These inspiring stories are taken from ‘The Secret of The Rosary’ by St. Louis de Montfort:

The word “Rosary” means “Crown of Roses;” every time people say the Rosary devoutly they place a crown of one hundred and fifty-three roses upon the heads of Jesus and Mary. Each time you say a “Hail Mary” you are giving Her a beautiful rose. To show that this is literally true, St. Louis de Montfort tells the following story:

1. The Jesuit brother, Alphonsus Rodriguez, used to say his Rosary with such fervour that he often saw a red rose come out of his mouth at each Our Father, and a white rose at each Hail Mary, both equal in beauty and differing only in colour.

2. The chronicles of St. Francis tell of a young friar who had the praiseworthy habit of saying this crown of our Lady every day before dinner. One day, for some reason or other, he did not manage to say it. The refectory bell had already been rung when he asked the Superior to allow him to say it before coming to the table, and, having obtained permission, he withdrew to his cell to pray. After he had been gone a long time, the Superior sent another friar to fetch him, and he found him in his room bathed in a heavenly light in the presence of our Lady and two angels. Beautiful roses kept issuing from his mouth at each Hail Mary, and the two angels were taking them one by one and placing them on our Lady’s head, while she smilingly accepted them. Finally, two other friars who had been sent to find out what had happened to the first two saw the same scene, and our Lady did not leave until the whole Rosary had been said.

3. One day Saint Gertrude had a vision of our Lord counting gold coins. She summoned the courage to ask Him what he was doing, and he answered, “I am counting the Hail Marys that you have said; this is the money with which you purchase Heaven.”

This is what Our Lady herself said to Saint Gertrude: “Never has any man composed anything more beautiful than the Hail Mary. No salutation could be dearer to my heart than those beautiful and dignified words that God the Father addressed to me Himself.”

4. Father Dominic, a Carthusian, who was deeply devoted to the holy Rosary, had a vision in which he saw Heaven opened and the whole heavenly court assembled in magnificent array. He heard them sing the Rosary in an enchanting melody, and each decade was in honour of a mystery of the life, passion, or glory of Jesus Christ and his holy Mother. Fr. Dominic noticed that whenever they pronounced the holy name of Mary they bowed their heads, and at the name of Jesus they genuflected and gave thanks to God for the great good he had wrought in heaven and on earth through the holy Rosary. He also saw our Lady and the Saints present to God the Rosaries which the Confraternity members say here on earth. He noticed too that they were praying for those who practice this devotion. He also saw beautiful crowns without number, which were made of sweet-smelling flowers, for those who say the Rosary devoutly. He learned that by every Rosary that they say they make a crown for themselves which they will be able to wear in heaven.

“I am the Lady of the Rosary. You must say the Rosary every day, and say it properly”. – Our Lady of Fatima

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4 Inspiring Stories From Praying the Rosary

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