A Brief History of the Rosary

The first documented mysteries to be associated with the Marian Psalter (150 aves) was in about 1275 and the mysteries were three in number: Annunciation, Nativity, Assumption. Additional mysteries then developed--all joyously themed. These mysteries are mostly found in the modern non-sorrowful mysteries, but there were others like the adoration of the Magi or more heavenly Marian ideas, like her being given the role of Illuminatrix, or having her wishes united to Christ's and answered by Christ (ie her role as Mediatrix), or her eternal joy.

The next development was the addition of the Pater Nosters in the 1400s. I forget the name of the person who spread this, but he suggested meditating on the Passion of Christ on the Paters. This is when roses became more formally associated with the Marian Psalter--he said the prayers were like Roses sent to the Blessed Mother, Aves were white roses and the Paters (with Passion meditations) were red roses. The Sorrowful meditations were pretty much identical to the Sorrowful mysteries now in most versions of the Psalter back then, but one less popular version had more Marian-themed sorrows (similar to the seven Dolors we recognize today). The number of mysteries still varied though. Some had more general themes, rather than specific mysteries (ie "heavenly joys of Mary"), some versions had ten total mysteries, some had sets of seven (not sure how that worked), one had ninteen (I can see how these odd ones didn't stick as long...), etc..

This was also when the Psalter began to be reduced to only 50 Aves per day in many areas. The Vita Christi Rosary spread by Dominic of Prussia (50 Aves, but with 50 mysteries on the life of Christ; although supposedly he had a 150 mystery version too) became the most popular (more on its origins below). Interestingly enough, some condemned this as destroying the Psalter. This is when Bl. Alan de Rupe wrote his work on the Marian Psalterin order to return to the more authentic version as he saw it. He supported only praying the 150 a day and refused to call it the Rosary and forbade others from calling it that too, since he saw what was called the Rosary at the time (the fifty per day) as a corruption of the Psalter. His mysteries had three groups, they were general and not specificly [sic] listed except for the last group. His general themes were: Incarnation, Passion, Resurrection (which included the Resurrection, Ascension, Holy Spirit's descent, Glorification of Christ, Final Judgment). The Dominic of Prussia Vita Christi Rosary and Bl. Alan de Rupe's version were the most popular and seemed to morph into generally what we have today (with a few changes to the mysteries here and there) as people embraced parts of each (50 Aves per day, with five set mysteries for each day).

So, where does St. Dominic's experience fit in? It is also around this time that St. Dominic's experience is first mentioned (or at least of where the earliest evidence of it is). Bl. Alan says the Blessed Virgin appeared to himself and told him (Alan) to pray according to the method she said taught St. Dominic, which she said consisted of meditiating on "the life and passion" of her Son (no specifics on the mysteries are mentioned). The reference to "life and passion" makes it sound like the Vita Christi method, but Bl. Alan on the other hand didn't seem to take it that way. On the other hand, a prominant [sic] handbook of the same period which listed various methods (the Ulm handbook), the method listed as the "method of St. Dominic" is the a variation on the Vita Christi rather then the de Rupe method. This book also contains a picture of the Rosary very similar to what became the more uniform version, with only the last mystery different (judgment rather than coronation). So its tought [sic] to say what St. Dominic's method really was, other than it doesn't seem to be what we have today--it seems it's either Bl. Alan's method or the Vita Christi method.

This bring us to the 16th century. At this time, while what we all think of as the Rosary was the most common (including the shift to the Coronation as the final mystery beginning to take hold), there was still a lot of variation into the 17th century [....] However, it was in the 17th and 18th centuries in response to the Reformation that Rome began issuing a lot of legislative documents regulating and promoting Marian devotions, etc.--which, like the liturgy, led to more uniformity. 

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Source: SaintSebastian, October 26, 2012 (12:49 p.m.), comment on Poche, "Mysteries of the Rosary," Fish Eaters Traditional Catholic Forum, October 26, 2012, accessed July 18, 2015, http://www.fisheaters.com/forums/index.php?topic=3454491.msg33819436#msg33819436.

