Genesis 2:18-24/ Hebrew 2:9-11/ Mark 10:2-16
Today is the 7th October. If the 7th October is not a Sunday then the Church would be commemorating a special feast. And that is the feast of “Our Lady of the Rosary”.
This feast was instituted by Pope Pius V in honour of Our Lady for her intercession for the naval victory at Lepanto in 1571.
Lepanto is a place on the coast of western Greece. So what was so significant about the Battle of Lepanto that became a feast for the Church?
A great naval battle took place on the 7th October 1571. A hastily gathered coalition Christian fleet from European Catholic states set sail to face the mighty main fleet of the Ottoman Empire which was sailing in from the east.
The Christian fleet was outnumbered by the Ottoman armada. The Pope at that time, Pope Pius V, called on the Church to be united in a Rosary crusade to help the Christian soldiers in that battle.
Because defeat for the Christian fleet would mean that Christian Europe would be overrun by the Ottomans and that would mean the end of Christianity in Europe.
Furthermore the unity of the Catholic Church was severely weakened by the Protestant Reformation which began in 1517.
So by 1571, the Pope could only call upon a handful of loyal Catholic states to unite and fight the invading Ottomans.
Also the Ottomans took advantage of a disunited and weakened Christian Europe to launch an attack and was confident of a victory.
So the two forces clashed at the Gulf of Corinth in the Ionian Sea. And after 5 hours of intense fighting, the Ottomans were decisively defeated, and the Ottoman advance was halted and the Mediterranean Sea was freed of Ottoman occupation.
But before the Christian fleet set sail, all the soldiers were given rosaries and it was said that the Christian soldiers fought with swords in one hand and rosaries in the other.
The victory was credited to the Virgin Mary’s intercession, and even Pope Pius V, who was hundre
ds of miles away from the battle scene, had a foreknowledge of the victory when he gave thanks for victory even before the battle ended.
Though the victory was termed “miraculous” yet it does not mean that no lives were lost or that no blood was shed.
About 7500 Christian soldiers died, and on the Ottoman side there were about 20,000 dead, or wounded or captured.
The Christian fleet lost 17 ships, but the Ottomans lost 50 ships, and 137 ships were captured and about 10,000 Christian slaves rowing the Ottoman ships were freed.
Certainly a major defeat for the Ottoman Empire from which they never recovered and it was indeed a miraculous and religious victory for the Church.
Yet having said all that, the fact remains that war, in any form, and whether religious or otherwise, does not determine who is right. War only determines who is left.
And in a war, there are no unwounded soldiers. In other words, in every war, there will be casualties.
In the gospel, the Pharisees approached Jesus and asked if it was lawful for a man to divorce his wife. They asked this only to test Jesus.
Yet, they don’t seem to know the severe implications of that question.
Because it was almost like asking if it was lawful for a man to declare war on his wife? Or even vice versa.
And just as in a war, so it is in a divorce – there will be casualties. And the first casualty in a divorce is love – God’s love.
Because logically speaking, a man and a woman won’t get married unless they are in love.
And that was why Jesus revamped the question of divorce by stating what it was in the beginning.
Jesus said that in the beginning of creation, God made them male and female. And what God has united, man must not divide.
In other words, marriage did not evolve in society nor was it instituted by secular practice. Marriage is God’s creation.
God intended marriage to reflect His own love for His people, a love which is faithful and a love which does not fail.
And that is where lies the difficulty in marriage. Because marriage is the challenge to be like God, to love as God loves.
Yet there are problems and difficulties in marriage, and I admit that I don’t have all the solutions.
Married couples wish to live happily ever after, but in some cases it can be like happily never after.
And at times, some marriages are like a war in which enemies sleep together.
But the original plan of God in marriage is not to force married couples to conform to some kind of idealistic concept of marriage.
Because things can go wrong. People make mistakes. Pain and hurt are inflicted. Anger and resentment strain the marriage.
But the call of Jesus for married couples is to reclaim their first love, the love that was planted in them by God that brought them together in marriage.
One direction (or solution) is that married couples pray for that healing love in their troubled marriage.
But perseverance and persistence is necessary. Well, talking about perseverance and persistence, St. Monica prayed for 30 years for the conversion of her son St. Augustine.
I really hope it won’t take that long to pray for the conversion of a wayward or abusive spouse.
Nevertheless, I must state that married couples have God on their side, simply because it was God who instituted marriage.
If God can grant a miraculous victory at the Battle of Lepanto, then God will surely grant a miracle in a troubled marriage.
And just like Pope Pius V who initiated a Rosary crusade to petition for victory, married couples must also invite Our Lady of the Rosary to come into their marriage and to make it loving.
May Our Lady who was there at the marriage in Cana pray for married couples that the stagnant waters of their marriage be turned into rich sweet wine that brings joy.
And just as the Christian soldiers at the Battle of Lepanto had rosaries in their hands, may married couples also pray the Rosary together.
And may Our Lady of the Rosary intercede for married couples that they will find love and peace in their marriage.
And may we the Church join Our Lady in this Rosary Crusade.