Episode Transcript  

One

The Stage is Set

In the 1500s, the Muslim Ottoman Empire dominated the Mediterranean and wanted to conquer Christian Europe. By 1571, a fleet of 300 Ottoman ships gathered in the Gulf of Lepanto, ready to invade and destroy the Christian faith on the continent. Pope St. Pius V pleaded with Europe’s rulers to put aside their rivalries and unite in defense of Christian Europe. But they were too busy building their own kingdoms to worry about the Kingdom of God. So the Pope turned to the common people and urged them to take up the Rosary as their weapon.

At last, Don Juan of Austria answered the call. With about two hundred ships, he formed a smaller Christian fleet. Giovanni Andrea, the Genoese admiral, commanded the armada and carried aboard his flagship an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe that had been touched to the original Tilma.

On the eve of battle, Don Juan ordered every sailor and soldier to pray the Rosary, while in Rome Pope Pius V himself led the Rosary at Santa Maria Sopra Minerva. He knew that Europe could not be saved by numbers or by might, but only by the power of the Mother of God through the prayer of her Rosary.

Two

The Battle

On October 7th, 1571, the Christian and Muslim fleets entered into Battle in the bay, south of the town of Lepanto (Greece). The Muslim fleet, led by Ali Pasha, was arranged in the formation of a massive quarter moon. The Christian fleet was arranged in the shape of a cross, divided into three squadrons: left, center, and right. The battle started badly for the Christians: the Muslim fleet broke through the left and center squadrons, heading right for Admiral Doria’s ship. Doria slipped down to his cabin, where he had hung the painting of Our Lady of Guadalupe, fell on his knees, and began to pray the Rosary. At that moment, the winds shifted against the Islamic fleet and scattered it. The Christians regrouped and destroyed two-thirds of the Ottoman armada. It is said that the sea was red with blood for miles around by the end of the battle.

In Rome, Pope Pius V knew the Christians were victorious before a message could possibly have reached him. During a meeting in the Vatican, the pope suddenly rose up and gazed out the window, saying, “This is not a moment for business; make haste to thank God, because our fleet this moment has won a victory over the Turks.”

When the official news reached Rome, Pope Pius V gave credit to the Virgin Mary. He declared October 7th the Feast of Our Lady of Victory, which we celebrate today as the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, because Our Lady came down through the Rosary and sent the enemy packing.

Three

The Enemy Is Sin

At Lepanto, the danger was obvious. An enemy fleet threatened Christian Europe. The Pope called the faithful to pray the Rosary, and they understood why. But what happens when we don’t recognize the danger? What happens when we are destroying ourselves and cannot see it?

That is what sin does. It blinds us to the harm we are doing. We justify our addictions and our resentments, excuse our selfishness, and refuse to admit when we are wrong. We can see how other people need to change while remaining convinced that we do not. That is why Mary comes: to awaken us to what we have made ourselves blind to. That by our sin, we are in danger of destroying ourselves and the whole world.

Beginning in 1983, Jesus and Mary appeared to Gladys Quiroga de Motta, a humble wife and mother of two in San Nicolás, Argentina. Mary appeared under the title Our Lady of the Rosary, the same title we celebrate today.

Gladys received 1,887 messages calling the world to conversion, prayer, sacrifice, and consecration to Mary. In 2016, Bishop Héctor Cardelli formally declared the events of “supernatural character” and “worthy of belief.”

There Mary said, “God’s warning is over the world. Those who stay in the Lord have nothing to fear, but those who deny what comes from him do. Two-thirds of the world is lost and the other part must pray and make reparation for the Lord to take pity. The devil wants to have full domination over the earth. He wants to destroy. The earth is in great danger.”

Four

Rescue Mission

At San Nicolás, Mary comes on a rescue mission to save souls from going to hell and lead them to heaven. On March 21st, 1988, Gladys saw the earth divided into two parts, one representing two-thirds and the other one-third. In the smaller part, she saw the Blessed Virgin with the Child Jesus. Rays of light streamed from Mary’s heart toward the larger part.

Mary told her, “Gladys, you are seeing the world partly destroyed. Those rays of light come from My Heart, which wants to save as many souls as possible. My Heart can do all things, but it cannot if your heart is unwilling. The means to save the soul are prayer and conversion.”

She calls us back to God through prayer and conversion. And she asks those who respond to help those who do not. We can pray and make sacrifices for them. We can build friendships with them and help them learn to pray.

On December 15th, 1986, she said, “My daughter, because of a few good people, many bad people will be saved.”

Five

How the Rosary Changes Us

If we want to help our loved ones, then we need to stay focused on our own conversion. You may say, “I am already converted. I believe and am a practicing Catholic. What more am I supposed to do?” Conversion is the whole process of turning toward God: from unbelief to faith, from merely going through the motions to real commitment, from vice to virtue, and from virtue to holiness.

This entire process is driven by prayer. At San Nicolás, Mary said, “Pray the Holy Rosary, and let the Lord see that your conversion accompanies it.” That is why we combine the Rosary with meditation and a concrete resolution.

First, read or listen to the Word of God in Scripture, or consider its meaning through the lives and writings of the saints and the teaching of the Church. As soon as something strikes you, stop and pay attention. Second, reflect. Think about what struck you. Try to understand it. Talk it over with Jesus. Apply it to your life: Am I living this? What needs to change? Ask Him for the grace to act. Third, make a resolution. Choose one concrete good action that follows from your meditation and practice it today.

Don’t stop at “I need to be more patient.” Resolve, “Today, when that person irritates me, I will not complain about them.” Don’t stop at “I should pray more.” Resolve, “Tomorrow morning at seven, I will sit down and meditate.”Then do it.  The resolution is the bridge between hearing God’s Word and being changed by God’s Word. That is the conversion Mary is asking for, and it is what we practice together in the Daily Rosary.

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