Silent Army Weapons
St. Paul, in Ephesians 6:10-18, gives us a good overview of the armor of God that we should use (click on specific components listed for more details):
Therefore, put on the armor of God, that you may be able to resist on the evil day and, having done everything, to hold your ground. So stand fast with your loins girded in truth, clothed with righteousness as a breastplate, and your feet shod in readiness for the gospel of peace. In all circumstances, hold faith as a shield, to quench all [the] flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. With all prayer and supplication, pray at every opportunity in the Spirit.
When we look at this list, we see that the Bible is at the heart of our armor. As the living Word of God, it leads us to Truth and Faith, shows us the Righteousness of God, and leads us on the path of Peace. Reading and meditating on the Scriptures strengthens our Faith, which is a gift from God, and increases our knowledge about God, which acts as a helmet protecting our thoughts. Finally, the Sword of the Spirit is sharpened by increasing our knowledge of God’s Word.
In addition to frequent (preferably daily) reading of the Holy Scriptures, we are also called to pray. Numerous saints and popes have stated that next to the Sacrifice of the Mass (Eucharist), the Holy Rosary was the most powerful prayer we could offer. In many of Mary’s apparitions, especially at Fatima, she requested us to say the Rosary daily, in reparation for our sins and to gain the conversion of many sinners. God demonstrated the power of the rosary during the Battle of Lepanto in 1571, when a much smaller Catholic fleet defeated the Turkish navy who vastly outnumbered them. This victory was attributed to the fact that the Pope and all of Europe (including those on the Catholic warships) prayed the rosary nearly non-stop.
Even Jesus promoted this powerful prayer. In 1460, Jesus spoke to Blessed Alan de la Roche, telling him: “You are crucifying me again now because you have all the learning and understanding that you need to preach my mother’s rosary, and you are not doing so. If you only did this you could teach many souls the right path and lead them away from sin – but you are not doing it.” More recently (2014), Bishop Oliver Doeme had a vision of Jesus Christ while he was praying the rosary before the Blessed Sacrament. In this vision, Jesus extended a sword toward him, but as soon as Bishop Doeme took the sword, it turned into a rosary. At that moment, Jesus said three times: “Boko Haram is gone.” [Boko Haram is a radical terrorist group in his diocese in Nigeria.] In addition to the rosary, Jesus gave us another powerful devotion that is said on the beads of the rosary – the Divine Mercy Chaplet.
There is another type of prayer that is very powerful, especially for those who are suffering, but sadly has not been well-promoted in today’s world – meditating on the Passion of Jesus Christ. Many saints throughout the centuries have taught us how to do that, and Jesus himself told St. Faustina how much it pleased Him when souls contemplate His Passion. He told her that “There is more merit to one hour of meditation on My sorrowful Passion than there is to a whole year of flagellation that draws blood.” Jesus also appeared to Sr. Mary St. Peter in 1844, when He told her: “Those who will contemplate the wounds on My Face here on earth, shall contemplate it radiant in heaven.” He then gave her a beautiful prayer of reparation called the “Golden Arrow” prayer, as well as the Holy Face chaplet.