The Secret of the Rosary: The Wonders, Marvels and Miracles of Our Lady.

[Xavier]

THIRTY-SECOND ROSE: DON PEREZ

SAINT DOMINIC had a cousin named Don Perez, or Pedro, who was leading a highly immoral life. When he heard that his cousin was preaching on the wonders of the Rosary and learned that several people had been converted and had amended their lives by means of it, he said:

"I had given up all hope of being saved but now I am beginning to take heart again. I really must hear this man of God." So one day he went to hear one of Saint Dominic's sermons. When the latter caught sight of him he struck out against sin more zealously than ever before, and from the depths of his heart he besought Almighty God to enlighten his cousin and to let him see what a deplorable state his soul was in.

At first Don Perez was somewhat alarmed, but he still did not resolve to change his ways. He came once more to hear Saint Dominic preach and his cousin, realizing that a heart as hard as his could only be moved by something quite out of the ordinary, cried out with a loud voice: "Oh Lord Jesus, grant that this whole congregation may actually see the state of the man who has just come into Your House."

Then everybody suddenly saw that Don Perez was completely surrounded by a band of devils in the form of hideous beasts who were holding him in great iron chains. People fled hither and thither in abject terror and Don Perez himself was even more appalled than they when he saw how everyone shunned him.

Saint Dominic told them all to stand still and said to his cousin: "Unhappy man that you are, acknowledge the deplorable state you are in and throw yourself at Our Lady's feet. Take this Rosary; say it with devotion and with true sorrow for all your sins, and make a firm resolution to amend your life."

So Don Perez knelt down and said the whole Rosary; he then felt the need of making his confession and did so with heart-felt contrition. Saint Dominic ordered him to say the Rosary every day; he promised to do so and he entered his name on the Rosary Confraternity list in his own hand.

When he left the Church his face was no longer horrible to behold but had a glow like that of an Angel's. Thereafter he persevered in devotion to the Holy Rosary, led a well-ordered Christian life and died a happy death.

[mikemac]

Yes, Mikemac, every Rosary Confraternity is good. I posted one run by the Dominican Fathers some time ago: http://www.suscipedomine.com/forum/index.php?topic=22038.0 Quite amazing and incredible Indulgences, just like St. Louis de Montfort says. Plenary Indulgences, "on the day of enrollment. (When application is made, a certificate of membership is sent, indicating the day of the enrollment.) on the following feast days: Christmas, Easter, Annunciation, Purification, Assumption, Our Lady of the Rosary, and Immaculate Conception." The basic minimum requirements of confraternity membership are to pray the 15 decades at least once a week. Of course, it would be ideal to pray it every day, that way we can gain the indulgence everyday(!), but once a week suffices for that one.

St. Louis speaks of Indulgence granted at the hour of death! Just imagine those who may otherwise have had to spend 100 or even 1000 years in the dreadful fires and painful flames of purgatory expiating the temporal punishment for their sins, delivered by a Rosary!

That's nice to know about Our Lady of Cape in Canada. It's amazing to me how Our Lady seems to have appeared in every nation and place on Earth! I knew that was your avatar, but I didn't know all the history behind it, until you mentioned it; so I researched it. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Our_Lady_of_the_Cape

I changed my own avatar to Our Lady of Velankanni. That's a famous apparition of Our Lady in my country in Tamil Nadu, India. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Our_Lady_of_Good_Health

There are different images, but this is a typical one. The one in my dp is another. That's wonderful about the Rosary Bowl.

Yes, GSAS. No doubt about it. The Rosary is very powerful in driving away demons. It is said that when anyone sins mortally, demons are released from hell and allowed to torment that person or roam freely on the earth. And the Rosary can imprison them in hell again. How amazing!

Yeah same thing, the basic minimum requirements of confraternity membership of the Cape are to pray the 15 decades at least once a week too.  That's pretty easy.  One of the benefits is "A share in the prayers, Masses and apostolic works of the entire Dominican Order."  Same indulgences too.  So all the confraternities must be organized the same.  On the Cape confraternity page it says "You are about to enrol in one of the oldest Confraternities of the Most Holy Rosary. It was established in the New World in 1694 at Cap-de-la-Madeleine. You will be united in universal prayer with the multitude of souls who belong to the Confraternity of the Most Holy Rosary across the world. ..."  I usually just pray the Rosary by myself so joining a confraternity makes sense.

My aunt took me to Cap-de-la-Madeleine in Trois-Rivières, Quebec when I was 15 because I have asthma.  I was too young and dumb and not sincere enough to get the full benefit from it though.  I should go there again.  There were lots of old crutches and wheel chairs hanging in the entrance of the church from those that were healed.  The Michael Journal has a real nice article about Our Lady of the Cape.
https://www.michaeljournal.org/articles/roman-catholic-church/item/our-lady-of-the-cape

Cool story about Our Lady of Velankanni.  Baby Jesus must like buttermilk.  The Basilica of Our Lady of Good Health looks beautiful.   

[Xavier]

Wonderful, Mike! Good time to review the 15 Rosary Promises. St. Louis De Montfort, says in addition, "Never will anyone who says his Rosary every day become a formal heretic or be led astray by the devil. This is a statement I would sign in my blood". We must all try to pray the Holy Rosary every day, 15 decades if possible, or a part of it, like 5 or 10, when not.

http://www.themostholyrosary.com/15promises.htm Imparted to Saint Dominic and Blessed Alan



1. Whoever shall faithfully serve me by the recitation of the Rosary, shall receive signal graces.
2. I promise my special protection and the greatest graces to all those 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. The Rosary will cause virtue and good works to flourish; it 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 for eternal things. Oh, that souls would sanctify themselves by this means.
5. The soul which 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 be just he shall remain in the grace of God, and become worthy of eternal life.
7. Whoever shall have a true devotion for the Rosary shall not die without the sacraments of the Church.
8. Those who are faithful to recite the Rosary shall have during their life and at their death the light of God and the plenititude of His graces; at the 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 daughters, and brothers and sisters of my only Son Jesus Christ.
15. Devotion of my Rosary is a great sign of predestination.



