* October 16 – Feast of Mary’s Purity - Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque (d.1690)  * "I am surprised, my daughter, that you serve me so carelessly!" --- An initiative of the Mary of Nazareth Association October is the Month of the Rosary. This year A Moment with Mary has chosen to dedicate each daily meditation to the holy Rosary that Pope Benedict XII (d.1730) called: "The supreme remedy for errors and vices." October 16 – Feast of Mary’s Purity - Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque (d.1690)  "I am surprised, my daughter, that you serve me so carelessly!" “One day, I sat down to recite the Rosary… and the Virgin Mary stood right there before me. She made this admonishment that has never left my mind since, although I was still quite young when it happened: ‘I am surprised, my daughter, that you serve me so carelessly!’ These words left such an impression on my soul that they have served me all my life... The Blessed Virgin has always taken good care of me. I come to her for all my needs, and she pulls me out of the greatest dangers. I was too shy to speak to her divine Son, but I always spoke to her, and presented her the small crown of the Rosary, kneeling on the ground, or by making a genuflection at each Ave Maria, while kissing the ground." Thereafter, Saint Margaret Mary (a nun from Paray-le-Monial, France, who received the promises of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in 1688), felt that she was not taking proper care if she sat down comfortably to recite the Rosary, instead of kneeling as the Virgin had told her. Margaret Mary never forgot Our Lady’s message. Since this nun was being called to a particular mission, she was being prepared for it with special requirements.  Monsignor Leon Cristiani Excerpt from his book Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque, Pauline Books & Media (1976) Painting of Blessed Mary of the Divine Heart and Saint Margarette Mary Alacoque in adoration to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. (Wikipedia) Sanctuary of Paray-le-Monial The month of October, a month when we especially like to pray to the Blessed Virgin Mary, is traditionally called the Month of the Rosary. The holy Rosary is composed of twenty decades. Each decade is recited in honor of a mystery in the life of Christ and that of Our Lady. It is customary to recite five decades at a time while meditating on one set of mysteries. We usually pray one specific set on each day the week in the following way: - On Monday and Saturday we pray the Joyful Mysteries: The Annunciation, The Visitation, The Nativity, The Presentation of Jesus, and The Finding of Jesus in the Temple. - On Tuesday and Friday we pray the Sorrowful Mysteries: The Agony of Jesus, The Scourging, The Crowning with Thorns, The Carrying of the Cross, and The Crucifixion and Death of Jesus.  - On Wednesday and Sunday we pray the Glorious Mysteries: The Resurrection, The Ascension, The Descent of the Holy Spirit, The Assumption of the Virgin Mary, and The Coronation of the Virgin Mary. - On Thursday we pray the Mysteries of Light: The Baptism of Jesus, The Wedding at Cana, The Proclamation of the Kingdom of God, The Transfiguration, and The Institution of the Holy Eucharist. The feast of Our Lady of the Rosary is celebrated on October 7th. This feast was instituted by Pope Pius V in 1573, to thank the Virgin Mary for the victory of Lepanto (1571).