St. Louis de Montfort on Praying the Rosary Slowly and Fervently

41st Rose:

It is not so much the length of a prayer, but the fervor with which it is said which pleases Almighty God and touches His Heart. One single Hail Mary that is said properly is worth more than one hundred and fifty that are badly said. Most Catholics say the Rosary, the whole fifteen mysteries or five of them anyway or, at least a few decades. So why is it then that so few of them give up their sins and go forward in the spiritual life? Surely it must be because they are not saying them as they should. It is a good thing to think over how we should pray if we really want to please God and become more holy.

To say the Holy Rosary to advantage one must be in a state of grace or at the very least be fully determined to give up mortal sin. This we know because all our theology teaches us that good works and prayers are only dead works if they are done in a state of mortal sin. Therefore they can neither be pleasing to God nor help us gain eternal life. This is why Ecclesiastes says: "Praise is not seemly in the mouth of a sinner." [1] Praise of God and the salutation of the Angel and the very Prayer of Jesus Christ are not pleasing to God when they are said by unrepentant sinners.

Our Lord said: "This people honoreth Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me." [2] It is as though He was saying: "Those who join My Confraternity and say their Rosary every day (even perhaps the fifteen decades), but without being sorry for their sins offer Me lip service only and their hearts are far from Me." [...]

44th Rose:

[...] Take great care to avoid the two pitfalls that most people fall into during the Rosary. The first is the danger of not asking for any graces at all, so that if some people were asked their Rosary intention they would not know what to say. So, whenever you say your Rosary, be sure to ask for some special grace. Ask God's help in cultivating one of the great Christian virtues or in overcoming one of your sins. 

The second big fault a lot of people make when saying the Holy Rosary is to have no intention other than that of getting it over as quickly as possible! This is because so many of us look upon the Rosary as a burden which is always heavier when we have not said it—especially if it is weighing on our conscience because we have promised to say it regularly or have been told to say it as a penance more or less against our will.

It is really pathetic to see how most people say the Holy Rosary—they say it astonishingly fast and mumble so that the words are not properly pronounced at all. We could not possibly expect anyone, even the most unimportant person, to think that a slipshod address of this kind was a compliment and yet we expect Jesus and Mary to be pleased with it! Small wonder then that the most sacred prayers of our holy religion seem to bear no fruit, and that, after saying thousands of Rosaries, we are still no better than we were before! Dear Confraternity members, I beg of you to temper the speed which comes all too easily to you and pause briefly several times as you say the Our Father and Hail Mary. I have placed a cross at each pause, as you will see:

Our Father Who art in Heaven, † hallowed be Thy name, † Thy kingdom come, † Thy will be done † on earth as it is in Heaven. † Give us this day † our daily bread † and forgive us our trespasses † as we forgive those who trespass against us, † and lead us not into temptation † but deliver us from evil. Amen. 

Hail Mary, full of grace, † the Lord is with Thee, † blessed art thou among women † and blessed is the Fruit of Thy womb, Jesus. †
Holy Mary, Mother of God, † pray for us sinners, now † and at the hour of our death. Amen.

At first, you may find it difficult to make these pauses because of your bad habit of saying prayers in a hurry; but a decade that you say recollectedly in this way will be worth more than thousands of Rosaries said all in a rush—without any pauses or reflection. [...]

47th Rose:

Dear Rosary Confraternity members, if you want to lead a fashionable life and belong to the world—by this I mean if you do not mind falling into mortal sin from time to time and then going to Confession, and if you wish to avoid conspicuous sins which the world considers vile and yet at the same time commit "respectable sins"—then, of course, there is no need for you to say so many prayers and Rosaries. You only need to do very little to be "respectable": a tiny prayer at night and morning, an occasional Rosary which may be given to you for your penance, a few decades of Hail Marys said on your Rosary (but haphazardly and without concentration) when it suits your fancy to say them—this is quite enough. If you did less, you might be branded as a freethinker or a profligate; if you did more, you would be eccentric and a fanatic. But if you want to lead a true Christian life and genuinely want to save your soul and walk in the saints' footsteps and never, never, fall into mortal sin—if you wish to break Satan's traps and divert his flaming darts, you must always pray as Our Lord taught and commanded you to do.

If you really have this wish at heart, then you must at least say your Rosary or the equivalent, every day. I have said "at least" because probably all that you will accomplish through your Rosary will be to avoid mortal sin and to overcome temptation. This is because you are exposed to the strong current of the world's wickedness by which many a strong soul is swept away; you are in the midst of the thick, clinging darkness which often blinds even the most enlightened souls; you are surrounded by evil spirits who being more experienced than ever and knowing that their time is short are more cunning and more effective in tempting you.

