Saint Louis de Montfort equates recitation of the Rosary with weaving an exquisite crown of roses for the Blessed Mother and her Son: “every time people say the [original fifteen mystery] Rosary devoutly they place a crown of one hundred and fifty-three white roses and sixteen red roses upon the head of Jesus and Mary.” In a mystical vision, Our Lady reveals to Blessed Alan de la Roche: “When you say your Rosary, the angels rejoice, the Blessed Trinity delights in it, my Son finds joy in it too, and I myself am happier than you can possibly guess. After the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, there is nothing in the Church that I love as much as the Rosary.” Similarly, she tells Saint Mechtilde: “‘Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee!’ No creature has ever said anything that was more pleasing to me, nor will anyone ever be able to find or say to me anything that pleases me more.”
To acknowledge her pleasure, Mary showers us with a multitude of supernatural gifts. Saint Thérèse of Lisieux explains that “The Rosary is a long chain that links heaven and earth. One end of it is in our hands and the other end is in the hands of the Holy Virgin…The Rosary prayer rises like incense to the feet of the Almighty. Mary responds at once like a beneficial dew, bringing new life to human hearts.” Pope Blessed Pius IX notes that “Among all the devotions approved by the Church none has been so favored by so many miracles as the devotion of the Most Holy Rosary.”
Saint Louis de Monfort refers to these pearls of heaven as “a priceless treasure inspired by God.” The Venerable Sister Lúcia dos Santos observes: “The Most Holy Virgin in these last times in which we live has given a new efficacy to the recitation of the Rosary to such an extent that there is no problem, no matter how difficult it is, whether temporal or above all spiritual, in the personal life of each one of us, of our families…that cannot be solved by the Rosary. There is no problem, I tell you, no matter how difficult it is, that we cannot resolve by the prayer of the Holy Rosary.”
Surrendering to this timeless prayer transforms lives, heals wounds, converts sinners, promotes peace, ignites faith, clarifies truth, instills hope, engenders trust, imbues gratitude, inspires praise, and fosters charity. Saint Josemaría Escrivá says, “If you say the Holy Rosary every day, with a spirit of faith and love, our Lady will make sure she leads you very far along her Son’s path.” There is no better compass to guide our spiritual journey toward salvation than the Holy Rosary.
According to Dominican tradition, Our Lady reveals to Saint Dominic and again to Blessed Alan de la Roche fifteen promises awarded to the faithful for fervent devotion to the Rosary:
Whoever shall faithfully serve me by the recitation of the Rosary, shall receive signal graces.
I promise my special protection and the greatest graces to all those who shall recite the Rosary.
The Rosary shall be a powerful armor against hell, it will destroy vice, decrease sin, and defeat heresies.
It 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 of eternal things. Oh, that souls would sanctify themselves by this means.
The soul which recommends itself to me by the recitation of the Rosary shall not perish.
Whoever shall recite the Rosary devoutly, applying himself to the consideration of its sacred mysteries, shall never be conquered and never overwhelmed by misfortune. God will not chastise him in His justice, he shall not perish by an unprovided death; if he be just he shall grow in grace and become worthy of eternal life.
Whoever shall have a true devotion for the Rosary shall not die without the sacraments of the Church.
Those who are faithful to recite the Rosary shall have, during their life and at their death, the light of God and the plenitude of His graces; at the moment of death they shall participate in the merits of the saints in paradise.
I shall deliver from purgatory those who have been devoted to the Rosary.
The faithful children of the Rosary shall merit a high degree of glory in heaven.
You shall obtain all you ask of me by the recitation of the Rosary.
All those who propagate the holy Rosary shall be aided by me in their necessities.
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.
All who recite the Rosary are my sons and daughters, brothers and sisters of my only son Jesus Christ.
Devotion of my Rosary is a great sign of predestination.
Blessed Alan de la Roche further describes the Rosary as “the storehouse of countless blessings.” He discloses the following ten blessings of the Rosary:
Sinners are forgiven.
Souls that thirst are refreshed.
Those who are fettered have their bonds broken.
Those who weep find happiness.
Those who are tempted find peace.
The poor find help.
Religious are reformed.
Those who are ignorant are instructed.
The living learn to overcome pride.
The dead (the Holy Souls) have their pains eased by suffrages.
Saint Louis de Montfort references seven benefits associated with the Rosary: “The Rosary, recited with meditation on the mysteries, brings about the following marvelous results:
It gradually gives us a perfect knowledge of Jesus Christ;
It purifies our souls, washing away sin;
It gives us victory over all our enemies;
It makes it easy for us to practice virtue;
It sets us on fire with love of Our Blessed Lord;
It enriches us with graces and merits;
It supplies us with what is needed to pay, all our debts to God and to our fellow men and finally, it obtains all kinds of graces for us from Almighty God.”