The following comes from an October 5 Angelus article by Archbishop José H. Gomez:
We live in a culture that seems to encourage us to be distracted and always busy with constant activity.
All of us, I think, know the feeling of getting caught up and consumed by our activities — even the good things we are doing to help other people and serve the Gospel.
The temptation is to use our work as an excuse — to say we don’t have enough time to pray, there is just too much to do. The danger is that we come to see time spent with God as time wasted, time that is boring or not productive.
What we need is wholeness and integrity in our lives, a balance of work and prayer and rest and recreation. We do not need to reject technology or retreat from our responsibilities. But we do need to make sure that we are keeping things in their proper perspective.
No matter how tireless or generous we might be in our service to others, no matter how much we are accomplishing for the Church in our ministries — if our lives are not grounded in prayer, then we are not living the way God calls us to live.
Pope Francis cautions us against thinking that our Christian mission can be reduced to activities, structures or programs. He calls “pastoral activism” an “ever-present danger.”
October is a good time to reflect on this because this is the month the Church dedicates to the holy rosary. The rosary is a perfect prayer for a time of distraction.
The rosary opens our hearts to God’s plan, his loving will for our lives. This prayer teaches us to listen and to watch — as the Virgin Mary did — for the signs of God’s purposes and work in our daily lives. This prayer teaches us to trust God and seek to do his will in our lives — again, as Mary did.
The more we reflect on the life of Jesus, the more we realize that everything he did came from a deep place of prayer, from his loving dialogue with the Father. Big decisions, important gestures — all were made after periods of intense and deliberate prayer.
And of course, Jesus is our model. Even with all the duties and pressures we face, we need to make time for our relationship with God — every day.
Rumor has it that changing the Rosary was one thing that Paul VI could not do. Too bad that St. JPII added the “Luminous” mysteries, though. Recall that saying the LM is voluntary, so the change is not a hard change. Still, this effort was not a good mark for St. JPII.
Try to honor our Mother as often as possible.
Excuse me, but meditating on the events of the ministry of Our Lord in the Luminous Mystery while reciting Our Lady’s Psalter, IS HONORING Our Blessed Mother. You are out-of-bounds for criticizing the Luminous Mysteries and St. John Paul II. Do you even hear what you are saying?? You are criticizing unnecessarily a perfectly fine decision by the Roman Pontiff of the time. Your are criticizing the decision of a Saint who loved Our Blessed Mother. Who do you think you are?? I say, the proud think they got it all figured out. Learn some humility SChris. My words defend the Rosary, JP2 and Our Blessed Mother on this important Memorial to Our Lady of the Rosary!
….there is nothing wrong with meditating on the life of Our Lord. But, jon, you do not know, it would appear, that the Rosary is Our Lady’s prayer, that which is representative of the 150 Psalms. This is what links the New with the Old. There is a deep symbolism involved.
…and yet just like fussy headstrong children, we seek to modify what Our Mother has told us under the guise of “better”. But listening to what she says and doing “exactly” what she says is best.
“Your are criticizing the decision of a Saint who loved Our Blessed Mother. Who do you think you are??” Someone who obviously recognizes that a son who loves his mother doesn’t go about, even if he thinks its a great idea, changing his mother’s very clear…
…directives. That’s what’s been happening w/the consecration of Russia as well.
AMalley is TOTALLY WRONG as usual. The Pope has every right and jurisdiction over the liturgies and even the devotionals of the Church. Pope Pius V had a hand in solidifying the Rosary as we have now.
Just because one can doesn’t mean one should, jon. That applies to Popes, too.
What is totally wrongheaded is to mess with what your Mother tells you to do. Plain and simple.
Get over it.
Again, total obfuscation from AMalley here. AMalley it is NEVER permissible to unjustly castigate and trash a perfectly valid and pious ruling/judgment of the Roman Pontiff, in this case, his institution of the Luminous Mystery. JP2 wasn’t going against Our Blessed Mother when he instituted the Mystery of Light. That’s bunk. BUNK! The issue here is not that people are being made to pray the new Mystery. You’re wrong! The issue here is SChristopher’s denigration and disrespect of St. John Paul and his perfectly fine decision to implement the new Mystery. The issue here is his and YOUR disobedience. To say that St. John Paul II was going against Our Blessed Mother is hilariously wrong and erroneous. Get over it.
There are people with anxiety disorders who cannot handle it when things change even a little. Since there is no requirement to pray the Rosary, obviously there is no requirement to pray the Luminous Mysteries. However, you should pray the Rosary especially for the end of terrorism and any problem that you or the Church or society has. The Rosary is an extremely efficacious prayer. It is a contemplative prayer. I think it is unlikely that Mary objects to the Luminous Mysteries. Do not be afraid.
St. Christopher, there have always been different kinds of Rosaries — the Franciscan one comes to mind that has seven meditations instead of five. I have such a Rosary but have not prayed it in years. You can just consider the Rosary with the luminous meditations just another version, which you can choose to pray or not. Quite frankly, I like those mysteries and see no problems with them.
There are indeed myriad chaplets/devotions that “can” be prayed on rosary beads. But a chaplet that can be prayed on one’s Rosary Beads, is not the same as someone, even if he is JPII, attempting to change the Rosary itself. Even with good intention.
