The Rosary A Weapon for Intercession and Discernment

by Robert Locsin

Many Catholics don’t realize the powerful ally they have in Mama Mary and the formidable intercession tool we have through the rosary. In a talk attended by fifty members of the Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion last October 18, Fr. Herbie Santos reiterated this by narrating miracles attributed to our Lady.

There is the battle of Lepanto on October 7, 1571, when a patchwork fleet of Catholic ships primarily from Spain, Venice, and Genoa was at a distinctive disadvantage. The much larger fleet of the Ottoman Empire—a force with 12,000 to 15,000 Christian slaves as rowers– was extending toward Europe.

However, St. Pope Pitts V. realizing that the Muslim Turks had a decided material advantage, called upon all of Europe to pray the rosary for victory. Christians gathered in villages and towns to pray as the sea battle raged. At the hour of victory, the pope–who was hundreds of miles away at the Vatican—was said to have gotten up from a meeting, walked over to an open window and exclaimed, “The Christian fleet is victorious!’ Then he shed tears of joy and thanksgiving to God.

The toll of the sea battle was great. The Holy League lost fifty of its galleys and suffered some 13,000 casualties. The Turks, however, lost much more. Their leader Ali Pasha was killed, along with 25,000 of his sailon. The Ottoman fleet lost 210 of its 250 ships, of which 130 were captured by the Holy League. Coming at what MS seen as a crisis point for Christianity, die victory at Lepanto stemmed.

Ottoman incursion into the Mediterranean and prevented their influence from spreading through Europe. Through the intervention of Our Lady, the hand of God prevented the Muslims of the East from overcoming the Christian West.

Then there was the battle of La Naval de Manila. This was a series of naval battles fought on die waters of the Philippines in 1646 where Spanish forces repelled various attempts of the Dutch Republic forces to invade Manila. Spanish-Kapampangan soldiers inflicted heavy damage upon the Dutch squadrons, forcing them to abandon their invasion of the Philippines. The victory against the Dutch forces was attributed to die intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary under the tide of the La Naval de Manila. On April 9, 1652, the Archdiocese of Manila declared die victories of the five sea battles a miracle.

Then there are the apparitions of the Blessed Mother wherein the Lady would always ask for the constant recitation of the rosary.

St. Louie de Monfort said that even if you are at the brink of damnation, you would be converted by the power of the rosary, amend your life, and save your soul. Another saint, Padre Pio, said that the rosary is the weapon against the evils of this world because all graces given by God pass through die Blessed Mother.

There is also the case of Bartolo Longo who started as a satanist, but because of the power of the rosary, was converted to the Catholic faith and has now become a saint.

But the rosary is not just is a potent force for intercession. It is a prayer that looks upon the face of Christ. “Beholding on the glory of the Lord, we are being changed into his likeness, from one degree of glory to another” (2 Corinthians 3:18). So it can also aid us in discernment, which is the ability to judge well and is the process of making careful distinctions in our thinking about the truth.

The rosary is a school of prayer and a prayer of peace. It is a treasure to be discovered, and we do well to pray it together as a family.