Forty schools were represented Thursday at the All Diocesan Schools Rosary held at Columbus St. Joseph Cathedral in honor of Our Lady of the Rosary.
Bishop Earl Fernandes led more than 200 students ranging from elementary to high school, parents and school staff in praying the Luminous Mysteries of the rosary, reflecting on Christ’s baptism in the Jordan, the Wedding Feast at Cana, the Proclamation of the Kingdom of God, Christ’s Transfiguration and the Institution of the Holy Eucharist.
Schools were encouraged to send two student representatives to participate in-person. Some brought as many as 45. Among those represented, schools were far as Tuscarawas Junior/ Senior High School in New Philadelphia and near as Cristo Rey Columbus High School, located a few blocks from the Cathedral.
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The event was live streamed in Catholic schools across the diocese, allowing students and families in every corner of the 23-county diocese to participate. St. Gabriel Radio (AM 820) broadcasted the event live.
Music was provided by Dr. Richard Fitzgerald, the diocese’s director of music. The student choir from Lancaster St. Mary of the Assumption School sang.
Oct. 22 was a fitting day for an all-schools rosary. The Church celebrates the feast of Pope St. John Paul II, who added the Luminous Mysteries of the rosary in 2002, meditating on Christ’s public life. The Holy Father, commonly known as St. John Paul the Great, had a significant devotion to the rosary.
Students, much like Pope St. John Paul II, found great peace in the centuries-old prayer. Will Blake, 18, a senior at Columbus St. Charles Preparatory School and member of New Albany Church of the Resurrection, particularly enjoyed gathering with other students.
“I think it was a great opportunity today to join with our brothers and sisters across the diocese, across different age groups, from little elementary school kids to seniors in high school like myself, to be unified by the rosary,” he said. “I think Bishop Fernandes really understood that when he brought us all together here today.
“I think he understands that, in the present moment, there’s so much in the world that wants to divide us and wants to put ‘us versus them.’ But I think what Bishop Fernandes really understands – and what he’s trying to instill in all of us – is that Jesus calls us to be a family. He says that, in Him, we are one – we are one family.
“The Rosary really acts as a way that, when we all say that together, we say it collectively, and we’re all gathered here, and people are gathered on the livestream, all praying at the same time,” he added. “We are really brought together as the family in Christ that we are meant to be.”
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Students offered the rosary for greater respect for the dignity of the human person, for vocations among students, for spiritual and temporal needs of all members of school communities, especially the sick and suffering, and for the bishop and clergy of the diocese.
Columbus Immaculate Conception School sent several students and staff for the event. The school also livestreamed the event for students in classrooms.
It was important for Colleen Kent, the school’s principal, to have students present.
“The more opportunities we can offer children to encounter beautiful prayer together, the better. Many have never been inside St. Joseph Cathedral. They also don’t have many chances to be up close with Bishop Fernandes while praying with students from all across our diocese,” she said.
“I am also excited for the beautiful prayer time that will take place within our school. Although not everyone can attend the rosary at the Cathedral, the teachers will transform their standard classroom arrangement into a peaceful place of prayer.”
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The gathering was the Office of Catholic Schools’ third annual All Diocesan Schools Rosary. Bishop Fernandes concluded by leading the Salve Regina (Hail, Holy Queen) and offered students a blessing.
Gathering schools diocesan-wide “together to pray the rosary is a witness to our faith,” affirmed Will Gruber, vice principal for student services at St. Charles. “It allows our students to experience the power of prayer, and we are blessed to have Bishop Fernandes lead us in this effort.”