The Rosary in a Year (with Fr. Mark-Mary Ames) - Day 143: Fulfillment of the Promise

Episode Date: May 23, 2025

In the Old Testament, God sent Noah the sign of the rainbow to promise he would never flood the earth again. Pietro Gagliardi’s fresco of the Crucifixion also depicts a rainbow above this sorrowful scene, signifying that this is the fulfillment of God’s promise. As we meditate, Fr. Mark-Mary tells us that this symbolism can remind us that death will not have the last word. Today’s focus is the mystery of the Crucifixion and we will be praying one decade of the Rosary. All of the Sacred Art we’ll be meditating with can be found in the Rosary in a Year Prayer Guide, for free linked in the complete prayer plan, or for free in the Ascension App. For the complete prayer plan, visit https://ascensionpress.com/riy.

I'm Father Mark Mary with Franciscan Friars of the Renewal, and this is the Rosary in a Year podcast where through prayer and meditation, the Rosary brings us deeper into relationship with Jesus and Mary and becomes a source of grace for the whole world. The Rosary in a Year is brought to you by Ascension. This is day 143. To download the prayer plan for Rosary in a Year, visit AscensionPress.com forward slash Rosary in a Year or text R-I-Y to 33777. You'll get an outline of how we're going to pray each month and it's a great way to track

your progress. The best place to listen to the podcast is in the Ascension app. There are special features built just for this podcast and also recordings of the full Rosary with myself and other friars on behalf of myself and the whole team here at Ascension. We wanted to take this opportunity to thank everyone who's helped support this podcast financially. Your support is so appreciated and helps us to reach as many people as possible. And if you haven't already, please consider supporting us at ascensionpress.com forward slash support. Today we will be meditating upon and praying with the fifth sorrowful mystery, the crucifixion, with help from a

fresco of the crucifixion by the artist Pietro Gagliardi. So our work today is a fresco and it's a fresco of the crucifixion by the artist Pietro Gagliardi. And it's in the Church of San Girolamo. The fresco here was done between the years 1847 and 1852. The style is known as late-romantic, which is characterized by luminous palettes with soft gentle nuances of color and open spacious compositions, graceful figure movements and celestial realms. This particular fresco is part of an overall restoration of the church of San Dralimo that

was commissioned by Pope Pius IX in 1847. Now a description of our painting. Christ hangs high on a cross above a mountainous terrain. The sky, directly behind Jesus' cross, is blue with beaming golden light and a vibrant rainbow which starkly contrasts to the brooding black and grey clouds over the rest of the scene. Angels in attendance hover between the ominous skies and Christ's shining celestial halo. Jesus is flanked by the two thieves.

One faces him and his body reflects the glow of Jesus' light and the other enshrouded in darkness turns away. Beneath them a tableau of drama unfolds. Those gazing towards Jesus at the foot of the cross are colorfully illuminated, including Mary, wearing blue with a golden halo, as she clutches her chest in pain. Saint John in yellow falls on his knees,

hand against his head in agony. And several women join Mary in her mourning at the foot of the cross. Some soldiers hold spears and others cast lots, people of all kinds witnessed the scene. Some onlookers jeer, some fight, some bow in humble reverence. Now our meditation, as we sit before this most tragic of scenes, which is depicted so

beautifully by our artist, what catches my attention is that unique detail of the large, vibrant rainbow behind our crucified Lord, which if you look closely, seems to be having its colorful bows being completed by the outstretched arms of Jesus. You can see his own outstretched arms completing this circular rainbow. And this rainbow, of course, it hearkens back to God's promise to Noah after the flood. And the rainbow, like it speaks to Noah, and then to us, the promise of God.

And what we see depicted here so beautifully is Jesus crucified in the crucifix as like the fulfillment of like the rainbow from the promise of God to Noah, the sign that death does not have the last word, but life does. So we see that in the rainbow and we see that perfected and fulfilled in the crucifix, the cross, the sure sign of our hope and of God's fidelity. the sure sign of our hope and of God's fidelity. From here on, all storms will cease and the dawn shall break.

In other words, like darkness, suffering, death, they will not have the last word, but rather light and love and life. This is God's promise, which is perfected and fulfilled in the Paschal mystery of Jesus. Hope, light, life and God's goodness towards his people will be victorious. It will be what endures. And I feel like the placing of the rainbow in the scene of the crucifixion, it's a way of communicating to us that this darkness,

that this storm, this suffering, the death that we are witnessing will not be the end of the story. He will rise. The last time that Mary, the mother of God, the mother of Jesus, like holds her son, it will not be his lifeless body on Calvary. She will encounter him and hold him again alive and victorious. The Father's goodness, right, towards the son will have the final word and with him We too shall rise

And so those of us who are currently like deeply really Sharing in the Lord's passion in our own lives Those of us who are really sharing in Mary's sorrow as we see those we love so much suffer so much. We can take hope that suffering and death and darkness are not victorious. They don't have the last word, but in Christ our hope, like the storm, shall cease the waters which feel like they're drowning us in suffering. They will recede and life, like life will conquer.

Jesus hanging from the tree at Calvary, it says to us, I know you're suffering. But I also know his goodness. I am with you. Stay with me and we will rise together. We will experience the Father's goodness, a goodness which may not seem possible in this current situation. But stay with me. Trust this promise that the storm will cease and the dawn will break in all things for all eternity if we remain with Him,

if we hope in Him, if we let Him. So as we pray today, as we pray with Mary, who knew the depths of suffering, but also the heights of God's fidelity. Let us really ask for this grace, not just from a human resoluteness, not just a deeper human commitment to trust when it's hard, but let us profoundly, even from a place of radical poverty and dependence, let us ask for the grace, the supernatural gift of grace that is hope, to see the rainbow in our modern day calvaries. Like this promise of God's victory.

And to remain with Mary and Jesus and hope in the midst of our sufferings so that we who suffer with Him, we who die with Him, may also rise with Him. And now with Mary, let us pray in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us and lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art Thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of Thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed

is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be world without end. Amen. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Alright friends, thanks so much for joining me and praying with me again today. I look forward to continuing this journey with you again tomorrow. Poco Poco. Alright, God bless y'all.