Presenting Josephine Lombardi, P.h.D

An Introduction
The Rosary is a prayer centred on the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. We meditate on the mysteries pertaining to the life of Jesus and key moments in Mary’s own life as well. Mary’s contribution and participation in God’s redemptive plan is a reminder that we are all called to participate in God’s plan for all creation.

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The First Luminous Mystery:

The Baptism of Jesus

I was baptized when I was 2 ½ years old because my parents could not agree on who the godparents would be. On the day of my baptism I became a daughter of God and a member of the Catholic Church. This mystery honours the account of Jesus being baptized by John the Baptist in the River Jordan.

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The Second Luminous Mystery:

The Wedding at Cana

Have you ever felt like you were running on empty? No energy or stamina to do God’s will or to perform some task? Has the wine run dry in your life? This mystery marks the first of Jesus’ signs in the Gospel of John. It reveals the power of Jesus to transform and replenish in times of spiritual and material drought.

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The Third Luminous Mystery:

The Proclamation of the Kingdom

We believe that God can make us new and will show us how to reconcile with others. Jesus used several parables referring to the kingdom. In one parable he tells us that the kingdom of God is like a mustard seed. The seed for the kingdom is within us, but it awaits nourishment that can only come from belief, love, humility and openness to change.

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Meet Josephine Lombardi, Ph.D.

Dr. Lombardi has worked as a parish minister, university campus minister, high school chaplaincy leader, teacher educator through O.E.C.T.A., professor of Religious Education, Brock University, retreat facilitator, faith formation consultant, and program coordinator in the Diocese of Hamilton. Presently, she is Associate Professor of Pastoral and Systematic Theology, Professor of Field Education, and Director of Lay Formation for St. Augustine’s Seminary in Scarborough, Ontario.

Read Josephine Lombardi's book "Living with the Rosary"

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She has done media work in radio and television and has been an advisor to the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops in the area of doctrine and Catholic-Muslim relations. Her book, On Earth as it is in Heaven, has been featured on CTS and Salt and Light Television.

More recently, she has been appointed Series Theologian for the new Religious Education curriculum for grades 1 through 8, “Growing in Faith, Growing in Christ” for Catholic School Boards in Ontario, Alberta and Saskatchewan.

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The Fourth Luminous Mystery:

The Transfiguration

Jesus takes Peter, James and James’ brother John to a high mountain. Much to their surprise, they witness Jesus transfigured before them. To be transfigured means to be changed into something nobler or more beautiful. His “face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white.” Jesus reveals his body in its glorified state to his friends.

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The Fifth Luminous Mystery:

The First Eucharist

The Eucharist brings us into this mystery. The word Eucharist comes from a Greek word meaning thanksgiving, gratitude, favour, or grace. We give thanks and receive the body of Christ. The Holy Spirit transforms the bread and wine into the body and blood of Jesus Christ. What we see is bread and wine, but the substance has been completely transformed

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