WELLINGTON | Members of the Junior Legion of Mary, Our Lady of Grace praesidia, honored Mary with a “living rosary of splendor” Oct. 12, 2024, at St. Rita in Wellington. Children with their families formed a human rosary in the church, with each participant leading prayer representing one bead of the rosary.
Faithful of all ages carried a rose to place before the statue of Our Lady of Fatima as a symbolic expression of their love for the mother of Jesus. A single rose traditionally represents one Hail Mary, and each completed rosary represents a crown of roses.
The Junior Legion of Mary aims to foster holiness and sanctity in children by imitating the lives of the saints and developing a devotion to the Blessed Mother, leading them always to Jesus.
“This is an amazing thing because it allows the children to grow in the faith, to come together and spend time together in the house of the Lord, to know God, to know the Blessed Mother, and to have a life of devotion,” said Father Mario Castañeda, St. Rita’s pastor.
“These days we see a lot of kids isolated in their homes just playing video games, and this offers them an opportunity to come out of their homes into the house of God,” he said, and “to connect with other children that share the same values and principles and the same faith.”
Before the living rosary began, Lidia Doura, the Junior Legion of Mary president, said, “We are honoring the Blessed Mother in the month of October since it’s the month of the rosary, and we want to encourage the kids to pray the daily rosary and obviously for it to become a great part of their daily lives.”
St. Rita’s Junior Legion of Mary hosts two events per year, in May in honor of the Blessed Mother and in October for the month of the rosary. “We usually do a procession around the date of Our Lady of Fatima in May, and in October we have a living rosary,” she said.
“Our first living rosary was last year, and this year the only date the church had available for the living rosary happened to be on the feast of Blessed Carlo Acutis, Saturday, Oct. 12,” Doura said. Reflecting on whether that was coincidental or divine intervention, she said, “I believe it was definitely divine intercession from our Blessed Mother.”
Doura explained that Blessed Carlo has become “a very special part of our ministry, who is about to become a saint very, very soon.” The children were dressed in T-shirts and sneakers in honor of Blessed Carlo Acutis, who will be the first millennial saint in the church.
“We have two first-class relics here of St. Maria Goretti and Blessed Carlo Acutis, the two children saints,” she said. Laura Nores, guardian of the relic of Blessed Carlo, and Sara Moreno, guardian of the St. Maria Goretti relic, brought the relics to the living rosary for veneration.
Doura said that the next day, Oct. 13, the world would mark the anniversary of the “miracle of the dancing sun” that took place in Fatima, Portugal, in 1917.
Hurricane Milton produced many tornadoes that caused destruction in Wellington close to where St. Rita Church. Teresa Cecil, a member of St. Rita’s Council of Catholic Women, said, “I thank the Virgin Mary for protecting us. Even though we (Wellington) had damage, we could have had more.”
Rebeca Muñoz, a 15-year-old Junior Legion of Mary member, said the Legion of Mary has led her to “love Our Lady,” and that it is “really important because, as they always say, ‘to Jesus through Mary.’” She expressed joy that “it is for all ages,” as her 4-year-old brother comes with her.”
Aníbal Muñoz, Knights of Columbus member and father of two junior legionaries, Isaiah and Raymond Muñoz, said, “I think this is so important because for one, they are examples for other kids, and in today’s world, kids are so influenced by social media” and “the evils of the outside world.”
“I believe my kids are an example for others to see in them that God is real and that we are here to serve a purpose, and that is to serve God” helping them to get to heaven,” Aníbal said.
His wife, Helena Muñoz, initiated the formation of the Junior Legion of Mary at St. Rita. In January 2023, it officially became the Our Lady of Grace praesidia. Every parish that has a Legion of Mary praesidia is given a title of the Virgin Mary.
Vanessa Moraitis, mother of junior legionary Alex, said, “It’s important because it is a way for families to pray together, to spend time together, and to make it a habit of praying, which is something that families nowadays don’t do enough of.”
Jason Blaustein, the father of four Junior Legion of Mary members (Harrison, Siena, Valor and Minka), said, “Today’s culture and society is built for the external pleasures of the world, and in order to follow the ultimate ideal of getting into heaven, we need to have faith at the center in today’s world.”
His wife, Jena Blaustein, said, “Love for Mary is only going to bring them closer to her son, Jesus, and they need the community with other children.” It is important to be “under the mantle of Mary in today’s world to keep them protected and to keep them innocent.”
The Junior Legion of Mary invites children and teens, ages 6 to 17, to join and become instruments of the Holy Spirit through a balanced program of prayer and good deeds under the supervision of a spiritual director. For more information about the group and relics, call 954-540-9900 or 561-315-8226. For St. Rita Parish, visit www.saintrita.com, email office@saintrita.com or connect on Facebook and YouTube.
