The Battle of Lepanto and the Power of the Rosary
The Battle of Lepanto, October 7, 1571, a naval battle fought between a coalition of European Catholic maritime states and the fleet of the Ottoman Empire, stands as a pivotal moment in Western history. Against overwhelming odds, the Christian fleet, led by Don Juan of Austria, achieved a decisive victory over the Turks. What makes this victory even more remarkable is the powerful intercession attributed to the Blessed Virgin Mary through the Rosary. Pope Pius V, a Dominican pope who had great devotion to the Rosary, called upon all of Christendom to pray the Rosary for the success of this crucial battle. And when the victory was secured, the Pope attributed it to the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary. As a tribute to this miraculous intervention, he instituted the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary on October 7th.
As we celebrate the Holy Rosary and Our Lady this month of October, let us seek to renew our trust in her intercession, using this powerful spiritual weapon. Every crime, abuse, cruelty, hatred, and evil of any kind is first and foremost a spiritual defect. It is a sin. The greatest remedy for sin is repentance. The greatest method of winning over sinful hearts to repentance is through prayer, and one of the greatest forms of prayer is the Rosary. The Church, in its popes, bishops, and saints, has held up the Rosary throughout the centuries. Countless saints prayed its beads every day, offering a spiritual bouquet to Our Lady so she could, in turn, lavish the spiritual roses of that bouquet upon the world.
Our Lady of the Rosary, you entrusted this holy prayer to Saint Dominic, and through him to the world. You are always attentive to the prayers of the Rosary and never fail to pour forth God’s grace in response. Please pray for me, that I will more deeply comprehend the power of the Rosary and will never fail in my duty to pray it every day. Our Lady of the Rosary, pray for me.
Jesus, I trust in You.
(For the 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time, 2025)