September 24, 2006

     Last October, as the leaves and plants were about to have their last breaths and the small garden on the side of the rectory was about to expire, I saw the potential for a parish wide experience, i.e., one that could include everyone even the younger members of our parish.  The idea was to collect a good number of rocks and place them in the garden thus forming a Rosary.  The Winter months hid them for a while but as Spring came along they were all found.  This year the rocks that represent the Hail Mary’s were spray painted green for the color of Hope, the rocks that represent the Glory Be’s and the Our Fathers were painted white for the purity of those who love God above all things, and the Cross is silver signifying the preciousness of our faith.

    Now that the Rosary has been completed and painted, it is time for us to use it.  We are a growing, vibrant parish and we have many gifts and talents.  We also have many people who are experiencing pain, sorrow, loneliness, illness etc.  One thing that we can do for one another is to pray for one another.  Prayer is not necessarily a physical cure all.  It is, however,  a sure way to help the people who are suffering to come to a place of spiritual healing.  Being spiritually healthy is a precious gift that we often neglect to ask for.  
   
    Many people need our prayers because they are often unable to pray for themselves.  Others don’t realize that prayer may heal them from those things that hurt them the most. There are many reasons why people cannot pray for themselves.  That is why it is important for us, as a Faith Community, to pray for one another.

    Our Garden Rosary can be “adopted” one stone at the time.  You and you family can choose a stone which will represent a person or a group of people who need prayer. You may choose more than one if you want, e.g. you may want to choose one for each child in your family. When you pray, on a daily basis, you will always remember the person or people you have chosen to pray for.  If you want to say a decade of the Rosary, you can pray for the intentions of those people whose intentions are in that decade.  If you want to pray the entire Rosary you can pray for all the intentions.  You do not have to limit yourselves to one intention.  It is important that each stone be remembered each day however.

    To ensure that no one in the parish or anyone in your families or acquaintances be forgotten, I would ask that you give me the names of people you know in your family, your neighborhood, your place of work, that need prayer.  The person or family does not have to be physically sick.  They may be unemployed, grieving, or having family breakup problems. In certain situation you may want to change the names to ensure that family privacy be respected. Be sure to include a short description of the reason prayer is needed. 

    There will be a poster that will replicate the Garden Rosary.  The poster will have a number on each stone.  The number will correspond with the intention.  Choose a specific or a general intention and look for your stone in the garden.  Place a sticker on the stone.  We hope to have the entire Rosary completed with prayer intentions by mid-October, the month dedicated to the Rosary. 
                        Lorette P. Nault