The Image of Prayer

In this month of the Rosary I am reminded of the story of Our Lady of Pompeii.  It is an interesting one in which we hear of the conversion of a satanist, who later finds a discarded image of Our Lady in an antique shop, goes on to to build a church for it, and it becomes one of the most important Marian shrines in the world.  The ex-satanist was Barolo Longo, now Blessed, and he was guided by Our Lady to build the shrine as a testament to the power of the prayer.   When found the image was, artistically, very poor, and some restoration work and retouching has been done.  Numerous miracles have been worked through invoking Our Lady through the title of Pompeii.  The story of the painting and its shrine can be found here and here.

Blessed Bartolo Longo, Apostle of the Rosary

The Venerable Pope John Paul II, in his letter, Rosarium Virginis Mariae, wrote of Blessed Bartolo Longo:

It would be impossible to name all the many Saints who discovered in the Rosary a genuine path to growth in holiness... As a true apostle of the Rosary, Blessed Bartolo Longo had a special charism. His path to holiness rested on an inspiration heard in the depths of his heart: “Whoever spreads the Rosary is saved!”.  As a result, he felt called to build a Church dedicated to Our Lady of the Holy Rosary in Pompei, against the background of the ruins of the ancient city, which scarcely heard the proclamation of Christ before being buried in 79 A.D. during an eruption of Mount Vesuvius, only to emerge centuries later from its ashes as a witness to the lights and shadows of classical civilization. By his whole life's work and especially by the practice of the “Fifteen Saturdays”, Bartolo Longo promoted the Christocentric and contemplative heart of the Rosary, and received great encouragement and support from Leo XIII, the “Pope of the Rosary”.