{"id":1612055,"date":"2022-08-18T06:46:38","date_gmt":"2022-08-18T10:46:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1612055"},"modified":"2022-08-18T06:47:02","modified_gmt":"2022-08-18T10:47:02","slug":"the-atlantic-is-right-about-the-rosary-they-just-dont-understand-why","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/the-atlantic-is-right-about-the-rosary-they-just-dont-understand-why\/","title":{"rendered":"The Atlantic Is Right About The Rosary (They Just Don\u2019t Understand Why)"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fthe-atlantic-is-right-about-the-rosary-they-just-dont-understand-why%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1612055&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Cable <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/media\/atlantic-op-ed-claims-catholic-rosary-become-extremist-symbol\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">news anger<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.catholicnewsagency.com\/news\/252038\/the-atlantic-publishes-article-on-the-rosary-as-a-symbol-of-far-right-violent-extremism\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Catholic umbrage<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/tsmcdiez\/status\/1559570822414622723\">internet<\/a> mockery, and even a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/CatholicMemes\/comments\/wq6487\/high_capacity_decade\/\">host<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/CatholicMemes\/comments\/wpg4xa\/catholic_weapons\/\">of<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/i.redd.it\/0v8oacb6b3i91.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">memes<\/a> \u2014 these are just some of the reactions to The Atlantic\u2019s article calling Catholic rosary beads \u201can extremist symbol\u201d now being used as \u201ca weapon\u201d by \u201cradical-traditional Catholics.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The backlash was so widespread, Atlantic editors <a href=\"https:\/\/www.catholicnewsagency.com\/news\/252038\/the-atlantic-publishes-article-on-the-rosary-as-a-symbol-of-far-right-violent-extremism\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">moved to change the headline, alter the subheadline, and even delete the bullet-hole image<\/a> they\u2019d commissioned for the piece, replacing it with a simple Getty picture of the Catholic prayer beads. (Though none of these updates were noted by any editor\u2019s note; a practice that\u2019s in line with <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2020\/07\/20\/four-days-since-a-police-brutality-story-unraveled-the-atlantic-still-refuses-to-respond\/\">their editorial standards<\/a> these days.)<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s the strange thing, however: The Atlantic\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/MiaCathell\/status\/1559610335564275714\">boy-author<\/a> is right.<\/p>\n<p>Sure, he\u2019s wrong on plenty; and yes, both he and his editors demonstrate a complete inability to perceive the truth of the rosary. But <a href=\"https:\/\/archive.ph\/Lb4xi\">in their secular attempt<\/a> to fit an 800-year-old devotion into the framing of their ultra-modern and secular politics, they\u2019ve blindly stumbled onto the truth, tripping over it like a bedstand in the dark. They can\u2019t quite grasp what they\u2019ve hit and they know they don\u2019t like it \u2014 but they also know it\u2019s there.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The rosary cuts a striking image in the eyes of the modern world<\/strong>; you don\u2019t even need to know how to pray it to understand this. Men who haven\u2019t seen the inside of a church in years have it tattooed on their chests. Gang-bangers can be seen wearing it around their necks. For them, the rosary is less a Marian devotion and more a symbol of connection to their culture and their past \u2014 the religion and the ways of their grandparents, maybe.<\/p>\n<p>For those who understand it, however, the rosary is so much more: a fervent meditation on ancient mysteries, from the joyful to the sorrowful, and from the illuminous to the glorious. In the world we can see and touch, they can provide a means to calm the mind, and to place people, things, and events in their rightful place.<\/p>\n<p>And in a world that calls sex love, puts money over people, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.msn.com\/en-us\/news\/us\/authorities-investigate-vandalism-and-possible-arson-at-churches-near-washington-dc\/ar-AAZr8PW\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">vandalizes churches<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/restoring-america\/community-family\/violence-against-anti-abortion-movement-increases-ahead-of-dobbs-decision\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">firebombs pregnancy clinics<\/a>, aborts children, <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2020\/08\/04\/post-ridicules-priest-for-refusing-to-abandon-his-flock-in-a-pandemic-then-getting-coronavirus\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">harasses<\/a> priests, <a href=\"https:\/\/spectator.org\/canadian-pastor-arrested-covid\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">arrests pastors<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/craighuey.com\/fire_chief_fired_for_christian_beliefs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">fires and demonizes<\/a> Christians, mocks God, and celebrates <a href=\"https:\/\/nationaltoday.com\/pride-month\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">public pride in deadly sins<\/a>, the rosary is indeed extremist \u2014 a rejection of a fallen society and the ugliness it wallows in.<\/p>\n<p>The rosary is indeed a weapon, too. Since ancient times, we\u2019ve believed we must \u201cput on the armor of God,\u201d and that, \u201cour struggle is not with flesh and blood but with the principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers of this present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Catholic men as <a href=\"https:\/\/aleteia.org\/2021\/09\/23\/how-our-lady-saved-padre-pio-from-a-violent-demonic-attack\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">battle-hardened<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/aleteia.org\/2022\/08\/16\/why-padre-pio-called-the-rosary-a-weapon\/?utm_campaign=EM-EN-Newsletter-Daily-&#038;utm_content=Newsletter&#038;utm_medium=email&#038;utm_source=sendinblue&#038;utm_term=20220816\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">as St. Padre Pio<\/a> and as gentle <a href=\"https:\/\/catholicsay.com\/rosary-is-contemplative-prayer-and-weapon-against-evil-says-pope\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">as Pope Francis<\/a> have reaffirmed this. But although The Atlantic admits some knowledge of the long-held Catholic belief, it\u2019s aghast at certain aspects of it. In one paragraph, for example, the author complains of the \u201cgun-metal-finish\u201d on \u201cCombat Rosaries.