(Kind of like getting a To Do list from mom when she goes out and instead of doing what is asked, doing something one thinks is better. When mom comes home one often learns “why” mom wanted something done a particular way. The lesson: Keep it simple. Do what she asks you and trust that her way is the best.)
Too many folks are attempting to morph things into their preference which, in time, confuses the message of what we have received. There is a decided link between the Rosary and…
… the 150 Psalms of the Old Testament. Let’s preserve that continuity, AnneT, not cast it aside as insignificant because we don’t see the problem with it.
Truth is, we don’t see a lot. And that’s why we need a good Mother.
Who you gonna follow,the Vicar of Christ or someone who does not even attend the Catholic Church talking about following your own preference, and not doing your Mother’s wishes?
Archbishop Gomez had an aura of serenity around him on the two occasions I had the pleasure of meeting him. Maybe it is the Rosary. This is holy man and we are very lucky to have Jose Gomez as the shepherd of Los Angeles.
One thing Archbishop Gomez won’t have around him anytime soon is scarlet vesture. I’m quite surprised that he wasn’t named a cardinal by Pope Francis and that Archbishop Cupich was given the distinction instead.
And somehow I doubt that Blase Cupich prays the rosary much.
I certainly can understand why many of us are only saying the Traditional Rosary during the fifty so days leading up to the Feast of the Most Holy Rosary as it was that version of the Rosary that was said at the Battle of Lepanto.
I do pray the luminous mysteries at other times, though.
I clicked the link and read the whole article. It is very good. This is a good edit but I think those who are interested in prayer and the rosary and even in speculation on possible drawbacks of using technology will like the whole article.
Thinking of Mary & the rosary reminds me of recent Pro-life news. Let not your soul be troubled about voting. This Phoenix priest gives Catholics “Straight Talk” on your God given responsibility to vote in support of non-negotiables, or else, your after life may be on the ‘hot’ side. Not my words, paraphrasing the priest. @ http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/phoenix-priest-minces-no-words-voting-for-pro-abortion-candidates-puts-soul/
Pray the rosary!
The Rosary is the perfect prayer for: well….any time! Can you believe it? More no-nonesense Pro-life NEWS: Thanks be to God. A courages ArchBishop (from Denver) tells Catholics their duty is to VOTE PRO-Life. Here is the link @
https://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2016/10/06/denver-archbishop-tells-catholics-vote-pro-life/
Mother Mary answering prayers.
“Pastoral activism, is an ever present danger ” = So are unprotected borders!
Lightning strikes dome of St. Peter’s Basilica on Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary
Another “bolt from out of the blue” hits St. Peter’s on a Catholic feast celebrating a humble prayer and an historic battle!
VATICAN CITY — Rome shook this morning as a massive lightning bolt hit the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica. The strike came on the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, a celebration with origins not only in a humble prayer, but also in an historic battle.
https://aleteia.org/2016/10/07/lightning-strikes-dome-of-peters-basilica-on-feast-of-our-lady-of-the-rosary/
Sigh!! Catholic People — Our Blessed Mother gave the Rosary to St. Dominic. She asked for meditation on its 15 mysteries. The Luminous add another five — why? Our Lady is not ambiguous or shabby or in need of NewChurch clarification. Certainly, St. JPII was a holy man, and well intended, but he was wrong (no, Saints do not need to be revered in everything they said, or did, or wrote). The Luminous are optional anyway (although you would never know it as virtually all institutional renderings of the Rosary include them).
St. John Paul II MADE NO MISTAKE in presenting the Church with the Luminous Mystery. NONE! To meditate on the earthly ministry of Our Lord while reciting Our Lady’s Psalter is most efficacious, builds virtues in a soul, and brings us closer to Our Lord and to Our Lady. For you, SChristopher, to indicate that St. John Paul II is saying anything contrary to what Our Blessed Mother said IS LOW! Very low. You mean to denigrate the legitimate clergy of the Church by castigating a legitimate ruling by the Roman Pontiff. This is typical of the narrative and rhetoric of your beloved SSPX.
I have meditated on the Luminous Mystery. And they are indeed powerful. For you to play with people’s simple faith by casting doubt on Pope John…
Paul II’s ruling is reprehensible. It is better for such people to have a mill tied around their neck and cast into the sea!
Calm down, “jon.” St. JPII is beloved, including by me. In any event, his LM are optional, so go ahead and say them. But, no one need to say them, or should, if given a choice. JPII, saintly as he was, was incorrect (as he was incorrect on a good number of things, including his insistence on saying the NO (in public) and in not insisting on reopening the TLM, as Benedict did. Enjoy the LM (Thursday, I believe). Everyone else, follow our Blessed Mother.
To follow the Roman Pontiff IS to follow the Blessed Mother. Our Lord gave the keys to the kingdom of heaven to Peter, lest you forget. The Roman Pontiff, especially John Paul, would never have ruled anything contrary to the wishes of Our Lord and Our Lady. For you to insinuate that he did is DEMONIC! I am embarrassed and at the same time fearful for you and your soul. I find your denigration of the Luminous Mystery, of saintly JP2, of his love for Mary to be breathtakingly irreverent and misguided.