Podcast Summary: The Rosary in a Year – Day 39: In the Garden (2026)

Podcast: The Rosary in a Year (with Fr. Mark-Mary Ames)
Host: Ascension
Date: February 8, 2026
Episode: Day 39: In the Garden (2026)

Episode Overview

In this episode, Fr. Mark-Mary guides listeners into the first Sorrowful Mystery: The Agony in the Garden. Through deep biblical, theological, and personal reflection, he explores Jesus’ agony at Gethsemane, inviting listeners to meditate on Christ as the New Adam, the High Priest, and the Lamb of God. Fr. Mark-Mary encourages listeners to follow Christ’s example of trusting surrender to the Father, especially amid personal anguish and sorrow.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Scriptural Foundation: The Agony in the Garden

(Matthew 26:36–46, 01:01)

• Fr. Mark-Mary reads the Gospel account of Jesus’ prayer and suffering in Gethsemane.
• Focus on Jesus’ words to his disciples, his sorrow “even to death,” and his repeated prayer: “My Father, if it be possible, let this chalice pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will” (03:00).

2. The Significance of Gethsemane – “The Oil Press”

(04:55)

• Gethsemane means “oil press.”
• Symbolism: As olives are crushed to produce anointing oil, Jesus experiences crushing sorrow and agony in the garden.

  “Our Lord. He enters into the oil press in his agony in the garden.” – Fr. Mark-Mary (05:50)

• Suffering leads to life-giving fruit, paralleling olives for oil, wheat for bread, and grapes for wine.

3. The Depth of Christ’s Agony

(06:35)

• Jesus’ sorrow surpasses all others because he grieves not only his own impending death but all human sin.

  “Christ grieved not only over the loss of his own bodily life, but also over the sins of all others.” – St. Thomas Aquinas, quoted by Fr. Mark-Mary (07:15)

• Christ’s suffering is unique in intensity and universality.

4. Levels of Relationship: Jesus and the Disciples

(08:22)

• Three circles: all disciples, the inner three (Peter, James, John), and Jesus alone in prayer.
• Mirrors the Old Testament’s Temple: the outer court, inner court, and the Holy of Holies.

  “Jesus goes to... the new holy of holies, the secret room that he alludes to in the Sermon on the Mount.” (09:08)

5. Jesus as the New Adam

(10:12)

• Adam’s sin: distrusting God, abusing freedom, choosing self over God.
• Jesus’ response: perfect trust, obedience, self-surrender to the Father’s will.

  “He will use his freedom to say yes to the will of the Father... even to the total sacrificing of himself.” (11:50)

• Direct reflection on Catechism paragraph 397 about the Fall.

6. The “Holy of Holies”: Intimacy with the Father

(13:15)

• Jesus’s prayer is focused on intimacy, trust, and surrender: “My Father, Thy will be done.”
• Fr. Mark-Mary highlights the personal trust and loving relationship at the heart of Jesus’ prayer.

  “The One who knows me and the One who I know, the One who hears me and the One to whom I speak...” (13:35)

7. Jesus as the High Priest and the Lamb

(15:30)

• Drawing from Hebrews 5:7: Jesus “offered up prayers and supplications with loud cries and tears...”
• Jesus is both the priest making the offering and the sacrificial victim.

  “He doesn’t offer the offerings like the other priests did. ...What we have here is Jesus, the high priest, who is both the priest offering the sacrifice and the sacrifice offered.” (17:10)

• Ultimate trust that God’s goodness, not death, will have the final word.

8. Jesus’ Agony as the Offering of All Human Anguish

(18:20)

• Quoting Pope Benedict XVI:

  “Jesus, he holds up to God the anguish of human existence... He brings man before God and his obedience becomes life for all.” (18:30)

• Listeners are invited to join Jesus in this prayerful surrender amid their own suffering.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Christ’s trust and obedience:

  “He will not abuse his freedom. He will be obedient to God’s command. And he will not choose himself over and against God.” — Fr. Mark-Mary (11:45)

• On intimacy in prayer:

  “I know you see me. I know you hear me. ...I bring to you my heart. I bring to you my sorrow. But I trust, I trust — not my will, but your will be done.” — Fr. Mark-Mary (14:05)

• On the outcome of Christ’s suffering:

  “His passion and his death will not have the final word, but he will rise from the dead, conquering death. Life will have the final word. The Father’s goodness will have the final word.” — Fr. Mark-Mary (17:55)

• Quoting Pope Benedict XVI:

  “He holds up to God the anguish of human existence. Here in his agony, he’s holding up the fullness of the anguish of human existence.” (18:30)

Key Timestamps

• 01:01 – Gospel reading: The Agony in the Garden
• 04:55 – Meaning and symbolism of “Gethsemane”
• 06:35 – The depth of Jesus’ sorrow and St. Thomas Aquinas’ insight
• 08:22 – Levels of relationship in the Garden
• 10:12 – Jesus as the New Adam; Catechism on Adam’s sin
• 13:15 – Jesus’ prayer: Intimacy with the Father
• 15:30 – Jesus as priest and sacrificial lamb; Hebrews 5:7
• 18:20 – Pope Benedict XVI on Jesus’ agony as the offering for all humanity

Reflection & Takeaway

• Fr. Mark-Mary invites listeners to join Jesus in the “inner sanctum” of his Gethsemane prayer, entrusting all suffering and sorrow to the Father with faithful surrender.

  “In those areas where life is difficult... let’s entrust all things to him by saying, thy will be done, Father. Your will be done with confidence that his goodness will have the final and everlasting word.” — Fr. Mark-Mary (19:10)

Closing Prayer

The episode concludes with an Our Father, three Hail Marys, and a Glory Be, encouraging listeners to continue praying and entrusting themselves to God.

For more resources and the full prayer plan, visit Ascension’s Rosary in a Year page.