Editorial

Rosary is a powerful tool that leads us to Jesus

It isn’t every day that you get thousands of people gathered together to pray the rosary.

But it happened on Sept. 30 at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington.

And what a witness of faith the more than 3,000 pilgrims provided—providentially, a day before the Church began its monthlong dedication to the rosary!

People from throughout the U.S. and from all walks of life traveled to our nation’s capital to take part that day in the first-ever Dominican Rosary Pilgrimage. It included preaching, confessions and music, and culminated in a chanted rosary procession and the celebration of Mass.

The event was a new initiative led by the Dominican Friars of the Province of St. Joseph together with Dominican friars, nuns, sisters and laity throughout the U.S. Lay pilgrims were joined at the Sept. 30 event by more than 80 Dominican friars and more than 50 religious sisters from communities.

The Dominicans have a special relationship with the rosary. According to tradition, the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to St. Dominic, entrusting the rosary’s promotion to the order’s founder.

The Dominicans invited Catholics nationwide earlier this year to “unite … to confidently seek the intercession of Our Lady,” and participate in a nine-month novena that would culminate with a daylong rosary pilgrimage on Sept. 30 in Washington.

Catholics like Glenn Dupont made the September gathering a true pilgrimage. According to an article posted on OSV News, he traveled from Providence College in Rhode Island to Washington—on foot.

“I’d walked the Camino [de Santiago] last summer, and thought if I could do that, why not walk the 600-plus miles to Our Lady’s shrine?” asked Dupont, a lay Catholic who is a member of the Dominican third order. During his 34-day trek, he met a variety of people, adding each person’s prayer intentions to the list he carried on his phone.

“We need a Marian renewal,” Dupont continued. “My personal apostolate is to promote the rosary, to do whatever Our Lady wants from me.”

Families like Rodrigo and Marie Hinke of Sugar Land, Texas, attended the event with their two sons, 3-year-old Rafael and Anthony, 15 months. They noted their favorite part of the day was the newly composed Dominican Rosary Litany by Dominican Father Michael O’Connor.

“The chanted rosary was pretty epic,” said Marie, who usually puts their children to sleep by praying the rosary. “We weren’t sure what to expect when we heard they’d written a new setting, but it was absolutely beautiful.”

Dominican Father Patrick Mary Briscoe, who serves as editor of Our Sunday Visitor newspaper, helped plan the pilgrimage and served as master of ceremonies for the day.

“I was completely overwhelmed by the joy and enthusiasm demonstrated by pilgrims,” the priest said.

The graces of the Dominican Rosary Pilgrimage are not a one-time occurrence, Father Patrick added. He noted that next year’s pilgrimage is scheduled for Sept. 28, 2024.

While we marked the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary on Oct. 7, the Dominican Rosary Pilgrimage reminded us that a love of the Blessed Mother and the rosary can become part of any person of faith’s devotional practices—be it in January, February, April, May (another month dedicated to the Virgin Mary) or any time of the calendar year.

Whether you’re a priest or religious, married or living the sacred single life, Our Blessed Mother and her rosary will lead you to Jesus.

During a Sept. 27 panel discussion “Unleash the Power of the Rosary” hosted by Paradisus Dei and the Dominican friars of the Province of

St. Joseph, Dominican Father John Paul Kern may have said it best:

“Nobody wants you to love and know Jesus more than Mary,” said Father John Paul, the executive director of the Dominican Friars Foundation in New York City as well as the director of the Rosary Shrine of St. Jude in Washington. “She draws you right to her Son. So be not afraid.”

Indeed, our faith teaches us her maternal protection never fails.

Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray and intercede for us. Amen.

—Mike Krokos