A Note From Our Pastor: October 11, 2026

I remind us that October is the month of the Holy Rosary. In 1883, Leo XIII issued an encyclical, Supremi apostolatus officio, encouraging the faithful: “It has always been the habit of Catholics in danger and in troublous times to fly for refuge to Mary, and to seek for peace in her maternal goodness…And, as it is her greatest pleasure to grant her help and comfort to those who seek her, it cannot be doubted that she would deign, and even be anxious, to receive the aspirations of the universal Church” (SAO, 2).

Aside from the prayers of the Mass itself, the prayers of the Rosary, and most specifically, the Hail Mary, are the most communal devotional prayer we have. No one is required to pray it and further, not all Catholics desire to pray the Rosary regularly, but so many of us do. It’s almost as though when two or more Catholics are gathered, the Rosary can be prayed: anywhere and at any time.

Why is it so meaningful to so many Catholics? For one, praying the Rosary gives us a simple way to meditate on the life of Jesus Christ. As Pope Pius XII said, it’s the entire Gospel in miniature. But it’s also meaningful becuase we love our rosaries. Each has a story of how we came to acquire it: someone who gave it to us, or the occasion in which we came to acquire it (maybe a friend gave it to you when you were suffering; maybe you got it on your trip to Europe; maybe someone made it for you). We love our rosaries because not only are they aesthetically beautiful, they associate us with people that have touched our lives and they connect us to meaningful life experiences.

While I was in Italy this past week, at a wedding reception, I sat near a kind woman from the Church of Christ (a Protestant tradition). She asked a couple question about the Rosary, and I did my best to succinctly explain its history and the elements of the prayer itself. While she was gracious, I sensed it didn’t resonate with her.

Perhaps one thing, as we pray our Rosaries this October, is to pray for unity among Christians, asking Mary, Mother of God, and mother of us all, to intercede for us, to whisper this prayer into the ear of her son, the King of Kings.

And as we meditate on the life of Christ, let us turn to her, trusting that she loves us, and wants what is good for us. And more than anything, trusting that she fervently desires that all things lead us deeper into the heart of Jesus.

Yours in Christ,

Father Todd O. Strange