As autumn settles in, the Church offers us two spiritual treasures to warm the soul: the Rosary, a meditation on Christ through the eyes of Mary, and the Little Way of St Thérèse of Lisieux, a humble path of trust and love.
In this month, we are called to childlike confidence and contemplative simplicity. The Rosary and the Little Way are not relics of the past—they are lifelines for today.
📿 Monthly Devotion: The Holy Rosary
Daily Offering to Our Lady of the Rosary
“O Queen of the Holy Rosary, I offer you this day my prayers, works, joys, and sufferings. Help me to pray with love, to live with trust, and to see all things through the light of your Son. Amen.”
This month, pick up your Rosary with purpose. Each bead is a heartbeat of grace. Each decade is a doorway to Christ.
🧘♀️ Monthly Meditation: The Little Way and the Beads of Light
Picture a small girl kneeling in a simple Carmelite chapel. She holds her Rosary with tender hands, and her face is lit with childlike peace. This is Thérèse—little, hidden, yet spiritually mighty.
She once said, “The Rosary is a long chain that links heaven and earth.”
You don’t need greatness. You need trust. In her “Little Way,” St Thérèse teaches us that holiness is not about grand gestures, but about doing small things with great love.
Let this be your meditation: My ordinary life is the ground of my sanctification. My weakness is not an obstacle but a bridge to divine mercy.
📆 Key Dates in the Catholic Calendar – October 2025
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1 October (Wednesday) – St Thérèse of Lisieux
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2 October (Thursday) – The Holy Guardian Angels
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4 October (Saturday) – St Francis of Assisi
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7 October (Tuesday) – Our Lady of the Rosary
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15 October (Wednesday) – St Teresa of Ávila
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18 October (Saturday) – St Luke, Evangelist
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22 October (Wednesday) – St John Paul II
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28 October (Tuesday) – Sts Simon and Jude, Apostles
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Every Saturday – Devotion to Our Lady
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Every day – Pray the Rosary!
✝️ The Scriptural Witness
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Luke 1:28 – “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you!”
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Luke 2:19 – “Mary kept all these things, pondering them in her heart.”
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Matthew 6:7 – “Do not heap up empty phrases...” (The Rosary is not repetition, but meditation.)
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Galatians 4:4 – “God sent his Son, born of a woman...”
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John 19:27 – “Behold, your mother.”
The Rosary is a Gospel prayer—its mysteries are drawn from Scripture. It allows us to see the life of Christ through the eyes of the one who knew Him best.
🌹 Devotion in Practice
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Pray the Rosary daily – even if it’s just one decade
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Join a parish Rosary group or pray after Mass
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Keep a Rosary with you in your pocket or bag
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Teach the Rosary to a child or a new convert
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Offer your Rosary for the needs of the Church and the world
“The Rosary is the weapon for these times.” – St Padre Pio
👣 The Little Way in Daily Life
Try these Thérèse-inspired acts of love this month:
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Smile when you’d rather complain
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Offer your day’s frustrations for souls
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Write a short note of encouragement
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Do a hidden act of charity
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Say a prayer for someone who annoys you
“I want to spend my heaven doing good on earth.” – St Thérèse
🔥 Saints of October Who Lived the Rosary and the Little Way
St Thérèse of Lisieux – Patroness of Missions, though she never left the cloister
St Francis of Assisi – Simplicity, poverty, and joy
St Teresa of Ávila – Reformer and mystic with a great devotion to the humanity of Christ
St John Paul II – Called the Rosary “my favourite prayer,” and added the Luminous Mysteries
St Luke the Evangelist – The Marian evangelist, with most Rosary mysteries based on his Gospel
✒️ A Poem for October: “Beads of Grace”
They’re simple beads of cord and wood,
Yet wield a strength not understood.
In silent hands, in whispered prayer,
The soul finds peace beyond compare.
A cradle swings in mystery’s sway,
From Bethlehem to Calvary’s day.
And through each Hail, a heart is stirred—
To love the Word, and keep the Word.
O Mary, wrap your chain of light
Around our darkness, doubt, and night.
And lead us by your mother’s care,
To Christ, the joy beyond compare.
⛪ At Every Mass
“Blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus.” – From the Hail Mary
The Mass and the Rosary go hand in hand. At Mass, we offer the mysteries we reflect upon in the Rosary. And in the Rosary, we prepare our hearts to better receive the Eucharist.
When you receive Holy Communion, you carry within you the same Christ you ponder in every decade.
🧠 The 24/7 Catholic Quiz – The Rosary and the Little Way
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What Marian feast is celebrated on 7 October?
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Who instituted this feast and why?
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Which Pope added the Luminous Mysteries to the Rosary?
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How many total mysteries are there in the full Rosary?
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What are the four sets of mysteries called?
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Which Gospel includes the most Marian content?
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What does “rosary” mean in Latin?
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Which saint called the Rosary “the weapon”?
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Who promoted the Rosary during the Battle of Lepanto?
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What year was Rosarium Virginis Mariae published?
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Who is the youngest Doctor of the Church?
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What is the core teaching of the “Little Way”?
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What flowers did Thérèse promise to send from heaven?
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What Carmelite feast falls on 15 October?
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Who is the patron saint of missionaries?
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What phrase is repeated in every Hail Mary?
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What liturgical colour is used for Our Lady’s feasts?
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What prayer begins the Rosary?
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What feast is celebrated on 1 October?
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What’s one way you’ll live the Little Way or the Rosary this month?
✅ Quiz Answers
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Our Lady of the Rosary
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Pope Pius V, after the Battle of Lepanto
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St John Paul II
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Twenty
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Joyful, Sorrowful, Glorious, Luminous
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Luke
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“A crown of roses”
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St Padre Pio
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Pope Pius V
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2002
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St Thérèse of Lisieux
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Doing small things with great love and trust in God
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Roses
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St Teresa of Ávila
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St Thérèse of Lisieux
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“Blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus”
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White or blue
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The Sign of the Cross and the Apostles’ Creed
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St Thérèse of Lisieux
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(Your answer!)
📍 Parish Invitation – Come Pray With Mary
This October, come to Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church in New Milton, and be renewed by the simplicity of prayer.
Bring your Rosary. Bring your burdens. Bring your heart.
Whether you’re a cradle Catholic or just curious, you are welcome.
Pray. Trust. Love. That’s the way of Mary. That’s the way of Thérèse. That’s the way of heaven.
🔗 Visit our parish website
📍 Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, New Milton
✨ Coming Next Month: 1 November 2025
All Saints and All Souls – Hope, Glory, and the Call to Holiness
Enter the month of remembrance with joy, reverence, and renewed purpose.
************Visit Our Parish Website
ourladyoflourdes.co.uk
Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, New Milton
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