Miracles of the Rosary that Changed the Course of History
Welcome to Part 2
Part 1 covered the miraculous fall of communism in 30 countries and 87 dictatorships. Here are 5 amazing stories of how the rosary changed the course of history.
1.miraculous protection from Atomic bomb in Hiroshima
During World War II, an atomic bomb was dropped on the town of Hiroshima, Japan. Everything within a mile was annihilated. The only survivors within that one mile radius were eight priests. These eight men, like the eight that survived the Great Flood, walked away from the atomic blast and lived into old age without radiation poisoning. In the middle of the devastation, there were 8 lone survivors. -Taylor Marshall
“ Not only did they all survive with (at most) relatively minor injuries, but they all lived well past that awful day with no radiation sickness, no loss of hearing, or any other visible long term defects or maladies. Naturally, they were interviewed and examined numerous times (Fr. Schiffer, a survivor, said over 200 times) by scientists and health care people about their remarkable experience and they say “we believe that we survived because we were living the message of Fatima. We lived and prayed the rosary daily in that home.” Did the Rosary Save this Priest from the Atomic Bomb in Hiroshima?
2. guns fell to rosaries in a bloodless revolution
Standing in pairs, Sister Ocariza and 16 other nuns led the rosary as soldiers escorted rolling military tanks with their turrets trained on the sisters. The nun said staring down those tanks has been the scariest experience of her life. “I said, ‘Lord forgive me for all my sins and even the offenses of our Filipino people.’ If really the tanks would crush us, at least the two of us … kill us sisters, not the people because we (did not) want bloodshed. I love my country.”
But the tanks stopped, and the soldiers joined the protesters reciting the rosary,’ that was really a miracle!
Sister Ocariza said that God delivered them from the hands of a dictator and saved the country from what would have ultimately provoked a violent reaction. She said she looks back to that time as a source of courage and a reminder to stand for what is right always. The Miracle of the Rosary
The Chicago Tribune reported, “Instead of guns, there were prayers; instead of bloodshed, celebrations; instead of casualties, converts in , Guns Fell to Rosaries in Philippine Revolution.
3. In 1964 an attempted communist takeover in Brazil was thwarted by rosary crusades led by the women of Brazil.
Millions of women prayed to stop a communist takeover in 1964. Their prayers were answered. Fr Peyton was also instrumental in stopping that takeover in Brazil.
even the CIA recognized the power of praying the rosary!
The United States government recognized the positive impact brought to Latin America by the crusades of “the Rosary Priest,” and for a time he received funding from the Central Intelligence Agency. Although they arranged the locations, the CIA did not interfere with the content. The Rosary rallies drew millions, including his last in 1992 when at Manilla, Philippines, the two million attendees became part of a groundswell to overthrow the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos. - ‘Pray’ the Documentary is a gift for our times
A movie was released last week about that remarkable period in history.
4. Two men from the same family were saved from death because of a rosary in two different wars
Private Glenn Hockton bent down to pick his up rosary that had fallen off his neck-a move that alerted him that he had stepped on a landmine in Afghanistan. He stood still where he was for 45 minutes while his colleagues defused the mine. He wasn’t the first one in his family to narrowly escape death because of rosary. Glenn’s great-grandfather Joseph Sunny Truman also credited a rosary with saving his life when a bomb blast ahead of him missed him by a hair because he stopped to pick up a rosary he saw on the ground.
5. how the rosary saved a young woman from ted bundy
The rosary isnt just for Catholics. Protestants pray it too
One Protestant who shared how he learned to love praying the rosary who was worried that the rosary skewed the role of Mary but learned that it is actually Christ centered:
I thought I knew the basics of Catholicism and I thought I knew about the Rosary. What I thought I knew made it seemed foreign and complicated but I knew about it nonetheless. When I actually read and learned about it I was shocked by the incredible power of what I found.
It turns out that the practice of the Rosary is like a complete Bible study on a necklace. When I learned this, it blew my mind. When I learned this, I realized that I’d been so skeptical of the Rosary. I know, in my intellect, that Catholics don’t worship Mary, but I worried that the Rosary somehow skewed the role of Mary and placed, upon her, too much emphasis. I was wrong, forgive me, because the Rosary is awesome and the Rosary is firmly, and rightly, Christ-centred.- How This Protestant Came to Love the Rosary
What is the rosary?
The rosary is a prayer devotion that focuses on Jesus’ life and ministry. It has been called “the gospel on a string”. Scripture says to take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. The rosary focuses on The Word of God, Jesus Christ himself. He is the word of God. He is the sword of the Spirit. The rosary directs our attention away from what we have to say and toward him.
Typically, the rosary is prayed by Catholics but many Protestants have grown to love praying the rosary. Protestants often raise good questions that deserve solid answers so I’ll provide answers to those questions the end of this article.
Imagine if all Christians in America would stand with Sister Byrne and say, “You’ll find us here with our weapon of choice, the rosary. Thank you, Mr. President, we are all praying for you. The message of Fatima was to “repent and believe the gospel” and it also called all the faithful to pray for the conversion of sinners and to pray the rosary daily.