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Footnotes:

1. Eccl. 15:9.
2. Mark 7:6.

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Source: St. Louis de Montfort, The Secret of the Rosary, Catholic Tradition, http://www.catholictradition.org/Classics/secret-rosary.htm.

Fr. Antonio Royo Marin on the Soul of the Rosary

The Soul of the Rosary

The meditation on the principal mysteries of the life of Jesus and Mary constitute the soul or the formal substance of the Rosary, just as how the vocal prayer of the Our Fathers and Hail Marys constitute its bodily material. Both things are absolutely necessary for the Rosary to exist. Whoever limits himself to praying the Our Fathers and Hail Marys, but without meditating on the mysteries, would have without doubt an excellent prayer but would not be reciting the Rosary; and he who meditates attentively on the mysteries, but without reciting the Our Fathers and Hail Marys, would have an excellent meditation but clearly would not have recited the Rosary. For the Rosary to exist, precisely two things must be indispensably joined: the vocal prayers and meditation on the mysteries. We shall indicate more below on a practical method for combining both aspects, which, even though there may be certain theoretical difficulties, are easily overcome in practice with a little effort and good will aided by God's grace.

As is known, the mysteries are divided into three groups of five. The first five recall the intimate life of Jesus and Mary during their hidden life and teach us how to sanctify principally the ineffable joys of the Christian home. The second five recall the main scenes of the passion and death of Jesus and teach us to sanctify the inevitable sufferings of our life in this valley of tears and miseries. The final five, lastly, place before our eyes the triumphant glories of Jesus and Mary and speak to us of heaven, where we shall enjoy forever a sublime and incomparable glory (cf. 2 Cor. 4:17). These form all the aspects of human life, and by which its joys and pains, its sorrows and hopes are sanctified and oriented towards those ineffable joys for which we hope in eternal blessedness above.

Method of Praying the Rosary Effectively

In order to obtain from the holy Rosary all of its impetrating and sanctifying efficacy, it is evident that it is not enough to recite it in a mechanical or distracted manner, like a record player or a tape. It is necessary to recite it worthily [translator's note: sometimes translated as modestly], attentively, and devoutly just as with the Breviary or as with any other vocal prayer well made.

In theory it ought to be remembered that it is difficult to recite the Rosary well, precisely because vocal and mental prayer must be joined together; otherwise the Rosary as such becomes invalidated. But in practice it is easy to encounter some methods which efficaciously help to recite this great Marian devotion correctly and piously. We shall try to explain the manner of reciting it worthily, attentively, and devoutly.

A) Worthily. The first condition required, as a minimum, is the recitation of the Rosary in a dignified manner, corresponding to the majesty of God, to Whom we ought principally to direct our prayer. The best way is to pray it kneeling before the Tabernacle—and this way carries with it a plenary indulgence—or before a pious image of Mary. But it can also be prayed in any other dignified posture or setting (e.g. modestly seated, walking through the countryside, etc.). It would be undignified to recite it in bed (unless it be for reasons of infirmity), or constantly interrupting it in order to answer questions outside of prayer, or in a public and crowded place that would make attention almost impossible, etc.

B) Attentively. Attention is necessary in order to avoid the irreverence that could occur if it were fully voluntary. How can we desire God to listen to us if we do not begin by listening to ourselves?

Nevertheless, not all distraction is culpable. We do not have a despotic control over our imagination but only a political one as the philosophers teach, and we cannot avoid those distractions that afflict us without permission, like a disobedient and indomitable servant or like the mad house. Involuntary distractions do not invalidate the meritorious effect and impetratory value of prayer, provided that efforts be made to contain and avoid the distractions. Listen to the Angelic Doctor admirably explain this point most interestingly by asking "whether attention is necessary for prayer" (Summa, IIa-IIæ, q. 83, a. 13):

