On 22 October, the Church celebrates the memorial of Pope Saint John Paul II, precisely on the date when, in 1978, he officially began his ministry as the Successor of Peter. We can still hear ringing in our ears the words spoken by the Polish Pope during his homily that day: “Do not be afraid! Open wide, indeed, open wide the doors to Christ. Open to his saving power the boundaries of states, economic and political systems, the vast fields of culture, of civilisation and of development. Do not be afraid!”

It was with this same cry and the same challenge that he travelled around the world countless times, even when illness confined him to a wheelchair and weakened his body to such an extent that, the last time he appeared at the window for the Sunday Angelus, just a few days before his death, he was unable to utter a word.

Yet there was something very close to his heart that undoubtedly sustained him through so many obstacles: his devotion to Our Lady and the filial bond he had with her as a son with his mother. So much so that even his motto was addressed to her: “Totus tuus”, “Totally yours”, words taken from Saint Louis Marie Grignion de Montfort’s little book True Devotion to Mary. John Paul himself speaks about this choice in his 2002 Apostolic Letter on the Rosary.

And since we are in the month dedicated to the prayer of the Rosary, it is fitting to return to what he wrote in Rosarium Virginis Mariae in 2002. John Paul reminds us that, with its gentle rhythm, the Rosary helps us to meditate on the mysteries of Christ’s life through the eyes of the one who was closest to him (par. 12).

It was also in this Apostolic Letter that the Mysteries of Light were introduced. Through them, alongside the mysteries of Christ’s birth, Passion and Resurrection, we also contemplate his public ministry. Saint George Preca had likewise proposed a similar private devotion to the members of the Society of Christian Doctrine, M.U.S.E.U.M.

Perhaps, during these remaining days of the month dedicated to the prayer of the Rosary, it would not be a bad idea to take John Paul II’s advice: to sit beside Mary our Mother and let her turn the pages of Jesus’ photo album for us as we pray the Rosary. Let us allow her to guide us and point out to us details of God’s love for us that we so often overlook. In this way, little by little, she will lead us towards a clearer vision of Jesus and, like her, help us to reach the point of giving our whole lives to him.