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Rosaries of Divine Union
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Divine Healing Healing is a complex subject, and depending upon the meanings ascribed to the word "healing", can range from physical to spiritual refreshment and relief to the enlightenment of the entire planet. The word "healing" is related linguistically to the word "wholing", and carries with it the connotation of making something fragmented into something complete. Beginning perhaps with a physical impulse, healing (and "wholing") becomes a spiritual experience meant to reunite us with the inmost core of ourselves. It means, in its ultimate simplicity, the relationship of life to itself. Father Martin Israel (a surgeon), in his remarkable book "Healing as Sacrament" says that
This integration is the key of what healing really is and does. Healing promotes the opportunities for a person to open more to God, in that it becomes a doorway to experience more of the value of the Divine at the basis of one’s being. Integration comes from experiencing the depths of who we are and taking that experience and seeing the world through it. Truly, "the world is as we are". When we, through healing, recognize ourselves as more than we imagined, we realize that we are indeed divine, that divinity flows through our lives, directs our lives, and directs the world we live in. As we begin to sense the unity of life, through our own healing, we feel a sense of responsibility toward life itself.
A healed society is in reality an enlightened one. It is a "normal" society free from the diseases the separated ego causes: isolation leading to fear and loneliness, frustration and anger, violence and fraud. Of these, people seem to have only one primal emotion that lies at the basis of all negative emotions and behaviors, and that is fear. We live in duality, in separate existence from each other and from the God that created us. This sense of separation, if thought about deeply, means that we spend our lives seeking unity, looking for unity within ourselves and in life around us, wanting to gain the happiness and peace that comes from a state of no-struggle, of fluid motion with life. When we cannot find this, when we cannot live in the state of balance, when we sense that we are not living in the state of love (as opposed to "being in love"—not the same thing at all) we experience fear. What is experienced is not necessarily the kind of fear that we can readily identify. A horror film, a noise in the house at night, an out of control automobile can all illicit a fear that we can immediately feel, smell, taste and hear. But what about the more subtle fear of being alone or lonely? It is possible to catalog many subtle fears we experience: the fear of the future, the fear of the past, the fear of lacking something, the fear of not getting what we want; the fear of getting what we want or deserve; the fear of being who we want to be; the fear of letting go of our pasts, of our weaknesses, of surrendering. Healing is the experience of surrender to the Divine—and integration of this experience into our daily lives. When we, through healing, re-discover ourselves, fear flees from love. When we discover our hearts, when we learn through healing to live through the heart, we learn that there is no room for fear when we trust and surrender in love. We then give ourselves the permission to let go of the things that we have manifested for ourselves as a substitute—whether it be cancer, a cut finger, a broken bone, a tumor, or a paralyzing emotional condition. Often what flees is the fear of being a victim, of being beat up by life. Our experiences then become opportunities for growth. Spiritual healing, then, is a clearing of emotional and physical blockages to the flow of love, of life itself. It is also more. It is the surrender of the ego to God, to the divine in us and around us. It is a transformation from living in the past or living in the future to living in the now. Living in the moment is not an attitude. It is a consequence. It is not an irresponsible escape from our plights; it is a natural response to the impulse of love made manifest in our lives. And thus manifest, the light of love directs and guides us to others, as we become catalysts for the uplifting of others.
Man is made in the image of God. It is our duty, our calling in life to fulfill the promise of that image. Our lives carry with them the Divine spark of what connects us to the fullest values of life, fully lived, joyfully expressed, joyfully received. It is thus that we have an opportunity to remake our lives in that image—and the wonderful part of this remaking process is that we don’t have to try to do it! This does not mean that we need not put any attention on the process, or that we don’t have to have the discipline to help ourselves. It does mean that our lives are already made in the image of God, of the Divine. We don’t have to invent that. It has always been our birthright, our heritage. All we need to do is properly surrender and allow the Divine to pull us closer and closer to our own true image until we are indistinguishable from it. In this way, we are re-created, that is to say, we are rec-reated or brought into the Divine play of the Lord.