This question applies chiefly to vocal prayer. Accordingly we must observe that a thing is necessary in two ways. First, a thing is necessary because thereby the end is better obtained: and thus attention is absolutely necessary for prayer. Secondly, a thing is said to be necessary when without it something cannot obtain its effect. Now the effect of prayer is threefold. The first is an effect which is common to all acts quickened by charity, and this is merit. On order to realize this effect, it is not necessary that prayer should be attentive throughout; because the force of the original intention with which one sets about praying renders the whole prayer meritorious, as is the case with other meritorious acts. The second effect of prayer is proper thereto, and consists in impetration: and again the original intention, to which God looks chiefly, suffices to obtain this effect. But if the original intention is lacking, prayer lacks both merit and impetration: because, as Gregory [Hugh St. Victor, Expos. in Reg. S. Aug. iii] says, "God hears not the prayer of those who pay no attention to their prayer." The third effect of prayer is that which it produces at once; this is the spiritual refreshment of the mind, and for this effect attention is a necessary condition: wherefore it is written (1 Corinthians 14:14): "If I pray in a tongue . . . my understanding is without fruit." 

It must be observed, however, that there are three kinds of attention that can be brought to vocal prayer: one which attends to the words, lest we say them wrong, another which attends to the sense of the words, and a third, which attends to the end of prayer, namely, God, and to the thing we are praying for. That last kind of attention is most necessary, and even idiots are capable of it. Moreover this attention, whereby the mind is fixed on God, is sometimes so strong that the mind forgets all other things, as Hugh of St. Victor states [De Modo Orandi ii].

Having kept in mind these principles of the Angelic Doctor for the purpose of facilitating attention in praying the holy Rosary and in order to extract from it its maximum sanctifying efficacy, we propose the following method, which has been used with great success for many people who suffer greatly from interior distractions when trying to pray the Rosary:

1. While praying the Our Father, attend solely to the marvelous thought behind each of the words, without thinking about the corresponding mystery since it is psychologically impossible to attend effectively to two things at the same time.

2. During the first three (more or less) Hail Marys, fix your attention exclusively on the thought of those Hail Marys, saluting the Virgin, without taking account of the pertinent mystery, for the reason given above.

3. During the next three Hail Marys (again, more or less since this shouldn't be measured "by the millimeter"), think exclusively on the corresponding mystery which is being recited (e.g. the Incarnation of the Word, the Crucifixion, etc.) without thinking about the Hail Marys that are being recited, for doing both things at once is incompatible with each other.

4. During the last three or four Hail Marys, think exclusively on the practical consequences which flow from the corresponding mystery (e.g. the humility of Mary, the love of the Cross, etc.) without thinking about either the mystery itself or the Hail Marys that are being recited.

5. During the Glory Be, focus solely on glorifying the Most Holy Trinity without thinking about anything else whatsoever.

This method, which during its first attempts may seem somewhat artificial and complicated, ultimately produces a very easy and simple result once the soul becomes habituated to it. In the beginning it takes a little getting used to, but afterwards follows the easiest results, and the soul will experience a living pleasure in praying the Rosary. From this manner of praying, we draw out the maximum benefit of the vocal prayers, of the meditation on the mysteries, and of each respective mystery's practical fruits, joined together in a comfortable, easy, and simple manner for all whose attention is affected in different ways during vocal and mental prayer. To the one who may have doubts, we ask him at least to try this method for some time with complete seriousness, and we accept whatever his final verdict may be.

C) Devotedly. This condition follows automatically from the preceding ones that we have just indicated. Devotion consists—as we have said in another place—in a promptness of the soul for those things regarding the service of God. It is impossible for the soul not to feel full of devotion if it is correctly praying the Rosary in a manner as perfect as we have indicated.

Here is one of the most important things to which we must draw attention. The primary end of all vocal or mental prayer is the union of the soul with God in a manner that is as intimate as possible. All others—including the impetration of the graces for which we ask—are secondary in relation to this supreme goal. From which it must be concluded that, if during the Rosary or any other vocal prayer that is not obligatory, the soul has begun to feel full of a love of God so intense that to continue praying would result in increasing pain or would become nearly impossible, it ought immediately to cease the prayer, without any pain of scruples, in order "to abandon itself to burning in silence" because that living flame of love "tastes of eternal life and pays every debt" as St. John of the Cross says. Nevertheless, if the prayer is obligatory (e.g. the recitation of the Breviary for the priest or religious who have taken their solemn vows), one would have to renounce the spiritual delight of the contemplative prayer in order to fulfill the obligation. Here results the truth, that "obligation comes before devotion," from which so many instances of abuse have come because of illegitimate purposes and for the sake of comfort.

