John C Connell

In December of 2014, while most of us were preparing for Christmas, a lone man in Nigeria knelt in prayer. His country was torn and terrorized by insurrection and senseless violence. Both the circumstances, and the lives lost, weighed heavily on his shoulders.

The man was Catholic Bishop Oliver Dashe Doeme, and where he prayed was his chapel in front of the Blessed Sacrament. That day, as he knelt before the exposed Eucharist, he experienced a miraculous vision of Jesus Christ, standing before him.

The Lord handed him a sword. As the Bishop received the weapon, it transformed into a Rosary. He was told to use it to eliminate Boko Haram, the militant Islam group responsible for a steady stream of violent persecution against the Bishop’s flock.

Inspired by the Bishop’s story, I penned the first draft of the Rosary for the Persecuted in the early 2015. The nice folks at CatholicStand published it. Now here, is the latest updated version.

Why another Rosary Devotion?

First off, if you are not in the practice of praying the Rosary, or if you are one of my non-Catholic readers and don’t know about the Rosary, it is a wonderful prayer practice built around the events of Christ’s earthly life and Salvation History, from the Bible.

It is also built around a series of Hail Mary’s and Our Father’s. I could easily construct an entire book about the Rosary but suffice to say, it is an excellent, structured way of praying for specific intentions, as well as asking for Mary’s intercession and cooperation with our intentions.

Why ask for Mary’s intercession? Again, another book could be written as a response, but we know the saints are alive in Heaven and when we ask for intercession, we are asking friends to not only pray for us, but to join us in praying for our intentions – to assist us in placing of those intentions at the foot of Christ’s throne in Heaven.

And, we know from scripture how important Mary is to Jesus, and how he can’t say no to her. Remember how she “interceded” for the couple at Cana and prompted him to turn water into wine, when he originally pushed back?

All that said:

In recent years, Christian persecution has spread like a plague across the globe. On every continent, the Body of Christ is being chastised, oppressed, kidnapped, jailed, tortured, raped and killed!

However, take heart fellow members. Hope is never lost. God has a plan to deal with the evil unleashed in this world, and here is how you can participate in that plan for spiritual combat and ultimate victory!

The Rosary for the Persecuted utilizes the Sorrowful Mysteries, and follows the traditional way of group recitation, with the addition of specific decade intentions for different “Hot Zones” around the globe.

Whether it be Islamic militants, communists, pro-abortionists & euthanizers, organized atheists or the new rainbow establishment, persecution’s many forms are visible around the world. We as members of the Body of Christ, can not only stand in solidarity with our suffering brothers and sisters, we can quietly enter the resistance and execute countermeasures that will aid in Christ’s eternal victory over the world.

The next time you pick up your rosary, strike back at the opposition by praying it this way:

Introduction:

Make the Sign of the Cross and say “The Apostles Creed”.

Say the “Our Father.”

Say three “Hail Marys.”

Say the “Glory Be to The Father.”

Leader: The First Sorrowful Mystery (The Agony in the Garden). “We love you Lord and we praise you.”

All: “By your holy cross you have redeemed the world, including your Church under attack, and your children targeted by death, throughout the Middle East by ISIS, and all its affiliates. Lord have mercy and save us all.”

Then say the “Our Father.”

Say ten “Hail Marys,” while meditating on Jesus suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane.

Say the “Glory Be to The Father.”

All: Say the following prayer requested by the Blessed Virgin Mary at Fatima: “O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of Hell, lead all souls to Heaven, especially those most in need of your mercy.”

(Optional) St. Michael, pray for us and defend us in battle against the Devil. Amen.

Leader:  The Second Sorrowful Mystery (The Scourging at the Pillar), “We love you Lord and we praise you.”

All: “By your holy cross you have redeemed the world, including your Church under attack, and your children targeted by death, throughout Africa by Boko Haram, and all its affiliates. Lord have mercy and save us all.”

Then say the “Our Father.”

Say ten “Hail Marys,” while meditating on Jesus accepting the Roman scourging.

Say the “Glory Be to The Father.”

All: “O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of Hell, lead all souls to Heaven, especially those most in need of your mercy.”

(Optional) St. Michael, pray for us and defend us in battle against the Devil. Amen.

Leader:  The Third Sorrowful Mystery (The Crowning of Thorns), “We love you Lord and we praise you.”

All: “By your holy cross you have redeemed the world, including your Church under attack, and your children targeted by death, throughout Europe and Russia. Lord have mercy and save us all.”

Then say the “Our Father.”

Say ten “Hail Marys,” while meditating on Jesus enduring the crown of thorns.

Say the “Glory Be to The Father.”

All: “O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of Hell, lead all souls to Heaven, especially those most in need of your mercy.”

(Optional) St. Michael, pray for us and defend us in battle against the Devil. Amen.

Leader:  The Fourth Sorrowful Mystery (The Carrying of the Cross), “We love you Lord and we praise you.”

All: “By your holy cross you have redeemed the world, including your Church under attack, and your children targeted by death, throughout Asia, especially Sri Lanka, India, the Philippines, North Korea and China. Lord have mercy and save us all.”

Then say the “Our Father.”

Say ten “Hail Marys,” while meditating on Jesus struggling to carry the cross to his crucifixion.

Say the “Glory Be to The Father.”

All: “O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of Hell, lead all souls to Heaven, especially those most in need of your mercy.”

(Optional) St. Michael, pray for us and defend us in battle against the Devil. Amen.

Leader:  The Fifth Sorrowful Mystery (The Crucifixion and Death of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ), “We love you Lord and we praise you.”

All: “By your holy cross you have redeemed the world, including your Church under attack, and your children targeted by death, throughout Australia and the Americas. Lord have mercy and save us, all.”

Then say the “Our Father.”

Say ten “Hail Marys,” while meditating on Jesus ultimately dying for us, nailed to the cross.

Say the “Glory Be to The Father.”

All: “O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of Hell, lead all souls to Heaven, especially those most in need of your mercy.”

(Optional) St. Michael, pray for us and defend us in battle against the Devil. Amen.

Conclusion:

All: HAIL, HOLY QUEEN, Mother of Mercy, our life, our sweetness and our hope! To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve; to thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this vale of tears. Turn then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us, and after this our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus. O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary!

Leader:  Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God.

All:  That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Leader: “Lord, we ask for your divine intervention, revelation and mercy on those in the world that are either actively seeking the ruin of us, or are enabling your persecution by turning a blind eye! Hear us now.” 

All: O GOD, whose only begotten Son, by His life, death, and resurrection, has purchased for us the rewards of eternal life, grant, we beseech Thee, that meditating upon these mysteries of the Most Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we may imitate what they contain and obtain what they promise, through the same Christ Our Lord. Amen.

One last note about all the links included in this post: take a moment to check them out from around the world. They will occasionally be updated as future stories surface of additional persecutions. I promise they will enhance your understanding and perspective on this issue.

Post script

In summer of 2018 I got a surprise email from a woman named Betty, from the Respect Life ministry of Christ the King Parish in Mashpee, MA. She had seen the Rosary for the Persecuted on CatholicStand, and was inspired to share it. She requested permission to have it printed and circulated at both her’s and surrounding parishes!

Wow. I was thrilled and in turn I thank her for inspiring this re-issue. It seems the Lord (and his mother) are pleased with the devotion.

Going forward I will continue to circulate this new edition and humbly ask for help in that campaign. If you’re reading this, it may not be by accident. Please consider sharing this with anyone you know of, who may enjoy praying the Rosary. Our struggling brothers and sisters, in the enemies’ crosshairs, will appreciate it!