The Holy Rosary and Saint Sharbel
By Rev. Kamil AlChouefati
A Brief History of the Rosary: The most basic precursor to the Rosary prayer is ancient, as recorded in the writings of early historians. Well before the modern Rosary came to be, Christians in the early centuries used a rope tied with a few knots to count their acts of devotion, moving their thumbs over each knot.When monasteries and religious orders were founded from the 4th century onward, monks prayed the Divine Office together. At that time, this was limited to reciting the Our Father, the Hail Mary, and the 150 Psalms of David. Illiterate monks assigned to work the land were exempt from reciting the Psalms. Instead, they recited the Lord's Prayer followed by 150 Hail Marys.
It can be said, then, that the Rosary prayer was a human creation until the Virgin Mary intervened through her famous apparition to St. Dominic, wherein she emphasized this prayer and chose it as a divine prayer pleasing to God and beloved by Her. This is clear in her apparitions and messages to the world (for example, at the apparitions at Lourdes and Fatima), in which she insists on this prayer, highlighting its importance in bringing sinners to repentance, curbing the corruption that has spread throughout the world, suppressing wars, and preventing the spread of heresies and schism.
After the Virgin Mary appeared to St. Dominic, this saint coordinated this prayer, which became known as the Rosary Prayer, or “the Rosary,” and spread it among the faithful.
15 Promises Our Lady Gave for Praying the Most Holy Rosary.
1- Whoever shall faithfully serve me with the recitation of the Rosary shall receive special grace.
2- I promise my special protection and the greatest graces to all who shall recite the Rosary.
3- The Rosary shall be a powerful armor against hell; it will destroy vice, decrease sin, and defeat heresies.
4- I will cause virtue and good works to flourish. The Rosary will obtain for souls the abundant mercy of God; it will withdraw the hearts of men from the love of the world and its vanities and will lift them to the desire of eternal things. Oh, that souls would sanctify themselves by this means.
5- The soul that recommends itself to Me by the recitation of the Rosary shall not perish.
6- Whoever shall recite the Rosary devoutly, applying himself to the consideration of its sacred mysteries, shall never be conquered by misfortune. God will not chastise him in his justice. He shall not perish by an unprovided death if he just shall remain in the grace of God and become worthy of eternal life.
7- Whoever shall have a true devotion to the Rosary shall not die without the Sacraments of the Church.
8- Those who are faithful in reciting the rosary shall have during their life and at their death the light of God and the plenitude of his graces. Atthe moment of death, they shall participate in the merits of the Saints in paradise.
9- I shall deliver from purgatory those who have been devoted to the Rosary.
10- The faithful children of the Rosary shall merit a high degree of glory in Heaven.
11- You shall obtain all you ask of me by the recitation of the Rosary.
12- All those who propagate the holy Rosary shall be aided by Me in their necessities.
13- I have obtained from My Divine Son, that all the advocates of the Rosary shall have for intercessors the entire celestial court during their life and at the hour of death.
14- All who recite the Rosary are My Sons and brothers of My only Son Jesus Christ.
15- Devotion to My Rosary is a great sign of predestination.
Saint Sharbel and the Spiritual Power of the Rosary: One of Sharbel’s most famous sayings is: “If you want to be saved easily, pray to the Virgin Mary.”
Fr. Nehmatullah Mechmech, a contemporary of Saint Sharbel, said: “I found great pleasure in serving his Mass, and I don't know why. Sometimes, after midnight, I would join him in praying the rosary. While he was kneeling and reciting it with all the pleasure and fervor that flowed from him to me, I desired, with all my heart, that he would invite me to join him in it. While reciting the entire rosary, I felt close to him, with an unusual warmth spreading through my soul, and a pleasure in it that I had never known before.”
Lover of the Rosary: From childhood, Sharbel prayed his rosary, and in monasticism, when he went to the field, and on his return, he prayed his rosary. Everyone knew that Father Sharbel loved nothing but his rosary, his faithful prayer, and his church, evidenced by his constant recitation of the rosary after midnight prayer. Saint Sharbel, who abandoned his earthly mother and voluntarily deprived himself of seeing her, even when she came to visit him in the monastery, had no choice but to replace her with a more compassionate and loving mother. Nothing was dearer and more tender to him than his heavenly mother. How often did he call upon her in hours of suffering and in the slumber of the night? How often did he seek her help in times of distress, and how often did he chant with confidence, love, and faith: O Mary, Mary, Mother of Mercy, have mercy on me!
