The Secret of the Rosary

By Saint Louis de Montfort

"Just as a painter," writes St. Louis de Montfort in The Secret of the Holy Rosary, "who wants to do a life-like portrait places the model before his eyes and looks at it before making each stroke, so the Christian must always have before his eyes the life and virtues of Jesus Christ....." Fr. de Montfort was often called "The priest with big Rosary" by the common folk of Western France. His esteem for the Rosary is the result of his experience of the power of this simple and beautiful prayer to transform the one who prays it regularly into the genuine likeness of Jesus Christ. In this book, Fr. de Montfort shares the secret of what he has learned concerning how to gaze deeply into the Mysteries of Jesus by uniting oneself with the Blessed Mother through the praying of the Rosary. Arranged according to the form of the Rosary itself – each of its chapters is called a “Decade” and is arranged into ten points called “Roses” – St. Louis de Montfort’s explanation of the greatness of one of his favorite forms of prayer is a treasury of penetrating spiritual insight and practical advice for all who desire to draw into their souls the graces of the Mysteries of the Life, Passion and Glory of Our Lord and Our Lady.

This is probably the finest book ever written about the Rosary; it appeals to all ages. St. Louis de Montfort shows the great spiritual power of the Rosary and tells why the Rosary is the most important private prayer. Canon William says of De Montfort's book, "It goes far beyond mere research. We might say that it contains everything that can be said about the Rosary -- its content and form, its real worth, about the instruction necessary for its appreciation and use."