The Rosary, prayer for difficult times

October 7 is the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. Many things have been said about the Rosary. It has its great defenders. Some consider it a repetitive prayer and one proper for simple people. Leaving aside the fact that simple people deserve respect and that all prayer is pleasing to God, not based on its literary, poetic or theological quality, but based on the dispositions of the person praying and its capacity to help the one who recites it to raise his heart to God, I would like to make a consideration about the Rosary that may perhaps help some who are suspicious to value this prayer a little more.

It is easy to memorize and remember; it alludes to the different mysteries of Jesus' life. To pray it, no preparation is needed, nor any special place, book, material or instrument. Many of us learned it as children and, from this point of view, it connects with moments in our lives when the relationship with God was more natural and less complicated. All this leads me to the following: there are difficult, painful, complicated moments in life. These moments make believers wonder about the presence of God in their lives. I clarify that I do not believe that God is an easy resource in the face of difficulties and that, in my opinion, we must always seek Him, in good and bad times. I also clarify that difficulties are not resolved by folding our arms and waiting for magical divine interventions.

But I do say that the Rosary can be a simple prayer for difficult times. Times when it is almost impossible to have calm thoughts about God. And when it is better not to do so. At these times the Rosary can help, it can serve to feel accompanied by the mysterious presence of the risen Jesus. These are times when one does not know what to say, perhaps one does not know what to think either. The Rosary helps to keep the soul calm, the heart trusting, the mind occupied with God. It helps the lips and life to bless, to speak well. Without a doubt the difficulty is still there. But there are two ways of facing difficulties that seem insurmountable: with desperation or with confidence. A confidence that may not be very conscious, but no less real. The Rosary helps to live through difficulties with this confidence.