A treasure map does not become worthless because it is old. 

Nobody finds one and throws it away simply because it is aged and worn. Its value is not determined by how new or old it is. The value of a treasure map is determined by two factors: Does the map lead to treasure? How great is the treasure?

The Rosary is a treasure map. And every time we pray it, Our Mother of Perpetual Help comes to take care of us just like she took care of Jesus. 

The title “Our Mother of Perpetual Help” is a title given to Mary as represented in a famous 15th-century Byzantine icon and associated with a Marian apparition. A classic form of devotion to Our Mother of Perpetual Help is praying the Rosary, either every Wednesday or for nine days in a row as a novena. 

The Rosary is an ancient practice, but that does not make it any less powerful. Age does not make something less valuable or irrelevant. But that is the foolishness of our era. There is a legendary Australian wine called Grange Hermitage. At about $40,000, a 1951 bottle of Grange Hermitage is certainly not less valuable because it is old. No wine collector in the world would say, "It's no good because it's old."

Every era is arrogant about itself in different ways. The people of this age have a tendency to look down on things that are old, and a particular way of dismissing ancient wisdom as irrelevant to modern life. The Catholic faith and the Rosary have suffered at the hands of this foolishness. Many people, Catholic and not, dismiss Catholicism and its practices such as the Mass and the Rosary as irrelevant and having nothing to offer, simply because they are old. This is one of many forms of blind ignorance that plague our age.

Catholicism is a treasure map. I concede, it is a very old treasure map, but it still leads to treasure-and the treasure is immeasurable. There is no need to apologize for its truth, beauty, and wisdom. Our times lack all three.

The Rosary, in the very same way, is also an ancient treasure map, and it still leads to treasure. It is an inexhaustible treasure trove. Take all you can from it today, and if you return tomorrow, you will discover that the treasures the Rosary has to offer are even greater than yesterday's.

The best way to learn this wonderful truth is simply to pray the Rosary. Start today!



Patron Saint of: Haiti, The Phillipines, Redemptorist Order, and Miracles

Also Known As: Our Mother of Perpetual Succour

Symbols: Carrying the baby Jesus while he holds her hand

Feast Day: June 27

Feast Day Shared By: Saint Ferdinand of Aragon, Saint Arialdus of Milan, Saint Joanna the Myrrhbearer, Saint Ladislas, and The Martyrs Killed Under Communist Regimes in Eastern Europe

Formalization: May 5, 1866

Formalized By: Pope Pius IX