THIRTY-THIRD ROSE: A DIABOLICAL POSSESSION

WHEN SAINT DOMINIC was preaching the Rosary near Carcassone [ 1] an Albigensian was brought to him who was possessed by the devil. Saint Dominic exorcised him in the presence of a great crowd of people; it appears that over twelve thousand had come to hear him preach. The devils who were in possession of this wretched man were forced to answer Saint Dominic's questions in spite of themselves. They said that:

1. There were fifteen thousand of them in the body of this poor man, because he had attacked the fifteen mysteries of the Rosary;
2. They went on to testify that by preaching the Rosary he put fear and horror into the very depths of Hell and that he was the man they hated most throughout the whole world, because of the souls which he snatched from them through devotion to the Holy Rosary;
3. They then revealed several other things.

Saint Dominic put his Rosary around the Albigensian's neck and asked the devils to tell him who, of all the Saints in Heaven, was the one they feared the most, and who should therefore be the most loved and revered by men. At this they let out such unearthly screams that most of the people fell to the ground, faint from fear. Then, using all their cunning, so as not to answer, the devils wept and wailed in such a pitiful way that many of the people wept also, out of purely natural pity. The devils spoke through the mouth of the Albigensian, pleading in a heartrending voice:

"Dominic, Dominic, have mercy on us----we promise you that we will never hurt you. You have always had compassion for sinners and those in distress; have pity on us, for we are in grievous straits. We are suffering so very much already, so why do you delight in heightening our pains? Can't you be satisfied with our suffering without adding to it? Have pity on us! Have pity on us!"

Saint Dominic was not one whit moved by the pathos of these wretched spirits and told them that he would not let them alone until they had answered his question. Then they said they would whisper the answer in such a way that only Saint Dominic would be able to hear. The latter firmly insisted upon their answering clearly and out loud. Then the devils kept quiet and refused to say another word, completely disregarding Saint Dominic's orders----so he knelt down and prayed thus to Our Lady: "Oh, all powerful and wonderful Virgin Mary, I implore you by the power of the Most Holy Rosary, order these enemies of the human race to answer me."

No sooner had he made this prayer than a glowing flame leaped out of the ears, nostrils and mouth of the Albigensian. Everyone shook with fear, but the fire did not hurt anyone. Then the devils cried:

"Dominic, we beseech you, by the passion of Jesus Christ and by the merits of His Holy Mother and of all the Saints, let us leave the body of this man without speaking further----for the Angels will answer your question whenever you wish. After all, are we not liars? So why should you want to believe us? Please don't torture us any more; have pity on us."

"Woe unto you wretched spirits, who do not deserve to be heard," Saint Dominic said, and kneeling down he prayed to Our Lady:

"Oh most worthy Mother of Wisdom, I am praying for the people assembled here who have already learned how to say the Angelic Salutation properly. Please, I beg of you, force your enemies to proclaim the whole truth and nothing but the truth about this, here and now, before the multitude."

Saint Dominic had hardly finished this prayer when he saw the Blessed Virgin near at hand, surrounded by a multitude of Angels. She struck the possessed man with a golden rod that she held and said: "Answer my servant Dominic at once." (Remember, the people neither saw nor heard Our Lady, but only Saint Dominic.) Then the devils started screaming:

"Oh you who are our enemy, our downfall and our destruction, why have you come from Heaven just to torture us so grievously? O Advocate of sinners, you who snatch them from the very jaws of Hell, you who are the very sure path to Heaven, must we, in spite of ourselves, tell the whole truth and confess before everyone who it is who is the cause of our shame and our ruin? Oh woe unto us, princes of darkness:

"Then listen well, you Christians: the Mother of Jesus Christ is all-powerful and she can save her servants from falling into Hell. She is the Sun which destroys the darkness of our wiles and subtlety. It is she who uncovers our hidden plots, breaks our snares and makes our temptations useless and ineffectual.

"We have to say, however reluctantly, that not a single soul who has really persevered in her service has ever been damned with us; one single sigh that she offers to the Blessed Trinity is worth far more than all the prayers, desires and aspirations of all the Saints.

"We fear her more than all the other Saints in Heaven together and we have no success with her faithful servants. Many Christians who call upon her when they are at the hour of death and who really ought to be damned according to our ordinary standards are saved by her intercession.

"Oh if only that Mary (it is thus in their fury that they called her) had not pitted her strength against ours and had not upset our plans, we should have conquered the Church and should have destroyed it long before this; and we would have seen to it that all the Orders in the Church fell into error and disorder.

"Now that we are forced to speak we must also tell you this: nobody who perseveres in saying the Rosary will be damned, because she obtains for her servants the grace of true contrition for their sins and by means of this they obtain God's forgiveness and mercy."

Then Saint Dominic had them all say the Rosary very slowly and with great devotion, and a wonderful thing happened: at each Hail Mary that he and the people said together a large group of devils issued forth from the wretched man's body under the guise of red-hot coals.

When the devils had all been expelled and the heretic was at last entirely free of them, Our Lady (who was still invisible) gave her blessing to the assembled company, and they were filled with joy because of this.

A large number of heretics were converted because of this miracle and joined the Confraternity of the Most Holy Rosary.

1. This incident is referred to by Saint Louis in his "True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary" when he explains that those who love Our Lady are not lost. Cf. paragraph 42. M.B.