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The first major
Rosary miracle, and one of the most impressive, is the one that occurred
at the Battle of Lepanto: In 1571 the Christian army, after intense
devotion with the Rosary, suceeded in one of the greatest naval victories
in the Battle of Lepanto against the powerful Turks. The sixty-five
thousand men prayed the Rosary for three hours. The Turks had nearly
three times more troops. The winds were against the Christians and the
conditions were poor, but after the devotions ended, the winds, at the
very start of battle, aided the Christians to a colossal victory against
the Turks. This was one of the greatest naval upsets in history, from
this, the Turks never fully recovered and their threat in the Mediterranean
Sea ended. Following this victory, Pope Pius V established the Feast
of Our Lady of Victories on October 7th. The name was later changed
to its present form - the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. |
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Rosary Miracle at Hiroshima - August 6th, 1945 There was a home eight blocks (about 1 kilometer) from where the A-Bomb went off in Hiroshima Japan. This home had a church attached to it which was completely destroyed, but the home survived, and so did the eight German Jesuit missionaries who prayed the rosary in that house faithfully every day. These men were missionaries to the Japanese people, they were non-military, but because Germany and Japan were allies during WWII they were permitted to live and minister within Japan during the war. Not only did they all survive with relatively minor injuries, 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 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/ A note of interest, one of the Jesuits later reported that the priests in that home helped with the sick and injured from the bombing, and that he believed that the people saw the message of Christ more clearly in the caring for the sick after the event then at any time before. Russians Pullout of Austria, 1948 After World War ll. the Allies turned over Catholic Austria to communist Russia. For three years the Austrian people endured this tyranny. Then, a Franciscan priest, Father Petrus, remembered how the Christians although greatly outnumbered had defeated the Turks at the Battle of Lepanto through the Rosary, and he launched a Rosary crusade. Through it 70,000 people, one tenth of the Austrian population, pledged to say the Rosary daily for the Soviets to leave their country. Austria was valuable to the Russians because of its strategic location, rich mineral deposits and oil reserves. Yet on May 13, 1955, the anniversary of the first apparition of Our Lady at Fatima, the Russians signed the agreement to leave Austria, and they did so without one person being killed and without one shot being fired. It is the only time that the militant atheistic forces of Marxism have ever peacefully left a country in which they held power. Military strategists and historians are baffled as to why the Russians pulled out. But we are not - it was the power of the Rosary. This is just one of countless miracles that happened with the power of the Rosary! Philippines The first and most famous one was the revolution of 1986, where more than a million people gathered along the streets of Manila in protest against the then President Ferdinand Marcos and his dictatorial government of twenty years. This event was triggered by what the people perceived as outright manipulation of votes and inability to concede defeat when Cory Aquino was declared winner in the presidential race. Two presidential inaugurations took place in two different venues. The late President Marcos was surrounded by his family and a few loyalists in government, in contrast to Aquino’s mass of support. When Marcos mobilised the military in order to quell any mass protest and took control of the media, Cardinal Sin of the Archdiocese of Manila went live on Catholic-owned Radio Veritas, urging people to stage a peaceful protest along the longest street of Manila. The Philipino people from all walks of life gathered together in prayer and peaceful resolve. Catholics, who were armed with Rosaries and Bibles, linked in chain around the armed soldiers and tanks praying almost unceasingly, singing religious and protest songs, listening to the news over Radio Veritas and appealing to the soldiers. People kept vigil for almost a week and literally broke bread with the military. Food was shared by all of those who kept vigil in the streets. Soldiers were also handed Rosaries and flowers. Family members took turns in the street. Masses and prayer vigils were held in all churches. The military turned against its commander-in-chief, the President, and rallied behind its protesting public. When President Marcos finally fled the country on 26th of February 1986, the whole nation sang and danced in the streets. Prayers and Masses of Thanksgiving took over. In January 2001 the Philipinos did it all over again – the peaceful way – and ousted President Joseph Estrada, who was accused of corruption and inefficient leadership. The people couldn’t take him any longer. The same Cardinal Sin, now ailing, together with ex-President, Cory Aquino, encouraged the people once again to take to the streets and stage a prayerful, peaceful protest. When the people massed peacefully, businesses allowed their employees to join the protest and provided food for the crowds. Young and old took a determined stand. Reporters noted that this time again, priests and religious were in the front lines of the human barricade. Once again, the army and the police withdrew their support from the President. At the thanksgiving Mass in the Cathedral, all 39 bishops of the Philippines concelebrated with an elated congregation. The next rosary miracle; the United States of America? |
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