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I am a young mother and yesterday I was at Mass.
I don't know a lot about being Catholic but I am slowly
learning
— I come from a different culture. In my culture,
we believe in curses and black magic and all those related
things and although I don't really believe in them, I am
afraid of them.
Someone approached me and gave me a porcelain box that
said in golden letters:
"His Love endures forever."
and inside was a Rosary — I am a really quiet person
and I don't socialize much.
Is this a normal practice?
Should I keep it?
I am not sure what to do?
What if it is from someone who wishes something bad
happen to me?
Thanks,
S.V.
{
Seeing I come from a culture that believes in curses and black magic should I keep this Rosary? }
Mike
replied:
Hi, S.V. —
Thanks for the question.
I am assuming, by your question, that you are not
a Catholic but interested in finding out what we
believe as Catholics, since you had been
attending Mass.
If you wish to go deeper, consider buying a cheap copy of the Catechism of the Catholic Church to learn everything we believe as Catholics.
You said: In my culture, we believe in curses and black magic and all those related things and although I don't really believe in them, I am afraid of them.
As Catholics, we would encourage you to stay away
from these things. Paragraphs 2117 and 2138 from
the Catechism elaborate on this issue below:
2117 All practices of magic or sorcery, by which
one attempts to tame occult powers, so as to place
them at one's service and have a supernatural power
over others - even if this were for the sake of
restoring their health - are gravely contrary to
the virtue of religion. These practices are even
more to be condemned when accompanied by the intention
of harming someone, or when they have recourse
to the intervention of demons. Wearing charms is
also reprehensible. Spiritism often implies divination
or magical practices; the Church for her part warns
the faithful against it. Recourse to so-called
traditional cures does not justify either the invocation
of evil powers or the exploitation of another's
credulity.
2138 Superstition is a departure from the worship
that we give to the true God. It is manifested
in idolatry, as well as in various forms of divination
and magic.
You said: Someone approached me and gave me a porcelain box that
said in golden letters:
"His Love endures forever."
and inside was a Rosary — I am a really quiet person
and I don't socialize much.
Is this a normal practice?
Should I keep it?
I am not sure what to do?
What if it is from someone who wishes something bad
happen to me?
I would consider the person who gave the porcelain
box with a Rosary in it, a good friend.
There is no need to be afraid of the Rosary.
Praying the Rosary is a powerful weapon in destroying
the demonic in a persons life.
I used to run a free Rosary for Protestants program that sent Rosaries to seeking Protestants and non-Christians but no longer have the financial or operational means to do this anymore. Nevertheless, if you wish get your hands on a free Rosary just Google for one.
It's a great devotion because whether you are a Catholic Christian, Protestant Christian, or non-Christian, we are meditating on the lives of both Jesus, Our Lord, and Mary, His Mother and it has many blessings attached to praying it.
If you want to know how to pray the Rosary read
this posting:
It was in the year 1214 that the
Church received the Rosary in
its present form and according
to the method we use today. It
was given to the Church by St.
Dominic, who had received it from
the Blessed Virgin as a means
of converting the Albigensians
and other sinners. Saint Dominic,
seeing that the gravity of people's
sins was hindering the conversion
of the Albigensians, withdrew
into a forest near Toulouse, where
he prayed continuously for three
days and three nights. During
this time he did nothing but weep
and did harsh penances in order
to appease the anger of God. At this point our Lady appeared to
him, accompanied by three angels,
and she said,
"Dear Dominic, do you know which
weapon the Blessed Trinity
wants to use to reform the
world?"
"Oh, my Lady," answered
Saint Dominic, "you know
far better than I do, because
next to your Son Jesus Christ,
you have always been the chief
instrument of our salvation."
Then Our Lady replied, "I
want you to know that, in this kind
of warfare, the principal
weapon has always been the Angelic
Psalter (nowadays: the Rosary), which is the foundation-stone
of the New Testament. Therefore,
if you want to reach these hardened
souls and win them over to God,
preach my Psalter."
So he arose, comforted, and burning
with zeal for the conversion of
the people in that district, he
headed straight for the cathedral.
At once, unseen angels rang the
bells to gather the people together,
and Saint Dominic began to preach.
The Angelic Psalter is just another name for the
Rosary. Treat it like the American Express Card:
Don't leave home without it. : )
I hope this helps,
Mike
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