Come, Pray the Rosary Online

Story by Joe Pisani    

St. John Fisher Parish invites the homebound to join in

Five years ago during the height of the coronavirus, Deacon John McKaig of St. John Fisher Parish in Marlborough was invited to join two parishioners to pray the rosary on a Zoom call.

“I was going through chemo at the time, and my wife Patty and I started joining them the following Monday,” he recalls. “Nine months later, my cancer was in remission.”

Every Monday at 8:30 a.m., the prayer community begun by Jennifer O’Neill and Kurt Filosa gathers online to pray the Scriptural rosary, and that half hour has been a source of solace for people who often can’t leave home.

“The big advantage,” says Gil Thompson, who hosts the prayer session, “is that if someone is too sick to come to church, they can sit at home with their laptop and pray with us. Some, who have cancer, can turn on their video and not worry about transportation. We could be anywhere in the world and pray together.”

His wife Laurie recalls a member of the church who suffered from Lou Gehrig’s Disease and was committed to praying with them.

“When he first joined us, you could see the impact it had on him,” she says. “He asked to do the responses, and tears would be flowing from his eyes.”

The community of 10 people was so committed they would often go to his home to get him up.

“He needed us and we needed him,” Laurie says. “It got to the point where he could no longer speak, but two weeks before he passed, his caregiver brought him on.”

The group prays for many intentions, including those who are sick, new babies, job seekers, graduates and people who have overcome illnesses.

“We pray for everything,” Gil says, “including our pastor, Father George Mukuka.”

Word of the online rosary ministry spread and parishioners often reach out with intentions.

“It’s fulfilling to pray for people,” Laurie says. “Parishioners who are ill are happy when they hear they’re in our prayers. And whether they’re here or not, they know we’re praying for them.”

“We’re starting our week with prayer and thinking about people who are less fortunate because of health issues or whatever,” Gil says, “And we think about them for the rest of the week.”

During the rosary, Gil reads the Scriptural verse for each Hail Mary, while Laurie prays the response and others recite it at home.        

“This method of praying the rosary keeps my mind focused on the Scripture reflections that the leader reads before each Hail Mary,” Deacon McKaig says.

The beauty of the rosary, he says, is that it offers Catholics a way to meditate on the life of Jesus and the Blessed Mother, starting with the Annunciation when Mary said “yes” to God’s invitation, and culminating in Jesus’ Ascension and her Assumption.

“When we join others in this spiritual practice, it’s a powerful way to live out our baptismal promises by living the Greatest Commandment to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul and mind and the Second Commandment, which is like it, to love our neighbor as ourselves,” Deacon McKaig says. “This lets us always remember it’s not about me. It’s not about you. It’s all about what we can do for someone else.”

To join the rosary prayer group on Mondays at 8:30 a.m., go to St. John Fisher’s website, stjfchurch.org, and click on the “Ministries” tile and then the link for “Online Rosary.”