The healing—"wholing"—of the individual, is not just an individual affair. We are all made in the same image of God, therefore when one enters fully into that image, all others are affected in ways that are both wonderful and reflective of the Mystery of Divine Life. When one enters into the heritage of our own Image of the Divine, it becomes easier for others to do so. Every time a saint is made, it becomes easier for more to be made. Every time one is refreshed by spending time with the Divine in silence, one carries something of that experience with them through the day, and acts upon others. Other people, thus affected, continue to spread the deep mystery, and knowing or unknowing, they continue to spread some of the affect like ripples in a pond. Healing is a true sacrament—an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace. These were the signs by which Christ made manifest the Kingdom of God before the eyes of all who cared to see. Of the 3,779 verses of the synoptic gospels, 727 relate specifically to the healing of both physical and emotional illnesses, and 31 additional verses refer to miracles that included healing. Among these were cases where people thought to be dead recovered. In all, twenty percent of the synoptic gospels are concerned with healing, and the instances described are so numerous that it is likely that there were many instances—perhaps the majority of them—that were not known to the writers of the gospels. Healing probably occurred very commonly in His presence without His direct intervention. (See Mathew 4:23 or Luke 7:21) The Apostles saw their Master provide an example, and they continued to follow it with the full expectation and faith that this was an important part of their mission. The promise of Christ to his disciples was that all that He did they could and would do; the miracles of healing that the Apostles performed after Pentecost carried the healing work even further than Jesus did. Perhaps these healings were to open the eyes of some who were tired of what for them was a vacant ceremonialism, or to push the boundaries of some who were bound to the Law as inflexible rule. In so doing, He established Himself and his disciples as living examples of responding to a higher Law. Perhaps these healings were to be living proof that more was available in life if people only opened to the possibility of more. Perhaps they were used by Life itself to call across time and space to pull man to that which is timeless and spaceless. The healing of the Spirit, of the mind, the emotions, the suturing together the fragmented life of man to the Unity of God—these are the outcomes of healing. Creating wholeness from fragmentation is a miracle, yet a miracle that happens each day of the week. In the time of Christ, some witnessed these miracles and were transformed to live a more active inner path. In the modern time, we too can participate in our own miracle of transformation, of allowing and participating in the re-creating of ourselves in the image of God. Living this process is nothing short of the Divine drawing to Itself in Love that which was created in Love—and we find that when we arrive, we never really left at all.
Instructions: Begin by having an intention in mind for the rosary. This intention may be stated as part of the following prayer. Prayer of Intention We who gather to pray this rosary do have in our minds and hearts the following intentions: (Here a few moments of silence allow all to clarify their intentions). We ask that these intentions may bring forth the results desired, according to Your will. Amen. General Instructions
In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
Lord, make me an instrument of thy peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy. O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console, to be understood as to understand, to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive, it is pardoning that we are pardoned, it is in complete surrender that we are born to eternal life. Amen.
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen. Alternate "Our Father" translated from the Aramaic (see introduction) O Birther! Father-Mother of the Cosmos, focus your light within us—make it useful. Create your reign of unity now; Your one desire acts with ours, as in all light, so in all forms. Grant what we need each day in bread and insight. Loose the cords of mistakes binding us, as we release the strand we hold of others’ guilt. Don’t let surface things delude us, but free us from what holds us back. From you is born all ruling will, the power and the life to do, the song that beautifies all; from age to age it renews. Amen.
Hail Mary, full of grace; the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. Amen.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning, is how and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
First Mystery of Divine Healing The Healing of the Many Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed, and he healed them. Matthew 4:23-24 Thoughts… The healing ministry of Christ began early in His career, and was never separate from the teaching regarding the Kingdom of Heaven. The Grace of God was made manifest that man may see and experience a metanoia, a change of heart. The many who were healed, and the many more who witnessed these miracles, were transformed by their experience of the Grace of God. Through the heart we come to know of the Divine, and through the heart the healing Grace of God manifests in our lives, just as it did for the Many so long ago in Galilee. Prayer: Heavenly Mother, bring to us the experience of metanoia, that we may open ourselves to be healed of all of the things that keep us from living the Grace of God each moment. Amen.
Second Mystery of Divine Healing The Faith of the Centurion "When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking for help. "Lord," he said, "my servant lies at home paralyzed and in terrible suffering." Jesus said to him, "I will go and heal him." The centurion replied, "Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, `Go,' and he goes; and that one, `Come,' and he comes. I say to my servant, `Do this,' and he does it." When Jesus heard this, he was astonished and said to those following him, "I tell you the truth, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith."… Then Jesus said to the centurion, "Go! It will be done just as you believed it would." And his servant was healed at that very hour. Matthew 8:5-10, 13. Thoughts… A centurion was a commander responsible for a troop of one hundred soldiers, and can be thought of as a symbol for our minds and egos as we attempt to control the various aspects of our lives. This story has many meanings on many levels, yet the most powerful meaning comes immediately: one does not have to be near the physical presence of the Master for the bond to be seen. The open attitude and receptive nature of the heart makes the presence of the Master come alive within us, and healing can take place therein. We cannot be healed until we surrender our disbelief that the Divine can and does want to create within us a perfect expression of itself. Yet we so often think of physical healing that we overlook that the most important aspect of healing is a spiritual one. Prayer: O Mother of Divine Grace, melt our hearts with Love, and build within us the faith to surrender to the healing Love of God. Amen.
Third Mystery of Divine Healing The casting out of demons When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick. Matthew 8:16 Thoughts… To the people of the first century CE, demons were a way of describing a multitude of physiological and psychological afflictions that people may experience. In many ways, we create demons for ourselves, or subscribe to those of others, when we begin to think and act in ways that are not life-supporting. Thinking and acting negatively towards ourselves and others, gossip and addictive behaviors all entrap the mind in ways that are not healthy for us or for the life around us. We become, in a sense, "possessed" by patterns of thinking and behaving that continue to act out—as in a script—the same actions and reactions. When we are in this cycle of behavior, we don’t interact with life in an honest and authentic manner because we are cut off from our hearts, from our centers, by the action of our "scripted patterns". Prayer: O Queen of Peace, bring our patterns and our demons to our awareness, that they may be made known to us, and bring us to the Grace of God that they may be dissolved and healed. Amen.