If you would like to discern if praying the rosary is something that God is calling you to, here are some common questions and answers people have asked in their discernment process. See below for answers to the following questions Protestants often ask:
How is asking the Saints in heaven to pray different than conjuring up the dead?
Don’t Catholics worship Mary and the Saints?
But isn’t asking Saints condemned in scripture?
Didn’t Jesus condemn prayers like the rosary when he spoke against vain repetitions?
How do I pray a rosary?
What are some benefits of praying a daily rosary?
Pax Christi
Part 1 of this article documents the prophecy from 2017 and the miraculous peaceful fall of communism
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS:
Q: How is Asking saints in heaven to pray different than the sin of conjuring up the dead?
Its very different from the sin of necromancy.
“When the Bible mentions necromancy, it condemns the practice of conjuring up the dead, as Saul did through the witch of Endor in 1 Samuel 28. When Jesus spoke with Moses and Elijah during the Transfiguration, this was not necromancy. When David asked the angels of heaven to bless the Lord, this also was not offensive to God (Ps.103:20–21). Likewise, when a Catholic asks St. Peter to pray for him, he is not conjuring up a spirit from Hades in order to acquire secret knowledge. After all, those in heaven are “like the angels,” and are more alive than we are, since the Lord is “not God of the dead, but of the living” (Luke 20:36–38). So, if it does not offend God when a Catholic says “St. Peter, pray for me,” we should all rejoice that God has given us the gift of Peter’s prayers”.
Here is an article that explains more -How to Defend the Intercession of the Saints.
Q: Don’t Catholics worship Mary and the Saints?
Q: but Isn’t asking saints to pray for us condemned in scripture?
No. Protestants often squirm when a Catholic mentions “praying” to a Saint because most Protestants equate the word “pray” with the word “worship.” But pray means “to ask”. Remember in Shakespeare’s time when “I pray thee” meant I ask thee? “Pray tell” means “please tell”.
So when Catholics say they are going to pray to a Saint, what they mean is “I am going to ask for that saints intercession.’ That is a biblical concept as Dave Armstrong explains in 4 Biblical Proofs for Prayers to the Saints and for the Dead
“To think of those in heaven as unwilling or unable to pray for us is to have a grave misconception of heaven. It is not an isolated part of the body of Christ that exists without concern for the other members of the body who are still working out their salvation with fear and trembling (Phil. 2:12). Those in heaven surround us as a “great cloud of witnesses” (Heb. 12:1), and the book of Revelation teaches that the prayers they offer for us “saints” is an integral part of the eternal worship given to God.
John describes the heavenly worship in these terms: “The twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and with golden bowls of incense, which are the prayers of the saints” (Rev. 5:8). The angels also play a role in bringing our prayers to God: “The smoke of the incense rose with the prayers of the saints from the hand of the angel before God” (Rev. 8:4). If intercession among members of the body of Christ on earth is “good and it is acceptable in the sight of God our Savior” (1 Tim. 2:1–4), how would such behavior not also be pleasing to God in heaven?”
In the story of Lazarus and the rich man (Luke 16:19–31), the rich man shows concern for his family on earth, even though he is in hell. If a person in hell has such concern, and those in heaven are perfected in love and can finally pray with an undivided heart for the Church of God, how could they not be concerned about our salvation?
Asking the saints in heaven to pray isn’t worshipping them. We worship God alone. We ask them to pray like we would ask a friend to pray for us.
Here is a video that answers the question of why should we ask for the intercession of the Saints:
Q:. Did Jesus condemn the Rosary when he spoke against vain repetitions?
No. Jesus himself repeated prayers. He condemned vain repetitions, not all repetitions.
This article explains why Jesus didn’t condemn Praying the Rosary
Trent Horn explains This short video explains Why The Rosary Isn’t Vain Repetitions
Q. How do I pray a rosary?
I personally learned to pray a rosary on a scriptural rosary app on my phone. It is a great way to focus on scriptures associated with each mystery.
The Laudate App also has several podcasts of the rosary which makes it easy to follow along.
Here is another wonderful resource where you can listen for free. Its a beautiful reflection on the life of Jesus and is also played on many radio stations and EWTN:
The Rosary is a Place Free Internet Radio
Q. What are some benefits of praying a daily rosary?
In addition to praying for peace, the rosary has other benefits. This video explains some.
Here are 4 Reasons to Pray the Rosary Every Day.
Q: What is the history of the rosary?
The Rosary: Spiritual Sword of Our Lady
In this video, Tim Staples, a former Protestant youth pastor explains what changed his mind about Mary:
In , this interviewTim tells about his conversion story and what he learned about how Mary fits into God’s plan for Christians. I highly recommend it because he explains how his objections were answered by a faithful fellow Marine.
More Information
Why Does Jesus Refer to Mary as “Woman”?
How Can You Say that Mary is the New Eve?
What Do Fourteen Holy Helpers From the Black Plague Have to Do with Coronavirus?