The 7 Pillars of Catholic Spirituality by Matthew Kelley: The Rosary

I've been hoping to get back to writing lately - perhaps more will come soon.

Studious H.E. readers have will have noted that I never completed the Matthew Kelley series.  Actually, I skipped No. 6 - Good Spiritual Reading somewhat intentionally (see side-bar for my list) and completed, but forgot about No. 7, so here you go:
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No. 7: The Rosary

This post could also be called, “Mother Knows Best.”  If your mother generally knew what was good for you, how about Jesus’ mother?  Mary is the mother of the Savior.  She is the perfect Christian.  She is the model of the Church.  She is the New Eve.  She is the Queen-mother.  She is the Daughter, Mother, & Spouse of the Trinity.  She was present to Jesus’ whole life even unto his death & resurrection, & the birth of the Church at Pentecost.  It is thus that we can ask her to pray for us sinners at the hour of death, because she shared the sufferings of her Son in his hour.  She is the exemplar of God’s plan for mankind, & so is inextricably bound to the ministry of her Son.  Moreover, Jesus gave us to her as her children.  He wants us to know & love his mother as much as he does.  

The objection is that honor given to Mary competes with or diminishes the glory due God.  Mary does nothing other than bring us to her Son, & that’s what the Rosary is about: bringing us into the presence of her Son through the pondering of the saving events of his life.  Further, as Mr. West said in his bit on contemplation, the saints all made Jesus visible to the people & circumstances of their time.  In honoring the saints & asking for their intercession, we really honor Christ Jesus & ask for his intercession before the Father.  They do not compete with Christ or somehow diminish God’s glory; through these who have achieved faith’s goal, his glory blazes more brightly.  Our Faith is severely diminished if we cannot recognize the communion of saints as the living, body of Christ.  The notion that those who have passed on have no knowledge or connection to those of us still making our earthly journey is, frankly, a fractured, distorted, & diminished view of Christianity.  

We are not the first believers in Christ Jesus, nor did we come to the Faith on our own.  Rather, our faith is drawn from & sustained by the well of faith formed by uncountable multitudes who confessed their love of Jesus Christ for two thousand years.  At the head of that heavenly array stands Mary of Nazareth, the one individual from whom the entire Christian Faith sprang, beginning with her Fiat: "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your will."

Therefore, what could be better than to contemplate the life of Jesus with the company of Mary, his mother?  Who could possibly be a better guide to Jesus than the one who says, "Do whatever he tells you."

Pray the Rosary.  Mother knows best.

P.S.: Photo of mosaic image taken in the chapel of Our Lady of Pompeii located in the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington D.C.
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