Detroit, Michigan. Sometimes the holy cards, medals, and rosaries we give out when we evangelize can be seen as foreign or esoteric objects. But they are all signs that point us to Christ. We can learn to pray the rosary just like we learn how to read or write. You don’t even have to be Catholic to pray the rosary! The mysteries of the rosary are a profound meditation on the life of Christ that brings us closer to him.
This report comes from evangelist John in Detroit, Michigan:
The table is set. The rosary board is up on display and all the other holy cards and religious articles are out. The hall is about to open its doors to the people standing outside in the 90 degree heat waiting to come in for lunch at St. Christine’s soup kitchen located on Detroit’s west side, Fenkell and Laser area. Today I am very glad the hall is air conditioned.
I am joined today by my wife, Kathryn. Anne Harman and her husband Steward have also joined us today. The food servers are from St. Rita’s parish and they have warmly welcomed us to the hall this Saturday on the feast day of Our Lady of Sorrows.
The first to come up to our table to see the rosaries are three young boys, ranging in age from 7 to 8 years old. Their eyes are fixed on the rosary board. I tell them to pick the color they like. I give them pamphlets on how to say the rosary and tell them to have their mother read it to them. Two of the boys are brothers and the other one is a cousin. Their innocence are a delight to me. Then they begin to collect one of each of all the holy cards on the table as if they were collecting baseball cards. I slowed them down to talk about what the cards are and told them that they had to read and say the prayers that are on the back of the cards if they take them. They all looked up at me innocently and promised that they would say the prayers every day. I think I was more blessed by them by being able to speak one on one with them that day. God is good.
Steve was an older man who came to the table to get his devoted Catholic wife a rosary. I asked him if he would like one for himself. He refused, claiming all religions are the same, that it’s not possible to know the Truth and that Jesus was only human, capable of sinning and making mistakes. These are the people that help me remember how Jesus must have felt at times. If He couldn’t convince everyone about who He was (the Truth incarnate) then why do I think I can? Please pray for Steve.
Jimmy was my “divine appointment” today. His friends call him J. J is a young man that came up to the table wearing a very nice cross and a gold chain. I told him I liked his chain and cross. He says he never takes it off. It gives him peace. He came to get a rosary. He said he has one at home and he loves to just hold it in his hands. I asked him if he knows how to say the rosary. He doesn’t. Well, I spend the next ten to fifteen minutes teaching him about the rosary. I walk him through all four of the mysteries: Joyful, Luminous, Sorrowful, and the Glorious Mysteries. We briefly talk about each meditation in the different mysteries and how the rosary is a meditation on the life of Jesus Christ. After we finished the Glorious Mysteries I realized I just went through the Kerygma with him. Please pray for J.
Praised be Jesus Christ! When we offer the rosary to those who may not be familiar with it, we are inviting them to learn the Gospel of Jesus Christ, to pray and meditate on his life. It also leads to a conferral of the graces that we pray for in each mystery when we ask for them. Mary leads us to her son, because God desires that all be saved through Christ! So keep giving out those rosaries, and encouraging people to pray it regularly!