Do you know how the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary came to be?

Well, let us tell you the story….

The year was 1571 and the Turkish naval fleet of the Ottoman empire was threatening to conquer Europe for Islam. Pope Pius V (now a saint) called on Christian nations to send ships and men to defend themselves from the invaders.

The Turkish fleet was the mightiest and most disciplined naval force on the planet at the time of the battle. Victory seemed impossible from the inferior Christian army, but nevertheless, “The Holy Fleet” prepared for battle.

Pope Pius V called upon Catholics to begin praying the Rosary continuously and on October 7, 1571, the two armies met in the harbor of Lepanto. Though originally it appeared that the Holy Fleet would suffer a quick defeat, the supernatural aid of hundreds of thousands of Catholics praying the Rosary results in a defeat of the Turkish army! The once-powerful Turkish military was defeated and the Christian slaves onboard were set free!

At the very hour of the victory, Pope Pius V (more than a thousand miles away), rose from his chair and proclaimed a Catholic victory! He declared October 7th would be the feast of Our Lady of Victory in thanksgiving for her aid of the Holy Fleet.

Over 140 years later, Pope Clement XI canonized Pope Pius V and changed the name of the feast to Our Lady of the Rosary, making it a universal feast celebrated each year throughout the Church!

This is such a beautiful and important story for Catholics to know! It shows the power of prayer, especially the Rosary, to overcome seemingly impossible obstacles in our world.

What a timely message for Catholics today.

Share this miracle of the Rosary with your children through our multi-page coloring download!

Please share this blog with others who would be interested in learning about the Miracle of Lepanto and using our coloring download!

If you would like to hear the audio story of the Battle of Lepanto, you can hear it at the end of our Joyful Mysteries audio Rosary! You can find the CD here or you can download the MP3 and listen to it for on the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary!

You can also hear the story of the audio story of Battle of Lepanto in our Family Prayer Kit! This is an amazing kit of resources that are perfect for families who want to make car time (during school pick up, driving to extracurriculars, or with long work commutes!) an opportunity for prayer!

Based on research with hundreds of Catholic moms, the Holy Heroes Family Prayer Kit is a full range of prayer aids for all ages….perfect for car rides, classrooms, co-ops, and more!

This kit is jam-packed with over $150 of Catholic aids, including:

• 4GB/USB flash drive–plug it into your car sound system!–containing:
  • 2 versions of the Rosary (Scriptural version & a shorter version)
  • Divine Mercy Chaplet (beautifully chanted)
  • Stations of the Cross
  • 5 Songs from Kids Sing for Jesus
• 40 full-color classic artwork cards–5″ x 7″
  • 20 Rosary cards (one for each Mystery of the Rosary)
  • 14 Stations of the Cross cards (one for each Station)
  • 6 bonus cards with prayers for safe travel and more!
    • Including prayers of the rosary in English & Latin
• Carabiner to hold all the cards together (YES: they are all hole-punched!)
• Holy Water Flask–made of metal (won’t melt in the car…)
• DIY Single-decade Rosary with a Miraculous Medal and Italian crucifix (perfect for passing around the car!)

We included nearly everything moms asked us for…but we did NOT include (sorry!) actual holy water, perfectly obedient children, or a spare driver.