The Rosary Light and Life - Current Announcements - July-Aug 2010

I begin this reflection on Corpus Christi, a celebration unique in our liturgical calendar. Every other feast commemorates an event or a person. Today we celebrate a doctrine. Catholics are often criticized for not taking the words of Scripture literally, but today's liturgy reminds us that when the priest repeats Jesus' words, "This is my Body, this is my Blood," these words mean exactly what they say.

I write this shortly after returning from the annual pilgrimage to Lourdes, with members of the Order of Malta. Once again I was humbled and edified to serve individuals dedicated to tuitio fidei and obsequim pauperum - defense of the faith and care for the poor and sick. The days were remarkable, and each brought an opportunity to pray for, the many friends of the Rosary Center.

At every step of this pilgrimage, we were reminded of the watchful care of our Blessed Mother, who gave flesh and blood to our Savior, and who invites us to stand by her side at Calvary. This issue of Light and Life brings a reflection on Fortitude, the sanctifying habit that enables us to face our fears with courage and dignity. Mary's fortitude as she witnessed the brutal murder of her son should remind us that whatever challenging events we must endure, we have a companion ready to sympathize, comfort, and console.

Mary's life of obedient fortitude prepared her for the great gift of the Assumption. When Pius XII declared the doctrine of the Assumption he quoted St. John Damascene (late 7th C.), who preached, It was necessary that she who had preserved her virginity inviolate in childbirth should also have her body kept free from all corruption after death. It was necessary that she who had carried the Creator as a child on her breast should dwell in the tabernacles of God.

We are all familiar with famous representations of Mary, and the Rosary Center is fortunate that Fr. Duffner, who directed our ministry for so long, was a good friend to the silhouette artist, Sr. Mary Jean Dorcy, who gave permission to use her work in our publications. Depictions of Mary are countless, but my chaplaincy to the Order of Malta has introduced me to a representation I was altogether unaware of, an icon of Mary, honored as "Our Lady of Philermo."

In a long series of battles, Muslim forces successfully drove Christians from the Holy Land. After their defeat at the Battle of Acre, in 1291, the Knights of St John of Jerusalem (later known as Knights of Malta), fled to Cyprus, where they remained until 1306. From there they succeeded in capturing Philermo, the mountain-top capital of Rhodes. Three years later, they completely controlled the island.

The Knights found an icon of Mary in a chapel atop Mt. Philermo. One legend says it was painted by St. Luke, believed to be responsible for many representations of Christ's Mother. Another legend described the painting's miraculously making its way to Rhodes in the 8th Century. Whatever the case, when the icon came into the Knights' possession, they deemed it one of their greatest treasures.

Muslim forces under Suleiman drove the Knights from Rhodes, in 1523. The Knights lodged in various places under Papal protection until 1530, when Charles V offered them the island of Malta, from which they hoped to counteract growing Muslim power in the Mediterranean.

The Knights brought the painting to Malta, where it was venerated until Napoleon captured Malta, in 1798. The future emperor allowed the Master of the Order to take the painting with him, into exile. The rest of the Order's treasures were loaded onto ships that were lost when the British defeated the French at the Battle of the Nile.

The painting was given to the Russian Czar, Paul I, who served, briefly, as Master of the Knights. When he died, in 1801, the painting was sent to St. Petersburg, where it survived the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution. Devout members of the Russian imperial family took the icon to Copenhagen in 1919. In 1931 they carried it to Yugoslavia, and a decade later, entrusted it for safekeeping with the monks of an Orthodox monastery in Montenegro.

The icon then vanished, presumed to be a casualty of communist upheavals after World War II. At this point, accounts of the icon's fate differ. Some argue the Yugoslav dictator, Joseph Tito, placed it in a museum, although it was never displayed. Others claim that monks of the Monastery of the Nativity, in Montenegro, preserved the icon until after the fall of communism, when they brought it, and other precious artifacts, out of hiding. The painting now hangs in the National Museum of Cetinje, capital of Montenegro.

