The Confraternity of the Holy Rosary: Understanding the Mysteries of Our Faith

If you think back, can you picture your grandmother’s worn fingers, passing effortlessly over her Rosary beads, lips moving silently, as she sat in her favorite rocking chair? Maybe you recall your family’s Lenten resolution to pray at least one decade each Sunday night, before the start of the upcoming week. And yet, the Rosary is a prayer that you’ve never quite managed to adapt into your own practice of the faith.

You’re not alone. Although many Catholics probably own a Rosary, many still find themselves daunted by the prayer, and the beads remain generally untouched.

This was the case for Ascension Mission parishioner Dennis “Devo” Voss until several years ago. Devo began attending Mass with his Catholic wife when their children were young. He became Catholic through the RCIA process not long after, and then started becoming involved in stewardship, but God’s work in His heart was nowhere near complete. One night, while struggling to sleep, he stumbled upon a book that changed his life.

“I see this book called The Secret of the Rosary and it catches my eye,” says Devo. “I see, ‘secrets’ and I love that kind of stuff.”

Devo didn’t sleep that night. Instead, he spent the entire night reading, and the next day researching and learning how to pray the Rosary.

“I go online and I’m learning how to pray the Rosary, and I’m practicing it, and my wife comes home and I say, ‘I’ve been practicing the Rosary, I think we ought to pray it,’” Devo says. “I start explaining the Rosary, and where it’s from, and how it’s the most powerful weapon Mary has given us. Then my wife goes to the closet, pulls out this box and it’s got her grandparents rosaries that the pope had blessed — and the whole time, we’ve had this stuff.”

That was three years ago, and since then, the Rosary has helped to realign Devo’s entire life. He and his wife, Carrie, began praying the Rosary, and one day, while researching and reading, he discovered an international organization — the Confraternity of the Holy Rosary — a group devoted to praying all 20 decades of the Rosary, a practice to which he was already personally committed.

Devo quickly realized that this group was exactly what he was looking for. The former Ohio State Trooper had previously hoped to start an organization within the parish focused on emergency preparedness and defense in case of a violent event. However, upon discovering the Confraternity of the Holy Rosary, he quickly realized that the defense needed was not of a physical nature, but rather, a spiritual one.

He began gathering a group of people to pray the 20-decade Rosary in his home each week — it wasn’t long before the group became too large, so they moved to pray at the mission parish in Puako. With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the group moved the weekly Rosary to a video call. The goal of the group is to teach people the Rosary, pray together, and empower Catholics to share the prayer with others.

Praying the Rosary has also helped Devo come to a greater understanding of his Catholic faith.

“When you pray the Rosary, slow down, pronounce the words, understand what you’re saying because the words of the Rosary are massively powerful,” Devo says. “By praying the Rosary, you start learning the mysteries, you start understanding your Bible. The Rosary helps me understand the mysteries of our faith.”

Last fall, Devo and Carrie, suffered the tragic loss of their middle daughter. Amid intense grief and suffering, they found strength and comfort in their faith and the Rosary.

“Without the Rosary, I have no idea what would’ve happened to us,” Devo says. “We’ve gotten deeper into our faith and stronger, and it’s the love of Mary, and the angels, and saints, and God, that keeps us going.”

Devo encourages his fellow parishioners to come and see what the 20-decade Rosary is all about and consider the role our Blessed Mother may want to play in your life, leading you closer to her Son.

“The confraternity is such a blessing,” Devo says. “Knowing we’re praying this 20-decade Rosary with this confraternity group across the world, it’s more impactful. You’re part of this big thing, and the Holy Spirit is there. It’s very powerful.

“Your Blessed Mother loves you,” he adds. “She wants to get to know you more.”

If you would like more information on the Confraternity of the Holy Rosary, or to join the weekly Rosary, please contact Devo Voss at devo808@aol.com or 808-345-3409. The group meets on Tuesday evenings at 6 p.m.

Founders of our local chapter of the Confraternity of the Holy Rosary, Dennis “Devo” Voss (second from right) and his wife, Carrie (center), along with their daughters Kaila (left) and Tali (second from left), son, Tanu (right), and two grandsons, weeks before their daughter Tali’s passing.