October 15, 2006

The month of October is dedicated to the Holy Rosary and Our Lady of Victory because of the Battle of Lepanto. In 1565, 600 Knights of St. John, commanding an army of 8,000, were defending Malta, having been driven from Rhodes by the Ottoman Turks in 1522. The Muslim armies were conquering Arabia, Iraq, Syria, and North Africa and defeated the Hungarians in 1526. Their plan was to eradicate Christian naval forces from the Mediterranean in order to invade all Europe. When Cyprus was attacked in 1570, Pope Pius V, a Dominican friar and saint, formed an alliance of the Papal States, Spain, Genoa, Venice, and the Knights of Malta. The Pope’s “Holy League” formed a fleet of 300 ships and 30,000 men — roughly the size of the Muslim forces. It was under the command of Don John of Austria, who was only in his twenties, and his assisting admirals were Santa Cruz, Andrea Doria, Agostin Barbarigo and Sebastian Veniero.

With tremendous skill, using 50,000 rowers and calculating the wind power, Don John engaged the Turkish fleet, under the command of Ali Pasha, off the southern coast of Greece in the Gulf of Lepanto. The battle raged for five hours on October 7, 1571. Don John’s losses were 8,000 men killed. The Turks lost 25,000. Among the rescued were 12,000 Christians whom the Muslims had been using as galley slaves. It was the largest naval operation between that of Actium in 30 B.C. and the Normandy Invasion.

In Rome, far from Lepanto, and long before televi­sion and radio and telephones, St. Pius V was not cer­tain of what day the battle would be fought, but was inspired on October 7 to assemble a group in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore to pray the Rosary for victory. Then he shouted out that God had just given the Catholic army a great victory. He had a vision in which he saw the battle just as it had been fought.

Christians believe in “linear” history, which is a progress of time toward a goal, guided providentially by God for a purpose. Similar to the ancient Greeks, Muslims believe in “cyclical” history in which time repeats itself in a succession of events, overseen but not guided by God, although there is moral account­ability for what one does in time. In both views, dates are important; in the linear order as instructive, in the cyclical order as repetitive. While the Battle of Lepanto ruined the Turkish force of 75,000, the Ottomans rallied and besieged Vienna in 1683, and finally were defeated by a Christian alliance headed by the Polish king Jan III Sobieski on September 11.

Armed with no fleet, but with a Rosary, Pope Benedict XVI will go to Turkey November 28-30. For the good of souls, and for peace in the world, this is a time for prayer.

Fr. George W. Rutler