This great trust in Mary, this complete filial surrender to her greatest love, filled Father Sharbel’s heart and soul. It was no wonder that he uttered these words to his visitors: “If you want to be saved easily, pray to Mary, for she is the guarantor of the salvation of those who venerate her.” He had faith firmer than the mountains that there was no salvation for him or anyone else without her.
It can be said, then, that the Rosary prayer was a human creation until the Virgin Mary intervened through her famous apparition to St. Dominic, wherein she emphasized this prayer and chose it as a divine prayer pleasing to God and beloved by Her. This is clear in her apparitions and messages to the world (for example, at the apparitions at Lourdes and Fatima), in which she insists on this prayer, highlighting its importance in bringing sinners to repentance, curbing the corruption that has spread throughout the world, suppressing wars, and preventing the spread of heresies and schism.
After the Virgin Mary appeared to St. Dominic, this saint coordinated this prayer, which became known as the Rosary Prayer, or “the Rosary,” and spread it among the faithful.
15 Promises Our Lady Gave for Praying the Most Holy Rosary.
1- Whoever shall faithfully serve me with the recitation of the Rosary shall receive special grace.
2- I promise my special protection and the greatest graces to all who shall recite the Rosary.
3- The Rosary shall be a powerful armor against hell; it will destroy vice, decrease sin, and defeat heresies.
4- I will cause virtue and good works to flourish. The Rosary will obtain for souls the abundant mercy of God; it will withdraw the hearts of men from the love of the world and its vanities and will lift them to the desire of eternal things. Oh, that souls would sanctify themselves by this means.
5- The soul that recommends itself to Me by the recitation of the Rosary shall not perish.
6- Whoever shall recite the Rosary devoutly, applying himself to the consideration of its sacred mysteries, shall never be conquered by misfortune. God will not chastise him in his justice. He shall not perish by an unprovided death if he just shall remain in the grace of God and become worthy of eternal life.
7- Whoever shall have a true devotion to the Rosary shall not die without the Sacraments of the Church.
8- Those who are faithful in reciting the rosary shall have during their life and at their death the light of God and the plenitude of his graces. Atthe moment of death, they shall participate in the merits of the Saints in paradise.
9- I shall deliver from purgatory those who have been devoted to the Rosary.
10- The faithful children of the Rosary shall merit a high degree of glory in Heaven.
11- You shall obtain all you ask of me by the recitation of the Rosary.
12- All those who propagate the holy Rosary shall be aided by Me in their necessities.
13- I have obtained from My Divine Son, that all the advocates of the Rosary shall have for intercessors the entire celestial court during their life and at the hour of death.
14- All who recite the Rosary are My Sons and brothers of My only Son Jesus Christ.
15- Devotion to My Rosary is a great sign of predestination.
Saint Sharbel and the Spiritual Power of the Rosary: One of Sharbel’s most famous sayings is: “If you want to be saved easily, pray to the Virgin Mary.”
Fr. Nehmatullah Mechmech, a contemporary of Saint Sharbel, said: “I found great pleasure in serving his Mass, and I don't know why. Sometimes, after midnight, I would join him in praying the rosary. While he was kneeling and reciting it with all the pleasure and fervor that flowed from him to me, I desired, with all my heart, that he would invite me to join him in it. While reciting the entire rosary, I felt close to him, with an unusual warmth spreading through my soul, and a pleasure in it that I had never known before.”
Lover of the Rosary: From childhood, Sharbel prayed his rosary, and in monasticism, when he went to the field, and on his return, he prayed his rosary. Everyone knew that Father Sharbel loved nothing but his rosary, his faithful prayer, and his church, evidenced by his constant recitation of the rosary after midnight prayer. Saint Sharbel, who abandoned his earthly mother and voluntarily deprived himself of seeing her, even when she came to visit him in the monastery, had no choice but to replace her with a more compassionate and loving mother. Nothing was dearer and more tender to him than his heavenly mother. How often did he call upon her in hours of suffering and in the slumber of the night? How often did he seek her help in times of distress, and how often did he chant with confidence, love, and faith: O Mary, Mary, Mother of Mercy, have mercy on me!
This great trust in Mary, this complete filial surrender to her greatest love, filled Father Sharbel’s heart and soul. It was no wonder that he uttered these words to his visitors: “If you want to be saved easily, pray to Mary, for she is the guarantor of the salvation of those who venerate her.” He had faith firmer than the mountains that there was no salvation for him or anyone else without her.
