Day 170: Grit and Grace - The Rosary in a Year (with Fr. Mark-Mary Ames)

Summary4 min read

Podcast Summary: Day 170: Grit and Grace

Podcast Information

Title: The Rosary in a Year (with Fr. Mark-Mary Ames)
Host/Author: Ascension
Description: Fr. Mark-Mary Ames, CFR, leads listeners through a transformative journey of prayer and meditation using the Rosary. The podcast aims to help individuals build a daily prayer habit, deepen their relationship with Jesus and Mary, explore the Rosary's biblical foundations, and more.

Episode Overview

Episode Title: Day 170: Grit and Grace
Release Date: June 19, 2025

In this 170th episode, Fr. Mark-Mary Ames delves into the second Joyful Mystery of the Rosary—the Visitation. Using Antonio Barluzzi's mosaic from the Church of the Visitation as a focal point, Fr. Mark explores the virtues of grit and grace embodied by Mary during her arduous journey to visit her cousin Elizabeth.

Key Sections and Discussions

1. Introduction to Day 170

Timestamp: [00:00] - [01:01]

Fr. Mark-Mary opens the episode by welcoming listeners and providing information on accessing the Rosary in a Year prayer plan. He emphasizes the importance of building a consistent prayer habit and expresses gratitude to supporters of the podcast.

2. Exploring the Second Joyful Mystery: The Visitation

Timestamp: [01:01] - [04:30]

Fr. Mark introduces the second Joyful Mystery—the Visitation—highlighting its significance in deepening one's relationship with Jesus and Mary. He presents the artwork that will serve as the meditation focus for the episode.

3. The Mosaic by Antonio Barluzzi

Timestamp: [04:30] - [06:45]

The episode features a detailed description of Antonio Barluzzi's 1955 mosaic titled "The Visitation." Key elements include:

Mary's Journey: Depicted as traveling on a donkey through a rugged landscape between Nazareth and Ein Kerem.
Angelic Presence: Three winged angels accompany Mary on her journey, symbolizing prayerful guardianship.
Elizabeth's Anticipation: A solitary woman stands near Ein Kerem, awaiting Mary's arrival with eager anticipation.

Fr. Mark emphasizes Barluzzi's unique ability to translate Christian mysteries into sacred architecture, blending Byzantine and Romanesque styles with modern techniques.

4. Meditation on Mary’s Grit

Timestamp: [06:45] - [08:38]

Fr. Mark uses the mosaic to highlight Mary's strength and perseverance. He notes, “Mary is being accompanied by the angels, but not carried by the angels” ([06:50]). This depiction underscores Mary's grit—her inner toughness and determination to undertake a challenging journey driven by love and obedience.

He reflects on personal feelings about portraying Mary as vulnerable versus fragile, ultimately celebrating her as a symbol of resilience:

“This is a manifestation of her grit, like of her interior toughness that allowed her to freely enter that space and to persevere on the journey because her cousin was in need.” ([07:45])

5. The Virtue of Grit in Christian Life

Timestamp: [08:38] - [12:11]

Fr. Mark references the Catechism (paragraph 1804) to define virtues as “firm attitudes, stable dispositions, habitual perfections of intellect and will” that guide moral conduct. He distinguishes between temporary grit and the enduring perseverance required in the Christian journey:

“In the Christian life, it's not just a passing grit, it's not like a grit sprint. It's an ultra marathon of grit, the giving of oneself throughout one's entire life.” ([07:30])

Using Mary's 70-mile journey as an analogy, he encourages listeners to embrace a life of heroic charity and sacrificial love, mirroring Mary's motivation driven by divine love, obedience, and grace.

6. Call to Action and Prayer

Timestamp: [12:11] - [12:45]

Concluding the meditation, Fr. Mark urges listeners to draw inspiration from Mary’s grit and recommit to laying a natural foundation for grace through human effort. He invites them to join in prayer, reinforcing the episode's themes of perseverance and divine support.

Notable Quotes

On Mary's Accompaniment by Angels:

“Mary is being accompanied by the angels, but not carried by the angels.” ([06:50])
On the Nature of Virtues:

“Human virtues are firm attitudes, stable dispositions, habitual perfections of intellect and will that govern our actions, order our passions and guide our conduct according to reason and faith.” ([07:10])
On the Christian Journey as an Ultramarathon:

“In the Christian life, it's not just a passing grit, it's not like a grit sprint. It's an ultra marathon of grit, the giving of oneself throughout one's entire life.” ([07:30])
On Mary's Motivation:

“She did it for love. The why and the how are the same. They are love.” ([07:50])
Encouragement to Listeners:

“We have not signed up for an easy pilgrimage. It's not meant to be a casual walk in the park like we're meant for heroic charity and to lay down our very lives, just as Jesus did.” ([08:30])

Conclusion

In "Day 170: Grit and Grace," Fr. Mark-Mary Ames eloquently intertwines art, scripture, and personal reflection to illuminate the profound virtues exemplified by Mary during the Visitation. By focusing on Mary's grit—her steadfastness and resilience driven by divine love—listeners are inspired to embrace a similar perseverance in their spiritual journeys. This episode serves as a powerful reminder of the strength found in faith and the enduring grace that accompanies a life committed to holiness.

