Alanus de Rupe

Life

Born in Dinan, Brittany in around 1428, he entered the Dominican Order in 1459 at age thirty-one. While pursuing his studies at Saint Jacques, Paris, he distinguished himself in philosophy and theology. From 1459 to 1475 he taught almost uninterruptedly at Paris, Lille, Douay, Ghent, and Rostock in Germany, where, in 1473, he was made Master of Sacred Theology. During his sixteen years of teaching he became a most renowned preacher. He was indefatigable in what he regarded as his special mission, the preaching and re-establishment of the Rosary, which he did with success throughout northern France, Flanders, and the Netherlands. He established a Confraternity of the Psalter of the Glorious Virgin Mary, around 1470 which was instrumental in disseminating the rosary throughout Europe.

Alanus published nothing during his lifetime, but immediately after his death the brethren of his province were commanded to collect his writings for publication. These were edited at different times and have occasioned some controversy among scholars.

Alanus on Dominic and the Rosary

According to an old Dominican tradition, in the early 13th century, Dominic de Guzmán was distressed at his lack of success in his preaching against the Albigensians and prayed to the Virgin Mary for help. She reportedly appeared to him and told him to use her psalter in conjunction with his preaching. This psalter, a custom of praying 150 Hail Marys rather than Psalms, developed into the Rosary.

This traditional origin for the Rosary was generally accepted, including by many popes and figures such as Louis De Montfort, until the 17th century, when Bollandists concluded that the account originated with Alanus, writing over two hundred years after Dominic's life. Alanus attributed his descriptions of Dominic to a 1460 vision; later authors have suggested that he may have invented them to enliven sermons. John T. McNicholas, a Catholic bishop, held that Alanus's accounts should not be regarded as historical. Although historical evidence for Dominic's role in the origin of the Rosary is lacking and has been questioned by scholars such as the Bollandists, several popes after the 17th century, including Pope Leo XIII and Pope Pius XI, continued to attribute its origin to Dominic in official documents such as encyclicals.

Fifteen Rosary promises

According to Alanus, Mary made fifteen specific promises through Dominic de Guzmán to those who faithfully pray the Rosary. The fifteen Rosary promises range from protection from misfortune to meriting a high degree of glory in heaven.

Notes

References

1. (1902). "Alan de Rupe and his Indulgence of 60,000 Years". The Month.
2. (1902). "Alan de Rupe and his Indulgence of 60,000 Years". The Month.
3. Gambero, Luigi. (November 2, 2010). "Mary in the Middle Ages: The Blessed Virgin Mary in the Thought of Medieval Latin Theologians". Ignatius Press.
4. A sister of the Congregation of St. Catharine of Siena (Stone). (1901). "Short Lives of the Dominican Saints". Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner & Co..
5. de Montfort, Louis. (1710). "Le Secret de Rosaire.".
6. [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01246a.htm McNicholas, John. "Alanus de Rupe." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. 2 Aug. 2014]
7. Ashley, Benedict. (2009). "The Dominicans". Wipf & Stock Publishers.
8. [https://catholicsaints.info/saints-of-the-day-blessed-alanus-de-rupe/ Rabenstein, Katherine I. ''Saints of the Day'', 1998. CatholicSaints.Info. 26 July 2020]
9. A list of writings attributed to Alanus was compiled by J. G. T. Graesse in ''Trésor des livres rares et précieux'' (1859).[https://archive.org/details/trsordelivresr06gr Graesse, J.G.T., ''Trésor des livres rares et précieux'', Volume 6, pt. 1, pg 193, 1859].
10. (2015-10-07). "15 Super Promises of Our Blessed Mother for Faithfully Praying the Rosary".
11. [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/13184b.htm Thurston, Herbert, and Andrew Shipman. "The Rosary." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 13. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 30 April 2014]
12. "Supremi Apostolatus Officio (September 1, 1883) {{!}} LEO XIII".
13. "Octobri Mense (September 22, 1891) {{!}} LEO XIII".
14. "Magnae Dei Matris (September 8, 1892) {{!}} LEO XIII".
15. "Ingravescentibus Malis (September 29, 1937) {{!}} PIUS XI".
16. "The Rosary & St. Dominic".
17. [http://www.rosary-center.org/nconobl.htm Rosary Center, Dominican Fathers]
18. "The 15 Promises of the Rosary - Dominican Friars".