The Rosary, Great Sign of Predestination

The Rosary, prayed with the qualities that we have just mentioned, constitutes one of the greatest and clearest signs of predestination that we can possess in this world, combining the infallible efficacy of impetratory prayer for final perseverance and the omnipotent intercession of Mary, who is the universal Mediatrix of all graces. [...] [To close, we have only] to beg from Mary that she place in at least one of the readers of these words the ardent desire of a great devotion to the Virgin under the double invocation of Carmel and the Rosary:

When the white pall

shall cover my remains...,

may your Scapular save me

and may my cold fingers be clutching

the beads of your Rosary!

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Source: Fr. Antonio Royo Marín, La Virgen María, trans. by R. Grablin (Madrid, Spain: BAC, 1996), 471-476.

Fr. Antonio Royo Marin on the Body of the Rosary

[One reason why] the Rosary occupies the first place among all other Marian devotions is because of its structure and theological content.

In effect the Rosary—and this applies solely to the Rosary above all other Marian devotions—contains the benefits of mental and vocal prayer in the most objectively perfect degree possible. The reason is because among other vocal prayers there are none more perfect than the Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be, which constitute the body of the Rosary, and among themes for meditation the great mysteries of the life, passion, death, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ occupy the first place and which constitute the soul of the Rosary.

The Body of the Rosary

The Rosary is formed, as we have said, of the most beautiful and sublime prayers of Christianity, including naturally the liturgical prayers that form the most important part.

I. The Our Father. The Our Father, having sprung from the divine lips of Christ, is, without any possible discussion, the most beautiful prayer of Christianity. Its recitation for the Christian people constitutes the culminating moment during the liturgical prayers of the Holy Mass. [...]

Saint Thomas, following Saint Augustine, demonstrates in the marvelous article of his Summa how the Lord's Prayer is most perfect and how it contains all things for which we must ask and in the order for which we must ask them (IIa-IIæ, q. 83, a. 9). The Saint explains such in the following words:

The Lord's Prayer is most perfect, because, as Augustine says (ad Probam Ep. cxxx, 12), "if we pray rightly and fittingly, we can say nothing else but what is contained in this prayer of our Lord." For since prayer interprets our desires, as it were, before God, then alone is it right to ask for something in our prayers when it is right that we should desire it. Now in the Lord's Prayer not only do we ask for all that we may rightly desire, but also in the order wherein we ought to desire them, so that this prayer not only teaches us to ask, but also directs all our affections. Thus it is evident that the first thing to be the object of our desire is the end, and afterwards whatever is directed to the end. Now our end is God towards Whom our affections tend in two ways: first, by our willing the glory of God, secondly, by willing to enjoy His glory. The first belongs to the love whereby we love God in Himself, while the second belongs to the love whereby we love ourselves in God. Wherefore the first petition is expressed thus: "Hallowed be Thy name," and the second thus: "Thy kingdom come," by which we ask to come to the glory of His kingdom. 

To this same end a thing directs us in two ways: in one way, by its very nature, in another way, accidentally. Of its very nature the good which is useful for an end directs us to that end. Now a thing is useful in two ways to that end which is beatitude: in one way, directly and principally, according to the merit whereby we merit beatitude by obeying God, and in this respect we ask: "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven"; in another way instrumentally, and as it were helping us to merit, and in this respect we say: "Give us this day our daily bread," whether we understand this of the sacramental Bread, the daily use of which is profitable to man, and in which all the other sacraments are contained, or of the bread of the body, so that it denotes all sufficiency of food, as Augustine says (ad Probam Ep. cxxx, 11), since the Eucharist is the chief sacrament, and bread is the chief food: thus in the Gospel of Matthew we read, "supersubstantial," i.e. "principal," as Jerome expounds it. 

We are directed to beatitude accidentally by the removal of obstacles. Now there are three obstacles to our attainment of beatitude. First, there is sin, which directly excludes a man from the kingdom, according to 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, "Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, etc., shall possess the kingdom of God"; and to this refer the words, "Forgive us our trespasses." Secondly, there is temptation which hinders us from keeping God's will, and to this we refer when we say: "And lead us not into temptation," whereby we do not ask not to be tempted, but not to be conquered by temptation, which is to be led into temptation. Thirdly, there is the present penal state which is a kind of obstacle to a sufficiency of life, and to this we refer in the words, "Deliver us from evil." (English Fathers trans.)

