10/11/2021 – Katheryn of Aragon and King Henry VIII

Five hundred years ago, Pope Leo X decreed the title “Defender of the Faith” on King Henry VIII of England for his defense of the Seven Sacraments against Luther.When Henry married Princess Kathryn of Aragon a dozen years before this title was granted, a special rosary beads was made for them (now in the Metropolitan Museum in New York). Did Henry pray the rosary? There is no record of it. Theirs was a happy marriage and within that union the King made several visits to Our Lady’s shrine in Walsingham especially to pray for a male heir. But Henry abandoned his faith and marriage a decade after he received a title for defending it. In his apostasy he attacked Our Lady in her shrine of Walsingham, to which he had previously been a devotee, destroying it and executing her defenders.In contrast Kathryn did pray the rosary, so in her abandonment the Queen took the path of prayer and reparation. She “was Catholic first, a monarch second, understanding her life and vocation in that order. Her faith was to be no pragmatic political piety; under her royal robes she wore the garb of the Third Order of St. Francis. Each day her religious devotions took many hours; a rosary was never far from her hands. Even in the forlorn days of exile from Henry’s court, she prayed earnestly for her husband.” (K Turley) On her deathbed she composed a letter forgiving him and calling him back to faith.Henry’s is a cautionary tale. Pray the rosary, Our Lady promises perseverance in faith to those who do.Courtesy of 1 in 10 Rosary Mission Ireland

Don’t forget – 9pm is Rosary for Ireland on Radio Maria