Day 171: Worship the Newborn King
6/20/202612 min
Caravaggio’s Nativity with Saint Francis and Saint Lawrence offers a tender and grounded depiction of Christ’s birth, surrounded not only by the Holy Family but also by saints known for their deep love of poverty. Fr. Mark-Mary uses this scene to lead into the Praises of God by St. Francis, lifting our gaze from the humble manger to the majesty of the One who was born there. We’re invited into deeper awe, love, and surrender by recognizing the greatness of God who chose such lowliness. Today’s focus is the mystery of the Nativity and we will be praying one decade of the Rosary.
All of the Sacred Art we’ll be meditating with can be found in the Rosary in a Year Prayer Guide, for free linked in the complete prayer plan, or in the Ascension App. For the complete prayer plan, visit https://ascensionpress.com/riy.
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsMark-Mary Ames· Host0:00
[gentle music] I'm Father Mark Mary with the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal, and this is the Rosary in a Year podcast, where through prayer and meditation, the Rosary brings us deeper into relationship with Jesus and Mary and becomes a source of grace for the whole world. The Rosary in a Year is brought to you by Ascension. This is day 171. To download the prayer plan for Rosary in a Year, visit ascensionpress.com/rosaryinayear, or text R-I-Y to 33777. You'll get an outline of how we're gonna pray each month, and it's a great way to track your progress. The best place to listen to the podcast is in the Ascension app. There's special features built just for this podcast, and also recordings of the full Rosary with myself and other friars. I encourage you to pick up a copy of the Rosary in a Year Prayer Guide, a book published by Ascension that was designed to complement this podcast. You'll find all the daily readings from Scripture, saint reflections, and beautiful images of the sacred art we'll be reflecting on. Today, we will be meditating upon and praying with the third Joyful Mystery, the Nativity of our Lord, with help from a painting by the artist Caravaggio, entitled Nativity with Saint Francis and Saint Lawrence. Now, a word on our artist and artwork, Caravaggio. We're back with him again. He worked from the year 1571 to 1610. And his painting today that we'll be looking at is Nativity with Saint Francis and Saint