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>What are Combat Rosaries? They\u2019re prayer beads <a href=\"https:\/\/romancatholicman.com\/wp\/100th-anniversary-of-1916-military-rosary-inspires-new-combat-rosary\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">designed by Wisconsin priest Fr. Rick Heilman<\/a>. In a post on his site, Heilman describes his frustration with the delicate and effeminate nature of most rosaries, and how he designed these Combat Rosaries as an homage to those France and the United States provided to Catholic soldiers during the First World War. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cMen\u2019s faith formation has been a pet project of mine for the last half of my 26 years as a priest,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/romancatholicman.com\/wp\/the-story-of-the-combat-rosary\/\">he writes<\/a>. \u201cAmong many things, I\u2019ve wanted us men to rediscover the treasury of Catholic devotions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This was a little too masculine for The Atlantic, it seems, which also took issue with the use of \u201cChurch Militant\u201d \u2014 <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Churches_Militant,_Penitent,_and_Triumphant\">an early Catholic term<\/a> used to describe those faithful still living (as opposed to in Purgatory or Heaven). It was the Church Militant\u2019s duty to wrestle \u201cnot against flesh and blood; but against principalities and power, against the rulers of the world of this darkness, against the spirits of wickedness in the high places.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Toward that purpose, the commander of the Vatican Swiss Guard <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncregister.com\/blog\/swiss-guards-carry-the-combat-rosary-into-spiritual-battle\">called these rosaries<\/a> \u201cthe most powerful weapon that exists on the market.\u201d Of course, concepts like evil, demons, masculinity, and religion make modern, secular liberals deeply uncomfortable. Add conservative internet memes to the mix, and you\u2019ve got a full-blown meltdown.<\/p>\n<p>Religious concepts such as these seem radical (and the only radicals The Atlantic can stomach are <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalreview.com\/corner\/the-atlantic-rosaries-are-worse-than-firebombings\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">those who firebomb Christians<\/a>), and that\u2019s because they are. But is that so bad?<\/p>\n<p>The word \u201cradical\u201d stems from the Latin word \u201cradix,\u201d or \u201croot.\u201d When we turn to a beautiful, 800-year-old meditation, we\u2019re returning to the roots of our faith. When we understand the nature of the enemy and the weapons we have to defeat him, we\u2019re returning to the roots of our faith. When we rediscover the truth of our faithful ancestors\u2019 devotion that we\u2019d previously merely grasped toward in our tattoos and our jewelry, we\u2019re returning to the roots of our faith.<\/p>\n<p>By the standards of this world, the holy rosaries are extreme; they\u2019re a weapon; and they\u2019re radical. We live in a fallen world and have since leaving Eden. The rosaries today, just as in medieval times, are an explicit rejection of the sins of our culture, the sins that surround us.<\/p>\n<p>When you take an honest stand against a fallen world, don\u2019t be surprised if that world doesn\u2019t embrace you, or even accuses you.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cJesus said to his disciples: \u2018I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing! There is a baptism with which I must be baptized, and how great is my anguish until it is accomplished! Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. From now on a household of five will be divided, three against two and two against three; a father will be divided against his son and a son against his father, a mother against her daughter and a daughter against her mother, a mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.&#8217;\u201d<\/p>\n<p>So while The Atlantic is right, they don\u2019t understand what they\u2019ve stumbled upon. We, on the other hand, must understand the battle we\u2019re in \u2014 and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.michaeljournal.org\/articles\/roman-catholic-church\/item\/the-rosary-a-powerful-weapon-against-the-devil\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">the weapons we have<\/a>. The faithful don\u2019t have the luxury of ignorance.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\" \/>\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">\n  Christopher Bedford is a senior editor at The Federalist, a founding partner of RightForge, vice chairman of Young Americans for Freedom, a board member at The Daily Caller News Foundation and National Journalism Center, and the author of &#8220;The Art of the Donald.&#8221; His work has been featured in The American Mind, National Review, the New York Post and the Daily Caller, where he led the Daily Caller News Foundation and spent eight years. A frequent guest on Fox News and Fox Business, he was raised in Massachusetts and lives across the river from D.C. Follow him on <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CBedfordDC\">Twitter<\/a>.<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-comments mt-30 mt-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-comments-container d-flex flex-column align-items-center py-30\">\n    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"110\" height=\"106\" src=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/fdrlst-mark.svg\" class=\"img-fluid mb-20\" alt=\"The Federalist logo eagle mark\" \/>    <\/p>\n<p>Unlock commenting by joining the Federalist Community.<\/p>\n<p>    <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/plans\/pricing\/\" class=\"btn btn-on-white\">Subscribe<\/a>  <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Cable news anger, Catholic umbrage, internet mockery, and even a host of memes \u2014 these are just some of the reactions to The Atlantic\u2019s article calling Catholic rosary beads \u201can<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":574,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1612055","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1612055","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/574"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1612055"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1612055\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1612055"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1612055"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1612055"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}