 [...] It is absolutely impossible to ask for more things, more excellently, or in a better order than how we ask in the Our Father. There is the primary end (the glory of God), the secondary end (our own salvation), the fundamental means to obtain salvation (following the will of God) and the secondary means (all that is necessary for life, symbolized by bread). And after the positive part follows the negative part or the removing of the obstacles, from the greater to the lesser: sin, temptation, and all the evils of life. We repeat that it is impossible to think of anything more perfect, more complete, or more exhaustive.

The Our Father forms an essential part of the holy Rosary. [...] It is not possible to think of a more perfect or fitting beginning to all of the rest of this sublime Marian prayer.

2. The Hail Mary. The Hail Mary, or angelic salutation, is, again without any possible discussion, the most beautiful and sublime of all Marian prayers. Every time we recite it devoutly, we remind Mary of the culminating moment of her life: the Incarnation of the Word in her virginal womb. [...] We have already commented amply [on the meaning of the prayer elsewhere, so we will not repeat it here....] As Lacordaire said most beautifully, "Love has only one word, which it is always speaking but never repeating" because it always has a perennial beauty and freshness. [...]

3. The Glory Be. This precious doxology constitutes the principal formula which the Church has used from her earliest times to glorify the Most Holy Trinity. With it, she renders to the Most Blessed Trinity a homage of recognition, love, adoration, and praise of Its infinite excellence. The Church uses this prayer constantly in her liturgy and its recitation is obligatory to end each psalm in the recitation of the Divine Office. There is no other better way to close each one of the mysteries of the Rosary than with the recitation of the Glory Be since we ought not to forget that the ultimate and absolute end of all prayer and of all creatures, including Mary and Jesus as man, is the glory of the Most Blessed Trinity. The Rosary reminds us of this, how, if we must go to Jesus through Mary, the final end cannot be other than the one and triune God, according to that saying of Saint Paul: "All things are yours..., whether the world, or life, or death, or the present, or things to come, all is yours; but you are Christ's, and Christ is God's" (1 Cor. 3:21-23).

As seen, the bodily material of the Rosary, consisting of the Our Father, the Hail Mary, and the Glory Be, cannot be more sublime and perfect. 

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Source: Fr. Antonio Royo Marín, La Virgen María, trans. by R. Grablin (Madrid, Spain: BAC, 1996), 467-471.

Fr. Antonio Royo Marin on Private Revelations

As is well known, apparitions and private revelations are not an object of Catholic faith. It is not obligatory to believe in them, and because of that, it is also not heretical to deny them. But when the Church, after long and mature deliberation, has declared as "worthy for belief" a specific apparition or private revelation, frankly it would be ridiculous, rash, and reckless to insist on continuing to deny it without any foundation. Such [declaration] has occurred, for example, with the factual revelations by the Lord to Saint Juliana of Mount Cornillon, which provided the origin to the institution of the most solemn feast of Corpus Christi by Holy Church; those revelations to Saint Margaret Mary of Alacoque regarding the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and those of Lourdes and Fatima related precisely to the most holy Rosary. [...]

The history of Lourdes repeats itself, in its fundamental lines, in the 20th century in Cova da Iria, three kilometers from the small town of Fatima, Portugal, to three little shepherds: Lucia, Francisco, and Jacinta. The first apparition took place on the 13th of May, 1917. On the 13th of October of the same year, her name was given to them: "I am Our Lady of the Rosary." It was at that place of more than 60,000 people that she produced the spectacular miracle of the sun.

The message of Fatima, similar to that of Lourdes, centers on the necessity of doing penance and the recitation of the Rosary. The Church declares the apparitions of Fatima as worthy of belief.

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Source: Fr. Antonio Royo Marín, La Virgen María, trans. by R. Grablin (Madrid, Spain: BAC, 1996), 460-461.

Ven. John Arintero on Configuration in Christ through Prayer

By baptism, indeed, we are grafted into Christ so as to form with him one single body—his mystical Body. We are given life by his very Spirit. His divine sentiments enter into us in ever-increasing measure, in proportion as we strip ourselves of our own. [...]