Fourth Mystery of Divine Healing The Transformation of the Wineskin "No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse. Neither do men pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved." Matthew 9:16-17 Thoughts… Healing means that some change occurs in us that allows us to see and feel more "whole". Yet this change, as discussed by the Lord, is not just a small shift, a patch applied to our lives. What God demands is nothing less than a radical transformation—a transformation that will remake us into a vessel for the expression of Divinity. By the pouring of new wine into new wineskins, both are preserved because the container is strong enough to hold, to bend, and apply itself to the need of the moment. Our lives and our hearts become our vessels, and in the Grace of God they become strong. Prayer O Mother Mary, container of Grace, pour upon us the blessings of Love, that we may transform our hearts and lives to truly hold the Love of God. Amen.
Fifth Mystery of Divine Healing The Blind See As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed him, calling out, "Have mercy on us, Son of David!" When he had gone indoors, the blind men came to him, and he asked them, "Do you believe that I am able to do this?" "Yes, Lord," they replied. Then he touched their eyes and said, "According to your faith will it be done to you"; and their sight was restored. Matthew 9:27-30 Thoughts… As Christ encountered people in His ministry, he encountered people who were at their last hope or who had given up on hope. Yet the one question that is repeated throughout these narratives involves the matter of faith. We do have choice in life: we can choose to receive the companionship of the Divine or we can choose to continue to see ourselves as apart from it. To receive healing of our minds, hearts and bodies, we must open ourselves both to the reality that we are loved by God and all of creation, and to the understanding that it is our faith that will restore our sight. Like the blind men, we are constantly asked "do you believe that I am able to do this?" and our challenge is to say "yes" every moment of every day. When we can see the action of the Divine in our lives and in the lives of all about us, our sight begins to be restored. Prayer Dearest Mother, help us open our eyes to faith, that through our faith we may say "yes" to Love and "yes" to the Grace of the Divine. Help us to open our eyes to Love. Amen.
Sixth Mystery of Divine Healing Raising the Dead When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, "Don't cry." Then he went up and touched the coffin, and those carrying it stood still. He said, "Young man, I say to you, get up!" The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother. Luke 7:13-15 Thoughts… In the Gospels are several stories of Christ bringing someone back from the dead. Yet today many people live each day dead: dead to the life inside of themselves, dead to the life present in all of creation, and dead to the feelings of their own hearts. Life flows from our connectedness to the deepest expression of God within ourselves and in all things—from the grass to the rocks to the light of the sun and the blue of the sky. To be dead is to be unaware of this constantly flowing, constantly abundant heritage that is ours for the claiming. We get it by giving of ourselves so totally that there is nothing left to block its flow. We give of ourselves in surrender, compassion and love and what we get in return is life. The Love of the Divine can raise the dead to life if we but ask. Prayer O Mother of Life, fill us with love, that the Life of Christ may raise us to fullness of life with Him, and through our upliftment may we uplift all others around us. Amen.
Seventh Mystery of Divine Healing Wholeness of Healing He went down with them and stood on a level place. A large crowd of his disciples was there and a great number of people from all over Judea, from Jerusalem, and from the coast of Tyre and Sidon, who had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases. Those troubled by evil spirits were cured, and the people all tried to touch him, because power was coming from him and healing them all. Luke 6:17-19 Thoughts… A large crowd of people stood around Christ and were healed of all manner of things that kept them from living a more full life. People tried to touch Him; many could and many could not. Yet all were healed, and none were turned away. God wishes nothing less than our complete healing; the creation of complete wholeness of being. To come into the nearness of the Divine is a transformative experience which forever changes us. We have but to reach, and however far we can stretch, it is enough—for Love knows no distance or time. We have only to reach. Prayer Heavenly Mother, Divine Mother, we ask for the healing of our hearts, our minds and our souls. We ask for the healing of the divisions within ourselves, that we may be made whole. We ask for the healing of the world, that all mankind may come to know the Divine life in Christ. Amen After the last decade has been said, and the connecting medal has been reached, the following prayer is said: I give myself this day to the strong power of Love To the obedience of Angels, the faith of confessors, the preaching of Apostles, to the purity of simple souls. I give myself this day to the virtues of the starlit heavens, the brightness of the sun, the whiteness of the moon, the flashing of lightening, the restlessness of wind, the stability of earth, and the deepness of the sea. I give unto myself this day the power of God to lead me, His eye to watch over me, His hand to guide me, His Word to give me speech. Christ with me, Christ beside me, Christ behind me, Christ within me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ to the right of me, Christ to the left of me, Christ in lying down, Christ in sitting, Christ in rising up, Christ in the heart of every person who may think of me, Christ in the mouth of everyone who may speak of me, Christ in the eye of everyone who may look on me, Christ in the ear of everyone who may hear me. I give myself this day to the strong power of Love. Amen. |
