MASTER of the Order of Preachers and UST Chancellor Fr. Gerard Timoner III, O.P. led the faithful in praying the “Healing Rosary for the World” in commemoration of the 800th dies natalis or birth in heaven of St. Dominic de Guzman.
Timoner prayed the rosary inside the cell of St. Dominic at the Convent of Santa Sabina located at the minor basilica and mother church of the Dominicans in Rome.
Timoner, the 87th successor of St. Dominic, said that praying the Holy Rosary and entering into a dialogue with God are sources of hope and power.
“Hope is grounded on the certainty that God will never abandon us. Hope is the assurance that God abides in the mysteries of joys, sorrow, glory and light of our lives…I believe in the power of prayer. I pray because I believe that without God, I am powerless,” Timoner said.
Timoner said prayer could strengthen even the strongest of champions.
“Even strong champions like our very own Hidilyn [Diaz] believed in the power of prayer. She is proud to show two medals: the gold medal from the Olympics and the miraculous medal,” he said.
When Diaz was awarded with the Philippines’ first-ever Olympic gold medal, she was wearing the Miraculous Medal of Our Lady. Diaz has said that God empowered her to lift 127kg in the clean and jerk Olympic event.
The cell where Timoner prayed is said to be the room used by St. Dominic when the convent was entrusted to him by Pope Honorius III in 1219. It was also the place where St. Dominic met his friend, St. Francis of Assisi, according to the Ordo Praedicatorum website.
The prayer event was streamed live on the Manila Cathedral Facebook page and the pages of other church organizations.
In March 2020, the Manila Cathedral initiated the “Healing Rosary for the World,” following the “overwhelming response of Filipinos” who joined Pope Francis’ worldwide rosary for an end to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Jubilee of St. Dominic
The head of the worldwide Dominican Order also set the theme “A Table With St. Dominic” for the jubilee year of the eighth centenary of the dies natalis of the founder of the Order.
Timoner said he was inspired by the ancient Mascarella table where the first-ever portrait of St. Dominic was painted following his canonization in 1234.
In his letter to the Dominican Family last year, Timoner urged Catholics to “celebrate St. Dominic not as a saint alone on a pedestal, but as a saint enjoying table fellowship with his brothers, gathered by the same vocation to preach God’s Word and sharing God’s gift of food and drink.”
UST will commemorate St. Dominic’s 800th dies natalis from Aug. 4 to 7, with two Masses to be led by Manila Archbishop Cardinal Jose Advincula.