Members of the Order of Malta whom I serve as chaplain have organized themselves under the patronage of Our Lady of Philermo. On September 8, the feast of the birth of the Virgin Mary, they pay special honor to Our Lady of Philermo, for that is the day, in 1565, Christian forces arrived in Malta to relieve the Knights, who were under siege from Suleiman.

The eventful history of the icon of Our Lady of Philermo served as inspiration for Dashiell Hammet's novel, The Maltese Falcon. When we celebrate the feast of Our Lady's birth in September, I hope the painting's adventures will remind Rosary Confraternity members of the special protection our merciful God offers us through the protection and example of Mary.

To write, in June, of events we will celebrate three months hence is an interesting experience. But whatever we encounter between now and September, Christ's presence - especially in the sacrament of His Body and Blood - is our spiritual magnet, providing focus for our lives, and reminding us that the Eucharist invites us to become what we believe. Every other food is changed to become a part of us; the Eucharist transforms us into the Body and Blood of Christ.

This is an astounding gift, but consider its implications. By touching the Body of Christ in the Eucharist we touch the entire humanity of Our Savior. This necessarily includes the human memories of Jesus, among them the affectionate recollections of life with His - and our - mother.

St. John Damascene tells us the Assumption was a "necessary" reward for Mary's perfectly aligning her will to Her Son's. The everlasting life she enjoys - body and soul - in Christ's company, is a reward our faith invites us to look forward to, if we are willing to listen to Mary's words to the servants at Cana and "do whatever He tells you."

When the friends of the Rosary Center receive this issue of "Light and Life," Fr. Duffner will have celebrated his 95th birthday. In addition, he looks forward, in December, to celebrating the 70th anniversary of his ordination.

Fr. Duffner is a legend in the Western Dominican Province. He served as novice master for 15 years, sharing the fruits of his study and prayer with the many young men who sought to embrace priesthood in the Dominican Order. An entire generation of Dominican leaders benefited from his careful training, and his personal touch is evident in many ways throughout the Western Province, not least in the ministry of the Rosary Center.

Fr. Duffner directed the Rosary Center from 1983 to 2004, and the Center continues to receive letters from friends who remember some helpful or consoling word. He continues to work daily at the Rosary Center, humbly performing an array of necessary tasks. He is highly regarded as a confessor, and spends many hours each week offering God's reconciliation and healing to the penitents who seek him out, many traveling long distances to do so. Let us offer a prayer for our beloved priest, director, and friend. Ad multos annos!

The reflections Fr. Duffner wrote for Light and Life are a popular item for sale at the Rosary Center. They fill two volumes, which may be ordered together (at a discount) or separately. These reflections are brief, scholarly, edifying, and comprehensive. The publisher described them as "Everything you need to know about the Faith, in ten-minute segments!" The brevity of these reflections makes them an ideal companion for daily meditation. To order, please see To Know Him in the Books section on our secure web order form.

Anyone who has ever wondered what goes into the education of a Catholic priest will be interested in Fr. Mullady's new CD, A Complete Study of Christ. Obviously, no academic course can exhaust the depths of Christ's nature and love, but this 15-CD series provides an excellent introduction to Catholic teaching on the person, life, and ministry of Our Savior. Although the series is intellectually challenging, it is accessible to anyone curious about the Church's long and beautiful Christological tradition.

The CD series is priced at $70.00, and may be ordered from the Classes, Retreats, and DVD section on our secure web order form.

WE ARE FREQUENTLY ASKED whether Confraternity members must pray twenty decades of the Rosary to fulfill the requirements for membership. The answer to this question is no. Pope John Paul II presented the Luminous Mysteries as a suggestion, which he hoped would contribute to the devotion of lovers of the Rosary. The present Holy Father has made no comment, so Confraternity members will continue to fulfill the requirements for membership by praying the traditional fifteen decades of the Rosary.

For those who wish to learn more about Pope John Paul's promoting the Luminous Mysteries, the Rosary Center offers a helpful new book, The Rosary, The John Paul II Method, by Robert Feeney. We offer it for $7.95 plus shipping & handling, and hope it will prove helpful to devotees of the Luminous Mysteries, as well as those who wish to learn more about them. To order please visit our secure web order page.

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