Pope Francis: the rosary is the synthesis of the history of God’s mercy, which becomes a history of salvation for all. Full Text
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
In
this Vigil we have pondered the fundamental moments of the life of Jesus in
company with Mary. In mind and heart, we
have returned to the time of the fulfilment of Christ’s mission in the
world. The Resurrection, as a sign of the extreme love of the Father who
restores everything to life and as a foreshadowing of our future state. The Ascension,
as a sharing in the Father’s glory, where even our humanity finds a privileged
place. Pentecost, as the expression of the Church’s mission in history
until the end of time, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. In the last two mysteries, we have also
contemplated the Virgin Mary in the glory
of heaven. From the earliest
centuries, Mary has been invoked as Mother of Mercy.
The
prayer of the rosary is, in many ways, the synthesis of the history of God’s
mercy, which becomes a history of salvation for all who let themselves be
shaped by grace. The mysteries we have
contemplated are concrete events by which God’s intervention on our behalf
develops. Through prayer and meditation
on the life of Jesus Christ, we see once more his merciful countenance, which
he shows to everyone in all the many needs of life. Mary accompanies us along this journey,
pointing to her Son who radiates the very mercy of the Father. She is truly Hodegetria, the Mother who points to the path we are called to take
in order to be true disciples of Jesus.
In each mystery of the rosary, we feel her closeness and we contemplate
her as the first disciple of her Son, for she does the Father’s will (cf. Lk 8:19-21).
Praying
the rosary does not remove us from the problems of life. On the contrary, it demands that we immerse
ourselves in the history of each day, so as to grasp the signs of Christ’s
presence in our midst. Whenever we
contemplate an event, a mystery of the life of Christ, we are asked to reflect
on how God comes into our own lives, so as to be able to welcome him and follow
him. In this way, we discover how we can
follow Christ by serving our brothers and sisters. By accepting and making our own certain
outstanding events in the life of Jesus, we share in his work of
evangelization, so that God’s Kingdom can increase and spread in the
world. We are disciples, but also
missionaries, bringing Christ wherever he asks us to be present. So we cannot keep the gift of his presence
within us. On the contrary, we are
called to share with everyone his love, his tenderness, his goodness and his
mercy. It is the joy of sharing that
stops at nothing, for it brings a message of freedom and salvation.
Mary
helps us to understand what it means to be a disciple of Christ. Eternally chosen to be his Mother, she
learned to become his disciple. Her
first act was to listen to God. She obeyed the message of the Angel and
opened her heart to receive the mystery of divine motherhood. She followed Jesus, listening to every word
that issued from his lips (cf. Mk 3:31-35). She kept all those things in her heart (cf. Lk 2:19) and became the living memory of
the signs worked by God’s Son to awaken our faith. But is not enough simply to listen. That is certainly the first step, but
listening then needs to be translated into concrete action. The disciple truly puts his life at the
service of the Gospel.
So
it is that the Virgin Mary went immediately to
she gave birth to the Son of God (cf. Lk 2:1-7). In
showed her concern for two young spouses (cf. Jn 2:1-11). At
cross of Jesus and, by his will, became the Mother of the Church (cf. Jn 19:25-27). After the resurrection, she encouraged the
apostles assembled in the Upper Room as they awaited the Holy Spirit who would
make them fearless heralds of the Gospel (cf. Acts 1:14). Throughout her
life, Mary did everything that the Church is asked to do in perennial memory of
Christ. In her faith, we learn to open
our hearts to obey God; in her self-denial, we see the importance of tending to
the needs of others; in her tears, we find the strength to console those
experiencing pain. In each of these
moments, Mary expresses the wealth of divine mercy that reaches out to all in
their daily needs.
This
evening let us invoke our loving heavenly Mother with the oldest prayer that
Christians have addressed to her, especially at times of trouble and
martyrdom. Let us invoke her, in the
certainty of being aided by her maternal mercy, so that she, “glorious and
blessed”, can be a protection, help and blessing for us all the days of our
life:
“We fly to your protection, holy Mother of
God. Scorn not our petitions in the hour
of need. O glorious and blessed Virgin,
deliver us always from every peril”.