For the complete prayer plan and more insights, visit Ascension Press.

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Transcript75 lines

[00:00]
Mark Mary
Foreign Mark Mary with Franciscan Friars, the Renewal and this is the Rosary in 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.
[00:20]
Franciscan Friar
This is day 170.
[00:22]
Mark Mary
To download the prayer plan for Rosary in a year, visit ascensionpress.com rosary in a year or text RIY to 33777. You'll get an outline of how we're going to pray each month and it's a great way to track your progress. The best place to listen to the Podcast in the Ascension app. There are special features built just for this podcast and also recordings of the full rosary with myself and other friars. On behalf of myself and the whole team here at Ascension, we wanted to take this opportunity to thank everyone who's helped support this podcast financially. Your generosity is so appreciated and helps us to reach as many people as possible. And if you haven't already, please consider supporting us@ascensionpress.com support.
[01:02]
Franciscan Friar
Today we will be meditating upon and praying with the second joyful mystery, the Visitation, with help from a mosaic, which we will call the Mosaic adorning the front of the Church of the Visitation, depicting the scene of Mary's visit to Elizabeth at the Church of the Visitation by the artist Antonio Barluzzi. Now, brief introduction to our artist and artwork. Barluzzi was born in the year 1884. He died in the year 1960, and he was an Italian architect renowned for his sacred architecture in the Holy Land, earning him the title Architect of the Holy Land. His work reflects deep religious devotion and a unique ability to translate Christian mysteries into architectural forms. Barlucci combined Byzantine and Romanesque elements with modern techniques over his career, he built and restored 24 churches, hospitals and schools between the years 1912 and 1955. The mosaic that we are looking at today was completed in the year 1955 and now our description. At the center of this mosaic, Mary is depicted seated on a donkey cloaked in white, traveling through a dry, rocky landscape. She journeys between two distant towns labeled in embedded tiles as Nazareth and Ein Kerem. Positioned around her are three winged angels dressed in tunics and sandals, walking in accompaniment, who in solemn procession. Their posture and presence suggests a prayerful guardianship as they accompany Mary and her unborn son. Above, in the deep cobalt sky, three more winged angels fly above her horizontally, traveling in the same direction as Mary. In the distance, near Ein Caram, a solitary woman stands outside to Elizabeth, her posture one of eager anticipation as she awaits the arrival of her cousin with attentive expectation. Okay, so the particular detail that I want to use at the jumping off point for our meditation today is that Mary is being accompanied by the angels, but not carried by the angels. Right. Angels have certainly shown themselves to be a very consistent theme in the artwork we spent time with up to this point. And as has been noted in the artwork depicting Mary's assumption to heaven, Mary's often shown as being carried more than escorted by angels to heaven. But today, right in this mosaic of the visitation, Mary is traversing this arduous path on the back of a saddle less donkey. And the characteristic or the virtue of Mary that I believe this speaks to is her grit. To be honest, during our episodes on the Joyful Mysteries where I was highlighting the role of Joseph in accompanying and providing for Mary, I was a little self conscious, still am, about overplaying Mary as being perhaps like helpless or fragile. Because there's a big difference between being vulnerable and being fragile. The young virgin that the angel appeared to and that Joseph would accompany, like she was vulnerable. Like there's just a truth about a single woman traversing a country trail into a distant city in which she is vulnerable to the elements, to robbers, etc. But also this is a manifestation of her grit, like of her interior toughness that allowed her to freely enter that space and to persevere on the journey because her cousin was in need. I want to pause here for a second to have an extended quote from the Catechism, and This is paragraph 1804. Human virtues are firm attitudes, stable dispositions, habitual perfections of intellect and will that govern our actions, order our passions and guide our conduct according to reason and faith. They make possible ease, self mastery and joy in leading a morally good life. The virtuous man is he who practices the good. The moral virtues are acquired by human effort. Like moral virtues, the virtuous life requires human effort to possess ourselves through self mastery and to give ourselves in sacrificial love. It requires hard work, self denial, discipline and perseverance. It requires grit. In the Christian life, it's not just a passing grit, it's not like a grit sprint. It's an ultra marathon of grit, the giving of oneself throughout one's entire life. And I use ultramarathon here because the journey that Mary makes in the visitation from Nazareth to Judea, it's not just a marathon, right? It's a 70 mile plus journey which in modern times is considered an ultra marathon. And. And Mary did it. And Here, I believe, like why she did it and how she did it are a bit the same. She did it for love. The why and the how are the same. They are love. She was driven by charity and she was driven by obedience. And she was driven by the grace of God. And these fuel sources like love, especially divine