aeternus

When I hear the litany of saints my ears perk up when we get close to today’s feast saint, Rose of Lima. I don’t know exactly why this happens. I think it first happened by chance when our Holy Father, John Paul II visited South America a few years ago. I was listening to his mass on the radio and it was during a chanted narration of the great Litany of Saints.

As I was listening to the litany I concentrated on attuning my ears for my favorite saints. As the chant continued through the martyrs and doctors of the church as well as holy presbyters the litany encroached on the intercession of the holy women of God. They sang, Saint Agatha - Pray for Us , Saint Agnes - Pray for Us, Saint Cecilia - Pray for Us, Saint Catherine - - Pray for Us, Saint Teresa (of Avila) - Pray for Us. But then it happened, I heard them sing “Santa Rosa de Lima” (ssss - ahh - n - tah rrr - oh - ssah de lee - mah) - pray for us!

This intercession hits me like a ball of lighting. Her name and the musical way they chanted it gets stuck in my head. I then say it over and over and over a million times and I think it will never stop playing inside me !

At first I thought maybe her name was like a bad broken record because it seemed a bit annoying. I mean, she would not leave me. I was kinda laughing at this but after consideration I finally took this recital of her name to be a grace. The first step to understanding this grace was that I decided to discover more about her.

When I learned of her mystical life, of her love of penance as expiation for souls and her deep union with God in contemplative prayer, I was very humbled. I was able to then beg her not to abandon me as I seemed to have her name always circling around in my brain. In this way I was able to overcome the repetative musical sound of her name and focus on prayer. (kinda like meditating on the mysteries as you recite Ave Maria after Ave Maria).

It was pretty funny sometimes before I had mastered this though. When her musical named called over and over in my head it would sometimes end in a fury. The song would build up so much inside of me that I would just have to shout out the litany for all the world to hear. Picture a mother quietly cooking diner at the stove for everyone and then just sing out with gusto “Santa Rosa de Lima - Pray for us”! I think the children got many a kick out of this happening! We would all laugh and then soon they would chime in with me and we would sing together! (maybe I’ll try this at dinner tonight!)

O.K, well now that you all know just how crazy I am, I hope you realize it is a great happiness and joy to live this way. It is a blessing to keep one’s interior close to the Lord and to surround ourselves with His great friends. It is certainly hard to live in the world today. We must live in it and yet not be a part of it. Like Rose of Lima, praying out in her back yard in a little hermitage she built to escape the daily clatter. Let us listen to the words our Lord spoke to her as He helped her to understand the value of trials and sufferings:

“Let all men know that grace comes after tribulation. Let them know that without the burden of afflictions it is impossible to reach the height of grace. Let them know that the gifts of grace increase as the struggles increase. Let men take care not to stray and be deceived. This is the only true stairway to paradise, and without the cross they can find no road to climb to heaven”.

We must heap trouble upon trouble to attain a deep participation in the divine nature, the glory of the sons of God and perfect happiness of soul”.