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The Secret of the Rosary

glorious privilege: the honor of being called her new spouse. As a token of her chaste love for him
she placed a ring upon his finger and a necklace made of her own hair about his neck and gave him a
Rosary.
Father Triteme, Carthagena and Martin of Navarre (both very learned men) and others as well have
spoken of him in terms of the highest praise. Blessed Alan died at Zunolle in Flanders September
8th, 1475, after having bought over one hundred thousand people into the Confraternity.
Blessed Thomas of Saint John was well known for his sermons on the Most Holy Rosary, and the devil,
jealous of the success he had with souls, tortured him so much that he fell ill and was sick so
long that the doctors gave him up. One night when he really thought that he was dying, the devil
appeared to him in the most horrible form imaginable. There was a picture of Our Lady near his bed;
he looked at it and cried with all his heart and soul and strength: "Help me, save me, my sweet,
sweet Mother!" No sooner had he said this than the picture seemed to come alive and Our Lady put
out her hand, took him by the arm and said:
"Do not be afraid, Thomas my son, here I am and I am
going to save you: get up now and go on preaching my Rosary as you used to do. I promise to shield
you from your enemies." When Our Lady said this the devil fled and Blessed Thomas got up, finding
that he was in perfect health . He then thanked
the Blessed Mother with tears of joy. He resumed his Rosary apostolate and his sermons were
marvelously successful.
Our Lady blesses not only those who preach her Rosary, but she highly rewards all those who get
others to say it by
their example.
Alphonsus, King of Leon and Galicia, very much wanted all
his servants to honor the Blessed Virgin by saying the Rosary. So he used to hang a large rosary on
his belt and always wore it, but unfortunately never said it himself Nevertheless his
wearing it encouraged his courtiers to say the Rosary very devoutly.
One day the King fell seriously ill and when he was given
up for_ dead he found himself, in a vision, before the judgment
seat of Our Lord. Many devils were there accusing him of all
the sins he had committed and Our Lord as Sovereign Judge
was just about to condemn him to hell when Our Lady ap­
peared to intercede for him. She called for a pair of scales and had his sins placed in one of the
balances whereas she put the rosary that he had always worn on the other scale, together

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