A tradition turns into life
By Father Fernando Torres
The prayer of the Rosary has been a gift for the Catholic Church throughout the centuries. At first in the monasteries, psalms were recited like the mysteries of Christ until they reached the simple people, who in a fervent way made this prayer an instrument of their faith, a way of contemplation and the opportunity to gather as a family, as a community and as a church.
A similar process has happened with the Latin communities in the United States during the last decades. Due to their limitations with the language, the culture, lack of adequate ministry and many times lack of priests, there has been an increase of prayer groups that gather at homes to pray the Rosary, and take the image of the Virgin Mary from home to home.
At the time that praying the Rosary developed, it became clear that it was the way in which many people learned to have a relationship with God, with the mysteries which salvation grants us, and with the intercession of someone like Mary, who through her life, her tenderness and her sanctity has become our Mother, our Teacher and our Christian model.
Through this simple practice, people learn not only to repeat prayers but also to contemplate Christ’s mysteries. They learn in a natural way to share, in those prayers, the needs of the people, their joys, their sufferings and their hopes.
It is beautiful to see and value all that happens around this tradition. Friends get together, neighbors get to know each other, traditional dishes are prepared; children learn by example a life of faith, and the songs and prayers. And their souls can rest when they sing “Ven con nosotros a caminar, Santa María ven…” (Come walk with us, Virgin Mary, come.) Feeling the presence and the company of the Mother of Heaven urges us to go and look for her Son in the sacraments, in society, in service and most of all, in acts of charity.