love, obedience and duty and trust and the grace of God are the most powerful, powerful of motivators and fuel sources. Mary wasn't driven by a need to prove herself, which is a fuel source that drives a lot of us, right? She wasn't driven by that, she wasn't pushed on by some need for self flagellation and she wasn't being refueled by a high calorie like performance gels, right? In the visitation to her cousin Elizabeth, the Blessed Mother, this young, vulnerable teenage girl, she made an arduous journey, a literal modern day ultramarathon, escorted by angels built upon grit, driven by love, directed by obedience and nourished by heavenly grace. My brothers and sisters, we have not signed up for an easy pilgrimage. It's not meant to be a casual walk in the park like we're meant for heroic charity and to lay down our very lives, just as Jesus did. Through our prayer today, let us be inspired by Mary's grit and let's recommit ourselves to the human effort necessary to lay that natural foundation that grace desires to perfect. And now with Mary, let us pray.
[08:38]
Participant 1
In the name of the Father and.
[08:40]
Participant 2
Of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
[08:42]
Participant 3
Amen.
[08:44]
Franciscan Friar
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
[09:08]
Participant 3
Amen.
[09:10]
Participant 4
Hail Mary, full of grace.
[09:11]
Franciscan Friar
The Lord is with the. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed.
[09:16]
Participant 5
Is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
[09:19]
Participant 1
Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for.
[09:21]
Participant 2
Us sinners now and at the hour of our death.
[09:24]
Participant 3
Amen.
[09:27]
Participant 4
Hail Mary, full of grace.
[09:28]
Franciscan Friar
The Lord is with the. Blessed art thou among women and blessed.
[09:32]
Participant 5
Is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
[09:35]
Participant 1
Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for.
[09:37]
Participant 2
Us sinners now and at the hour of our death.
[09:40]
Participant 3
Amen.
[09:42]
Participant 4
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with the.
[09:45]
Franciscan Friar
Blessed art thou among women, and blessed.
[09:48]
Participant 5
Is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
[09:51]
Participant 1
Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for.
[09:53]
Participant 2
Us sinners now and at the hour of our death.
[09:57]
Participant 3
Amen.
[09:58]
Participant 4
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord.
[10:01]
Franciscan Friar
Is with the Blessed art thou among Women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
[10:07]
Participant 1
Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for.
[10:10]
Participant 2
Us sinners now and at the hour of our death.
[10:13]
Participant 3
Amen.
[10:15]
Participant 4
Hail Mary, full of grace.
[10:16]
Franciscan Friar
The Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the.
[10:21]
Participant 5
Fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
[10:24]
Participant 1
Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for.
[10:26]
Participant 2
Us sinners now and at the hour of our death.
[10:29]
Participant 3
Amen.
[10:31]
Participant 4
Hail Mary, full of grace.
[10:33]
Franciscan Friar
The Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the.
[10:37]
Participant 5
Fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
[10:40]
Participant 1
Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for.
[10:42]
Participant 2
Us sinners now and at the hour of our death.
[10:45]
Participant 3
Amen.
[10:47]
Participant 4
Hail Mary, full of grace.
[10:49]
Franciscan Friar
The Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the.
[10:53]
Participant 5
Fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
[10:56]
Participant 1
Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for.
[10:58]
Participant 2
Us sinners now and at the hour of our death.
[11:01]
Participant 3
Amen.
[11:03]
Participant 4
Hail Mary, full of grace.
[11:05]
Franciscan Friar
The Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the.
[11:09]
Participant 5
Fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
[11:12]
Participant 1
Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for.
[11:14]
Participant 2
Us sinners now and at the hour of our death.
[11:17]
Participant 3
Amen.
[11:19]
Participant 4
Hail Mary, full of grace.
[11:20]
Franciscan Friar
The Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the.
[11:25]
Participant 5
Fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
[11:27]
Participant 1
Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for.
[11:30]
Participant 2
Us sinners now and at the hour of our death.
[11:33]
Participant 3
Amen.
[11:35]
Participant 4
Hail Mary, full of grace.
[11:37]
Franciscan Friar
The Lord is with the blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the.
[11:42]
Participant 5
Fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
[11:44]
Participant 1
Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for.
[11:47]
Participant 2
Us sinners now and at the hour of our death.
[11:50]
Participant 3
Amen.
[11:51]
Franciscan Friar
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end.
[12:00]
Participant 3
Amen.
[12:01]
Participant 2
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
[12:05]
Participant 3
Amen.
[12:06]
Franciscan Friar
All right. Thanks so much for joining me and praying with me today. I look forward to continuing this journey with you again tomorrow.
[12:11]
Participant 4
Poco.
[12:12]
Franciscan Friar
Poco. Friends. God bless you all.