All our good consists, then, in cleaving to God until we have become one spirit with him; in being truly docile and teachable towards him, never grieving his loving Spirit, not resisting, much less extinguishing the Spirit, or letting him call to us in vain; striving, on the contrary, to be very attentive to him, interiorly recollected that we may catch every sound of his voice, and desiring faithfully to accomplish that which the Lord our God deigns to speak within us, for he speaks words of peace to his saints and to all those who are converted to the heart (cf. Ps. 84, 9). Then, dwelling in us, as St. John of the Cross says (Living Flame of Love, cant. 4, v. 2), 'with pleasure', he will not tarry in making himself the sweet Master, Director, Consoler and Lord of our souls, moving and governing us in all things as if we were perfect sons of God [....]

To this end all the intimate, loving and familiar intercourse with God by means of prayer and contemplation is ordained, to the copying and imitation as perfectly as possible—allowing the divine Spirit to imprint them in us 'supernaturally'—of the adorable perfections of the Heavenly Father, striving to this purpose to become con-figured to his Only-begotten Son, the splendour [sic] of his glory and our exemplar and model. [1]

In order, then, to understand the stages which this divine life offers and the phenomena which it presents from the time it is received in baptism until it is fully unfolded in Glory, it is essential to keep well before the mind all the mysteries—joyful, sorrowful and glorious—of the life of our Lord. To that end it is good that we should meditate on them deeply at the side of Mary, Mother of divine Grace, in the holy Rosary; for all of them—from the Incarnation itself, by the Holy Spirit, of the Virgin Mary, and from the birth of Christ to his passion, death, resurrection, and the sending of the same divine Spirit, in which sending the marvels of the Christian life are consummated—have to be reproduced, each in its own way, as in so many other Christs, in all perfect Christians. [2] Those in whom they have not been reproduced in any way will always be very imperfect and puny followers of Christ, as St. Bernard warns us (Sermon 44).

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Notes:

1. [...] 'The formal ground by which we know these causes,' says John of St. Thomas (In I-IIæ, q. 70, disp. 18, a. 4, no. 6), is a certain interior experience of God, and of divine things, in the very savouring [sic] of them: either through feeling and delight, or it may be described, where these spiritual things are concerned, as an interior touch of the will. For our of this union the soul becomes as it were connatural with divine things, and through her very savouring of them, distinguishes them from created things and those of sense.

Since, therefore, the gift of wisdom is not just any sort of wisdom but the spirit of wisdom, that is, it is in feeling and spirit, and since it is by the very giving of this gift that we experience in ourselves what is the good and well-pleasing and perfect will of God, judging from divine things themselves, it is necessary that the formal ground by which the gift of wisdom attains the highest, that is, the divine cause, is the very knowledge which it has experimentally of God, in so far as he is united with us, deeply rooted within our hearts, and gives himself to us: this, indeed, is to know according to the spirit and not only by the light of our own minds, or by discursive reason demonstrating the essence of a thing. To know according to the spirit arises from the very experience of union.'

2. 'In Christ all are crucified, all dead, all buried, all indeed are risen again.' St. Leo, Sermon 64, 7.

'Whatever was wrought in the cross of Christ, in his burial, in his resurrection on the third day, in his ascension into heaven, and in his sitting at the right hand of the Father, that was wrought that to these things . . . the Christian life which is here lived might be configured.' St. Augustine: Enchiridion, 14.

'We cannot be pleasing to our heavenly Father,' says Dom Guéranger, 'except in so far as he sees in us Jesus Christ, his Son. This divine Saviour [sic], full of goodness, deigns to come to each one of us; and if we are willing to allow him to work, he will gradually transform us into himself in such a way that we shall no longer live by our own life, but by his. Such is the end of all Christianity: to divinize man by Jesus Christ who thus communicates himself to man. Such is the sublime mission entrusted to the Church who, with St. Paul (Gal. iv, 19) says to the faithful: "My little children, of whom I am in labour [sic] again until Christ be formed in you." '

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Source: Source: Fr. John G. Arintero, Stages in Prayer, trans. by Kathleen Pond (St. Louis, MO: B. Herder Book Co., 1957), 1-4.