When a person dies, people often offer words of condolence, send flowers, or attend their burial.
In our faith tradition, we gather together to pray for the soul of the deceased and the comfort of the family. There is a special tradition of praying the Rosary–sometimes a nine day “novena”– for the soul of the departed.
I have been blessed to attend several Rosary services. Some had people filling up every row and standing outside the doors. Other times, there were maybe four or five people. Whether it was a crowd of hundreds or just a few, the gift of the Rosary brought those mourning together under the Blessed Virgin Mary’s care, who herself knew the role of grief and comfort in life.
The Holy Rosary is centuries old yet is always a new experience of meditation and hope. The Rosary is a devotion in honor of our Mother Mary. Although there are different traditions on how it came to be, it is a gift. In the Rosary, we are invited to meditate on the life of Christ. It guides us to glorify Jesus more as we reflect on his life through the Rosary’s Mysteries. As Pope St. John Paul II said:
"The Rosary, though clearly Marian in character, is at heart a Christocentric prayer. In the sobriety of its elements, it has all the depth of the Gospel message in its entirety, of which it can be said to be a compendium.” (Rosarium Virginis Mariae)
Whether the Rosary is prayed in unison in a prayer service for the deceased, silently in our hearts before bed, or singing along while driving to work, the core prayers of the Our Father and Hail Mary are like waves in the ocean whose repetitive movements refresh our heart and erode the walls that can build up around it.
Mary accompanies us in our prayer; her presence gives us hope.
"The Rosary is the most beautiful and the richest in graces of all prayers; it is the prayer that touches most the Heart of the Mother of God. If you wish peace to reign in your homes, pray the family Rosary. If you wish for the conversion of sinners, offer the Rosary. It is the chain that links heaven and earth, binding hearts to the heart of the Immaculate. By this holy prayer, Mary protects the Church and her children, even in the darkest of times.”- Pope St. Pius X
Daniel Quintero is a stand-up comedian currently attending Mary, Mother of the Church Catholic Parish. His favorite motto: “Awkwardness does not exist.”
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