For decades, especially through its Marian Blue Wave program, American Life League has encouraged pro-life advocates to pray the rosary for an end to abortion and Planned Parenthood. The rosary is a tremendously powerful spiritual weapon that teaches us to reflect on the life of Mary and Jesus. It’s a prayer that, according to Franciscan Media, “can change your life, strengthen the family, bring peace to the world, convert entire nations, and win the salvation of souls.”
Praying a rosary and asking Mary to take our prayers to her Son is a beautiful way to unite our will to Christ’s, to help us grow closer to Him, and to battle the evil of our day.
But most Catholics don’t pray the rosary, let alone pray it regularly. Reasons include the fact that they just can’t get into it, that it takes too long or is too repetitious, and that they don’t know how.
An Advent booklet and an upcoming podcast are hoping to change that, as they both strive to teach the beauty of the rosary, the immense graces that can flow from praying it, and the spiritual protection its prayers can offer. In the upcoming months, prayer warriors and families alike will be able to grow in love for the rosary and to deepen their spiritual life by praying and hearing the rosary like never before.
‘The Mysteries of Advent’
The Mysteries of Advent is a daily reflection booklet created by ALL’s Culture of Life Studies Program. Meant for families to read aloud (or people of all ages to read independently), this downloadable booklet explores the 20 mysteries of the rosary and encourages readers to picture themselves as silent companions to Jesus and Mary. During each day of the Advent season, readers can walk with Christ and His mother, follow their teachings, and immerse themselves in the poignant events in their lives. Daily reflections, Bible verses, and spiritual challenges accompany readers on this journey.
This is a truly meaningful way to spend the Advent season, and it’s especially powerful as we wait with joyful anticipation for the birth of the Christ Child.
Because He came to us as a tiny baby, it’s natural to think about babies and motherhood this time of year, especially when contemplating the Joyful Mysteries. As the booklet explains, “the common theme” in these mysteries is motherhood, and in them we can see that it “brings such joy to the world.”
Praying daily for our spiritual mother’s intercession will help fortify us in our battle to protect moms, babies, and other vulnerable populations, and reflecting on one mystery each day will help us focus on what’s truly important this time of year—Christ’s gift of Himself to all people.
‘Rosary in a Year’
A mere handful of days after readers finish this reflection booklet, they can dive into a new “In a Year” podcast from Ascension.
Just as Bible in a Year and Catechism in a Year thrilled listeners and took them on a yearlong journey through both the Bible and the Catechism of the Catholic Church, this new podcast will spend 2025 walking people through the mysteries of the rosary and helping them develop a devotion to this spiritual weapon.
Hosted by Fr. Mark-Mary Ames, CFR, the Rosary in a Year podcast “will examine an aspect of the rosary and give listeners something to focus on.” According to the press release:
Episodes will go through “6 phases” of deepening prayer and include:
- Guided meditations on the prayers of the rosary (Our Father, Hail Mary, etc.)
- Reflections from the saints (St. Augustine, St. Faustina, St. Thomas Aquinas, and more)
- Lectio divina – prayerful reflections on the Scriptures underlying each mystery
- Visio divina – prayerful reflections on sacred art depicting each mystery
Fr. Mark-Mary seems to be the perfect host for this podcast, as he is no stranger to podcasts or to the rosary. In 2021, he was featured in an Ascension videopraying the rosary; it now has over five million views. He is also in several other videos about the rosary; they too have racked up hundreds of thousands of views.
Learning about the rosary and the mysteries from someone so well versed and learned will be an immense blessing for listeners.
As of this writing, the Rosary in a Year sits at number three on Apple’s Religion & Spirituality chart—and it hasn’t even started yet! This eagerness to begin the podcast powerfully illustrates the fact that people today thirst for guidance and help with deepening their prayer life. Tools like the Advent booklet and the podcast help people of all faiths embark on this journey.
We are entering the time of year when Christ became man to save us from our sins and to open the gates of heaven. Mary’s yes to God, her loving example, and her humble nature exemplify not only the love of a mother for her child but the love we too should have for Christ.
So let us go forth into Advent and into the new year with the goal of retracing the steps of Christ’s life and deepening our devotion to the rosary, for with it we can battle even the most insidious of demons.
This article first appeared in Catholic World Report at catholicworldreport.com/2024/11/07/deepen-your-spiritual-life-and-combat-evil-with-the-rosary.
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