

Our Blessed Mother is so good to us.  She helps us with our children and through them shows us the beauty of prayer.  Sunday morning was a moment that touched my heart to its depths.  There was so much hope.  To see what Our Lady could do with these little ones.  Oh, that more children were brought to her.  This is my daily prayer.  It is my hope that many of you reading this will ask yourself a question: could I spend thirty minutes a month having a Children's Rosary at my parish?  We have new groups that are forming with mom's of young children and mom's of older children.  We have a grandmother who has begun one of our largest groups.  We also have a young single member without any children in her twenties that started a group.  Currently, we have a husband and father of three who is organizing a new group.  Please pray about it and I will pray for you, too.  Our Lord and Our Lady know who you are and I trust in them that they are speaking to your heart.  

Thank you all for reading this message.  It comes from the heart with the hope that we may all bring joy to Our Lady and her Son.  

God Bless you all abundantly. Amen

How to Start a Children's Rosary

New Children's Rosary in Steubenville Ohio

St. Peter Church

A new Children's Rosary is forming at St. Peter's Parish in Steubenville, Ohio.  The new group will meet on each First Friday of the month at 4:30 PM in the Church.  This is such a wonderful blessing for the Children's Rosary, to not only have a new group but to have one meeting on the First Friday of the Month. 

Inside St. Peter Church in Steubenville, Ohio

The first meeting of the Children's Rosary at St. Peter Church will be held on February 1st.  They will gather at 4PM to consecrate the new group to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary.  In this way we are asking Our Lady and her Son to keep this group close to Their Hearts and to protect and guide them in all things.  

For more information on the Children's Rosary at St. Peter Church please contact Molly at molly_mcgovern@yahoo.com

Divine Praises

Blessed be God.

Blessed be His Holy Name.

Blessed be Jesus Christ, true God and true man.

Blessed be the name of Jesus.

Blessed be His most Sacred Heart.

Blessed be His most Precious Blood.

Blessed be Jesus in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar.

Blessed be the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete.

Blessed be the great Mother of God, Mary most holy.

Blessed be her holy and Immaculate Conception.

Blessed be her glorious Assumption.

Blessed be the name of Mary, Virgin and Mother.

Blessed be St. Joseph, her most chaste spouse.

Blessed be God in His angels and in His saints.

During the walk home from Mass today I was overcome with the generosity and love of Jesus and words seemed to well up inside, I praise you Jesus, I praise you Jesus, I thank you Jesus....  It was then that I remembered the Divine Praises.  I could not remember them as I was walking but upon returning home I quickly found them and read them aloud.  

It seemed timely to include the Divine Praises here as the month of January is traditionally dedicated to the Holy Name of Jesus. The Divine Praises usually follow the Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament and are led by a priest before the Eucharist is placed back in the tabernacle.  However, these wonderful prayers can be said privately or in a group not in association with Benediction.  The Divine Praises were composed by Luigi Felici, a Jesuit priest, in 1797 and were composed to make reparation for blasphemy and profane language.  They were originally written in Italian and were later expanded by Pope Pius VII in 1801.


"In the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those that are in heaven, on earth and under the earth" (Phil 2:10). 

Prayer to St. Joseph by Brother Andre

"Saint Joseph, pray for me as you would pray if you were here in my place with the same difficulties. Saint Joseph, hear my prayer." (...) "Help me as you would have liked to be helped yourself, had you been here on earth in my situation."

-Brother Andre, CSC

Litany to St. Joseph
Memorare to St. Joseph

Memorare to Saint Joseph

Remember,

O most chaste spouse of the Virgin Mary,

that never has it been known that 

anyone who asked for your help

and sought your intercession

was left unaided.

Full of confidence in your power,

I hasten to you,

and beg your protection.

Listen,

O foster father of the Redeemer,

to my humble prayer,

and in your goodness

hear and answer me.

Amen

Prayer to St. Joseph by Brother Andre

Litany to St. Joseph

Reflections from the First Meeting of the Children's Rosary in Naples Florida

The Children's Rosary at St. Agnes Church had their first meeting on January 5th 2013.  It was a special day being the 12th day of Christmas as well as the Memorial of St. John Neumann.  Early in the process of starting this new Children's Rosary group, Valerie, wife and mom to 4 beautiful children asked if there was a new saint which had not been prayed to yet by members of the Children's Rosary.  I mentioned that we would love to invite St. John Neumann to join our Children's Rosary.  He is know for being the first saint to be canonized from the United States and his fervor for the Catholic education of children led to many Parish Catholic Schools being opened.

Several months later Valerie was given permission by her pastor to have her first meeting of the Children's Rosary at St. Agnes Parish and the date she was given was January 5th the memorial of St. John Neumann. A blessing to be sure!

This new little group met at 9:30 AM in the little Chapel off of the Main Church.  Four families met together for a rosary led by the children.

Seeing these children in prayer one thinks of St. Bernadette or the Children of Fatima.  Yet these are wonderful children from our own time.  Some are learning the rosary others have woven it into their daily lives.  It is an image of hope for our New Year....