From the desk of the Tar Heel disciple:
August 8, 2025
As previously observed, the month of August might well be considered by the Catholic faithful as a month especially devoted to the Blessed Virgin Mary, in the way that May and October are. In addition to the Marian feasts celebrated in this summer month, (and which were briefly described in a previous posting on this blog), there are saints whose feast days occur this month who displayed a special devotion to the Mother of God. Among these is St. Dominic, whose feast is now celebrated on August 8, and who is often portrayed in art as receiving the rosary from the hands of the Blessed Mother herself.
St. Dominic (1170-1221) was a Catholic priest from Castile (Spain) who is said to have received an apparition of the Blessed Virgin in 1208, at Prouille (France), where he was preaching against the heresy of the Cathars, a Gnostic sect. Prayer beads were already well established in Christian circles by this time, but the Order of Preachers (Dominicans), which Dominic founded, propagated this Marian devotion and gave it much of the shape with which we are familiar today. Other developments followed through the ensuing centuries, even in recent years, when in 2002, Pope St. John Paul II proposed the five additional “Luminous Mysteries.” Papal encouragement of the praying of the rosary has been an ever-increasing feature of Catholic life in modern times, beginning with the official establishment of devotion to the rosary in 1569 by Pope St. Pius V (a Dominican) and continuing under the influence of Pope Leo XIII (1878-1903), who wrote twelve papal encyclicals on the rosary.
Perhaps this month might be an ideal time to renew or begin a regular (daily?!) praying of the holy rosary as individuals, families, groups of friends, parishioners, etc.? Perhaps we can introduce someone (e.g., a neighbor, a grandchild, a friend) to the rosary with the gift of a little pamphlet and a simply set of rosary beads? And even if we are already praying it daily, we can always do so more devoutly and attentively. Some good spiritual reading on the rosary, its history, the Gospel “mysteries,” or on the lives of saints shaped by the devotion (e.g., St. Dominic) can help deepen our devotion and our prayer life.
Material related to the Holy Rosary; booklets. books, rosaries, etc.:
https://inhisname.com/search?q=rosary&_pos=1&_psq=rosar&_ss=e&_v=1.0
Material related to St. Dominic:
https://inhisname.com/search?q=St+Dominic&options%5Bprefix%5D=last
