A Rosary for the Family
Testimony by Janet Pace
The Rosary is a scriptural walk through the life of Jesus and many of the events were shared by Mary, his mother. We can bind our personal concerns to the hearts of Jesus and Mary as we meditate on the mysteries. Pope John Paul II declared that October 2002 until October 2003 would be the "Year of the Rosary". To celebrate, he added a fourth set of mysteries, the Luminous Mysteries (Mysteries of Light). They fill in the gap between the Joyful and Sorrowful Mysteries by relating the events of Christ’s public ministry, beginning with his baptism in the Jordan and culminating with the institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper, the greatest and most wonderful mystery of all.
I own several fine Rosary recordings which help me meditate on the mysteries, but as I lay awake one night saying my Rosary, I received the idea that it would be nice to have a new recording which contained the Luminous Mysteries and that all four sets of mysteries should be recorded in the chronological order of Christ’s life all on a single disk.
The second time I lay awake in the dark praying the rosary, the thought came to me that it would be uplifting if the meditations were centered around the family, addressing issues that Jesus and Mary experienced together and relating those to our families today.
The third time I was awake in the night, I could almost hear the Lord telling me, "Yes, and I have blessed your children with the gifts needed to bring this task about." One of my sons, is a musician and recording engineer in Nashville, and my daughter is a graphic designer. I feel that even from the time they chose their careers, the Lord was grooming them for this task.
I wrestled with my mission for quite some time, afraid to tackle it and afraid not to, but I spent the season of Lent writing the meditations, asking God to give me the words He wanted spoken. The meditations are written as though Jesus and Mary are speaking directly to the listener, relating the events of each mystery and offering a prayer or word of advice for the family. The trick was to do this in thirty seconds so that all four sets of mysteries would fit on a single CD. I was still wondering if I had lost my mind when God reassured me through His word on June 22, 2003: "Your Heavenly Father knows all that you need. Seek first his kingship over you, his way of holiness, and all these things will be given you besides." (Mt 6:32-33). I just had to trust God to provide what I needed to bring this ministry into being.
I had not shared my mission with anyone except my daughter, Diana, and my son, Jim, who would be taking on the responsibility of the recording and arranging the songs behind the decades. These include old familiar hymns and music which he wrote especially for the CD. When I was finished writing, I took the script to my pastor, Fr Vincent Udo Ogbuji, who greatly encouraged me to proceed. Then I sought and received the approval of my bishop. All proceeds from the sale will be given back to my home parish so that we can expand our church or build a new one for God’s glory.
Since the meditations are about family, I wanted a real family to recite the Rosary prayers and the Lord blessed me with a beautiful family of six who agreed to help me. My son was led to the perfect Jesus and Mary voices to speak the meditations. He also knew a gifted musician who helped with the orchestration. It is simply magnificent. In the meantime, my daughter was working on the beautiful graphics for the cover and disk itself. The theme is simple but very meaningful; an adult hand holding a child’s hand with the Rosary entwined around both.
On July 13, as we went to Nashville to record, I was scared to death and I could not believe that we were actually doing it! There was no turning back now and again I had to ask my Lord for strength. The session went very well and he fed me with his word that day: "What I say to you in the darkness, speak in the light; what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops." (Mt 10:27). No more doubting. No more fear. I received those three original messages in the dark, and now I must proclaim the "Rosary for the Family" from the housetops.
The Lord had indeed given my son and daughter the gifts they needed to serve him with this Rosary ministry. The final recording is simply beautiful and it is everything I had dreamed it would be. My prayer is that all who hear it will do as Pope John Paul II has asked of us in his apostolic letter: "Rediscover the Rosary in the light of Scripture, in harmony with the Liturgy, and in the context of your daily lives. May this appeal of mine not go unheard … As a prayer for peace, the Rosary is also, and always has been, a prayer of and for the family."
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