Pauline Jaricot
One
Pauline Jaricot was born in Lyon, France in 1799.
She grew up in an age, shortly after the French Revolution which sought to rid France of faith in God and establish society on science and reason alone. It was much like our culture today. Many of her family and friends had little interest in religion or prayer and they knew almost nothing about their faith.
In her diary she writes, “The spiritual ills of my country were increasing before my very eyes; and I was convinced that the interior intuitions that showed them to me so clearly arouse from the very heart of truth. My great desire was that I might be allowed to fill the hearts of believers with the same deep and vivid sense that God had given me of his great indignation against his people, and of the power of prayer to dispel it. I had heard of great results from the use of the Rosary, and I hoped it possible to revive the devotion in France, believing it would calm the anger of Heaven and produce living fruit in the souls of men.”
Though Pauline was not a priest or nun and was just 27 years old, she desperately longed for a way to set the hearts of men and women on fire for Jesus. Then she remembered that every time the Church faced a similar crisis, it was the Rosary that renewed it. Pauline knew that Mary and the Rosary could lead the world back to Jesus.
Two
The founding of the living rosary movement.
In 1826, Pauline began to gather people in groups of 15 to pray the Rosary. She also distributed good books for meditation material because she knew the Rosary was meant to be a meditation on the life and teachings of Jesus and not just a mechanical saying of words while our minds wandered.
So, her method was simple: invite people to come together and pray the Rosary and give them something to think or meditate upon while they pray.
They called it “The Living Rosary.” After just five years it spread to every country in Europe. And within eight years there were one million members. With no social media.
Pauline wrote, “The rosary groups should invite anyone, the good, the mediocre, and others who had nothing to offer but their good will. Fifteen pieces of coal, one is well lit, there are four or five that are half lit, and the rest not lit at all. Put the fifteen together and you have a blazing fire.”
Three
Teresa of Avila
In her autobiography, Teresa of Avila writes, “I should like the five of us who at present love each other in Christ to make a kind of pact that since the others in these times gather together in secret against God His Majesty to prepare wicked deeds and heresies, we might seek to gather together some time to free each other from illusion and to speak about how we might mend our ways and please God more since no one knows himself as well as others who observe him if they do so with love and concern for his progress.”
What a great example. Teresa of Avila, who knew more than anyone about the spiritual life, knew she could not grow in faith and holiness on her own. She needed a small group of family and friends with whom she could get together regularly to share life and share her faith so that she would grow stronger and not weaker.
For this reason, she got together often with her five friends: Fr. Garcia, Fr. Gaspar, the layman Francisco, and the laywoman Dona Guiomar de Ulloa.
If Teresa of Avila needed a Rosary group, how much more do we?
Four
Our Lady is the remedy God has sent to the world and she has asked us to pray the Rosary every day.
It is powerful that all over the world people are learning their faith and how to meditate at the school of Mary in the Rosary through this podcast. But I know what a mother loves most, it’s when her kids come together.
On May 25, 2024, Our Lady said, “Dear children! In this time of grace, I am calling you to prayer with the heart. Little children, create prayer groups where you will encourage each other to the good and grow in joy. Little children, you are still far away. That is why continue to convert anew and choose the way of holiness and hope so that God may give you peace in abundance. Thank you for having responded to my call.”
I have always wished, desired, and longed that people would invite family and friends to get together for friendship, good conversation, and the Rosary. Invite them for a meal, or dessert or drinks, pray the Rosary together and then have a good conversation about whatever struck them during the Rosary. Like Teresa and I do.
My 86-year-old father gets 10-15 people together every Thursday to pray the Rosary together. And there are others out there. But what if we all lived the Living Rosary Movement in this way?
Such a movement would transform many hearts.
Five
The Miracle of Mayline
On May 29th 2012, a three-year-old girl, Mayline, experienced a life-threatening incident when she choked on her food. Her father, Emmanuel, recalls the harrowing moment when her heart stopped as he held her in his arms, but she was resuscitated by paramedics. However, she fell into a coma, and her health worsened.
The medical team suggested withdrawing life support, but during this critical period, a parent from Mayline's school informed Cardinal Barbarin of Lyon about her situation. The Cardinal then initiated a novena, seeking Pauline Jaricot's intercession for Mayline's recovery.
Remarkably, on the day the novena concluded, as Mayline was being transported to hospice care, she regained consciousness in the ambulance, calling out for her mother. Her neurological functions were restored, and by December, she left the hospital in excellent health.
A significant encounter occurred on December 22nd, when Emmanuel and Mayline, out for a stroll, met her neurologist. Surprised, the doctor questioned Mayline's identity, and Emmanuel confirmed it was her, leading to the doctor's astonished reaction, “Impossible” he said. However, we know, nothing is impossible for God.
This extraordinary recovery was deemed a miracle attributed to Pauline Jaricot's intercession, paving the way for her beatification in Lyon, on May 22nd, 2022.