Edward Sri – Franciscan Media

The Greatest Gift We Can Give

Edward Sri — Sun, 16 Mar 2025 09:30:00 +0000

We as human persons are made with infinite desires that only God can fulfill. But because we’re fallen, we tend to live at the level of our superficial desires—desires for comfort, fun, fame, wealth, pleasure, success. These desires are not bad, but the rosary helps us be more aware of the soul’s deepest desires, which are for God. As St. Catherine of Siena taught, the greatest gift we can give to God in prayer is not the finite work of saying the words but our “infinitely desirous love” for God that is expressed in those words and that is being drawn out of our souls in prayer.

—from the book Praying the Rosary Like Never Before: Encounter the Wonder of Heaven and Earth
by Edward Sri

The Two-and-a-Half-Minute Rosary

Edward Sri — Sat, 15 Mar 2025 09:30:00 +0000

Do you have two and-a-half minutes in your day that you can give to God? This is the beauty of the rosary.

If I need a quick pause in my busy life—just a two-and-a-half-minute break—I can pull out my beads and pray a decade in order to regroup with the Lord and be nourished spiritually. That’s all a decade takes: one Our Father, ten Hail Marys, and one Glory Be. I can do that easily, pausing for a moment in between emails, in the car, in my office, in between meetings, in between errands. I don’t even have to stop some things I’m doing: I can pray a decade while cooking dinner, sweeping the floor, holding a baby, or walking to my next appointment.

—from the book Praying the Rosary Like Never Before: Encounter the Wonder of Heaven and Earth
by Edward Sri

The Rosary Has Something for Everyone

Edward Sri — Fri, 14 Mar 2025 09:30:00 +0000

Think of the rosary as being like the ocean: There’s something in it for everyone, whether you consider yourself a veteran mystic longing to go deeper in prayer with our Lord, a novice struggling to learn how to pray, or someone seeking the Lord’s help, right now, with something going on in your life. The deep-sea explorer and the child making sand castles on the beach can fully enjoy the same ocean while playing at different levels. And this is true with the rosary.

—from the book Praying the Rosary Like Never Before: Encounter the Wonder of Heaven and Earth
by Edward Sri

Breathe the Name, Jesus

Edward Sri — Thu, 13 Mar 2025 09:30:00 +0000

A friend of mine suggests that we treat the name of Jesus in the Hail Mary like a speed bump: Slow down as you approach it, and speak it with care and attention. “Blessed is the fruit of thy womb … Jesus.” Let’s speak Jesus’s name with tender love at every Hail Mary in the rosary. Indeed, we should never neglect the power of Christ’s name—the only name under heaven by which we may hope in salvation.

—from the book Praying the Rosary Like Never Before: Encounter the Wonder of Heaven and Earth
by Edward Sri

Desire the Will of God

Edward Sri — Wed, 12 Mar 2025 09:30:00 +0000

We Christians sometimes submit to the Lord’s will begrudgingly, as if it were something burdensome—a sacrifice we must make for the kingdom of God. However, as we grow as God’s children, we begin to realize that his plan for our lives always corresponds to our heart’s deepest longings, to what will truly bring us fulfillment. Though at times very demanding and involving great sacrifices, God’s will is not simply an ethical test we must pass or an external code of behavior to which we must submit. Ultimately, God’s will is written on our hearts and is meant to lead us to a profound peace and happiness, even in the face of trials and sufferings. May we, like Mary, actively desire God’s will to be fulfilled in our lives. May we joyfully embrace his plan for us, not simply as a religious rule to obey but ultimately as the divine pathway to our hearts’ deepest and most noble desires.

—from the book Praying the Rosary Like Never Before: Encounter the Wonder of Heaven and Earth
by Edward Sri

The Divine Artist

Edward Sri — Sat, 08 Jun 2024 09:30:00 +0000

If someone wants to praise an artist, he does so by admiring his art. Leonardo da Vinci would not be upset with people who admire the gaze of his Mona Lisa, and Michelangelo would not be angry with people who admire his “Last Judgment” scene in the Sistine Chapel. No artist would rush into a museum and say, “Stop looking at my works of art! Stop talking about my paintings! You should give all your attention to me!” Rather, the artist is praised when his masterpieces are recognized and celebrated.

In a similar way, God is a divine artist, and his spiritual masterpieces are the saints. The saints are men and women who have been completely transformed by God’s saving grace. We give God great praise when we thank him for the work of salvation he has accomplished in their lives.

—from the book Praying the Rosary Like Never Before: Encounter the Wonder of Heaven and Earth
by Edward Sri