The Rosary of the Virgin Mary, which gradually took form in the second millennium under the guidance of the Spirit of God, is a prayer loved by countless Saints and encouraged by the Magisterium. Simple yet profound, it still remains…a prayer of great significance, destined to bring forth a harvest of holiness.
John Paul II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae
The feast of Pope St. John Paul II is a wonderful opportunity to recall the amazing gift that he gave the Church in the Luminous Mysteries of the Holy Rosary. On October 16th, 2002, the 24th anniversary of his papal election, John Paul II introduced the Luminous Mysteries in his apostolic letter Rosarium Virginis Mariae. In this letter, Pope John Paul II described the Holy Rosary as a “compendium of the Gospel”:
The Rosary, though clearly Marian in character, is at heart a Christocentric prayer. In the sobriety of its elements, it has all the depth of the Gospel message in its entirety, of which it can be said to be a compendium. It is an echo of the prayer of Mary, her perennial Magnificat for the work of the redemptive Incarnation which began in her virginal womb. With the Rosary, the Christian people sits at the school of Mary and is led to contemplate the beauty on the face of Christ and to experience the depths of his love. Through the Rosary the faithful receive abundant grace, as though from the very hands of the Mother of the Redeemer.
John Paul II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae
According to Pope John Paul II, in the Luminous Mysteries, also called the Mysteries of Light, we are meant to focus on the public life of Jesus Christ, as we meditate on key events that reveal Him as the “light of the world” (John 8:12). Explaining in his apostolic letter that the Luminous Mysteries fill the gap between the Joyful Mysteries (focused on Christ’s early life) and the Sorrowful Mysteries (focused on His Passion), John Paul II emphasized Jesus’ teachings and miracles. He believed that to fully capture the depth of Christ’s life in the Rosary, it would be fitting to add to the traditional mysteries. This addition, which would remain optional for individuals and communities, would focus on Christ’s public ministry between His Baptism and His Passion.
He explained,
Declared the beloved Son of the Father at the Baptism in the Jordan, Christ is the one who announces the coming of the Kingdom, bears witness to it in his works and proclaims its demands. It is during the years of his public ministry that the mystery of Christ is most evidently a mystery of light: “While I am in the world, I am the light of the world” (Jn 9:5).
John Paul II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae
The five Luminous Mysteries are:
- The Baptism of Jesus in the Jordan
- The Wedding Feast at Cana
- The Proclamation of the Kingdom of God
- The Transfiguration
- The Institution of the Eucharist
Moving on from the infancy and the hidden life in Nazareth to the public life of Jesus, our contemplation brings us to those mysteries which may be called in a special way “mysteries of light”. Certainly the whole mystery of Christ is a mystery of light. He is the “light of the world” (Jn 8:12). Yet this truth emerges in a special way during the years of his public life, when he proclaims the Gospel of the Kingdom. In proposing to the Christian community five significant moments – “luminous” mysteries – during this phase of Christ’s life, I think that the following can be fittingly singled out: (1) his Baptism in the Jordan, (2) his self-manifestation at the wedding of Cana, (3) his proclamation of the Kingdom of God, with his call to conversion, (4) his Transfiguration, and finally, (5) his institution of the Eucharist, as the sacramental expression of the Paschal Mystery.
John Paul II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae
Pope St. John Paul II briefly explained each of the new mysteries in his apostolic letter, saying that each of the mysteries is a revelation of the Kingdom now present in the very person of Jesus.
The Baptism in the Jordan
The Baptism in the Jordan is first of all a mystery of light. Here, as Christ descends into the waters, the innocent one who became “sin” for our sake (cf. 2Cor 5:21), the heavens open wide and the voice of the Father declares him the beloved Son (cf. Mt 3:17 and parallels), while the Spirit descends on him to invest him with the mission which he is to carry out.
John Paul II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae
The Wedding Feast at Cana
Another mystery of light is the first of the signs, given at Cana (cf. Jn 2:1- 12), when Christ changes water into wine and opens the hearts of the disciples to faith, thanks to the intervention of Mary, the first among believers.
John Paul II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae
The Proclamation of the Kingdom
Another mystery of light is the preaching by which Jesus proclaims the coming of the Kingdom of God, calls to conversion (cf. Mk 1:15) and forgives the sins of all who draw near to him in humble trust (cf. Mk 2:3-13; Lk 7:47- 48): the inauguration of that ministry of mercy which he continues to exercise until the end of the world, particularly through the Sacrament of Reconciliation which he has entrusted to his Church (cf. Jn 20:22-23).
John Paul II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae
The Transfiguration of Our Lord
The mystery of light par excellence is the Transfiguration, traditionally believed to have taken place on Mount Tabor. The glory of the Godhead shines forth from the face of Christ as the Father commands the astonished Apostles to “listen to him” (cf. Lk 9:35 and parallels) and to prepare to experience with him the agony of the Passion, so as to come with him to the joy of the Resurrection and a life transfigured by the Holy Spirit.
John Paul II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae
The Institution of the Eucharist
A final mystery of light is the institution of the Eucharist, in which Christ offers his body and blood as food under the signs of bread and wine, and testifies “to the end” his love for humanity (Jn 13:1), for whose salvation he will offer himself in sacrifice.
John Paul II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae
Beautifully, Pope St. John Paul II reveals how the role of Mary is one of accompaniment:
In these mysteries, apart from the miracle at Cana, the presence of Mary remains in the background. The Gospels make only the briefest reference to her occasional presence at one moment or other during the preaching of Jesus (cf. Mk 3:31-5; Jn 2:12), and they give no indication that she was present at the Last Supper and the institution of the Eucharist. Yet the role she assumed at Cana in some way accompanies Christ throughout his ministry. The revelation made directly by the Father at the Baptism in the Jordan and echoed by John the Baptist is placed upon Mary’s lips at Cana, and it becomes the great maternal counsel which Mary addresses to the Church of every age: “Do whatever he tells you” (Jn 2:5). This counsel is a fitting introduction to the words and signs of Christ’s public ministry and it forms the Marian foundation of all the “mysteries of light”.
John Paul II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae
Like so many things in the adventure of the Christian life, there is an inexhaustible treasure in the Mysteries of the Holy Rosary. Through them, Christ illuminates the mysteries of His earthly life and the hidden things of our own hearts. Let us ask Mary to show us what her Son wants us to see and to turn to the Holy Rosary, as Pope St. John Paul II did, to draw closer to Him.
Pope St. John Paul II, pray for us!