Reciting the Rosary in #OperationMarketGarden & #ABridgeTooFar

 Robert Redford's character, Major Julian Cook, 3rd Battalion Commander, in the film "A Bridge too Far" about WWII "Operation Market Garden" recites "Hail Mary" in this trailer @2:00

A clip from the documentary film "Maggie's War: A True Story of Courage, Leadership, and Valor in World War II" confirms "A Bridge Too Far" anecdote: @4:50 Batt Cmdr reciting rosary crossing Waal River under Nazi gunfire:

A BBC documentary blames the British tank commander for refusing to advance to relieve British paratroops and scotching the whole operation.





On twitter, protestants were slagging off Catholics who recite the rosary:

Repeating the rosary endlessly about Mary is not worship? .@adagioforstring @gloryoftheSon @TalonsPoint @toby_dorena @GaryDotson
— Chuck Plum (@ChuckUmeboshi) May 17, 2014

I countered that the Bible cautions specifically against vain repetition vs just plain repetition:

@gloryoftheSon @toby_dorena @antignostic @ChuckUmeboshi @TalonsPoint @GaryDotson Think key word in quote is adjective "vain"
— Bossy Adagio (@adagioforstring) May 18, 2014

Emily Cavins in her October 13, 2015 article "Is the Rosary ‘Vain Repetition’?" corroborates my POV with a Bible Quote point - counter point debate:

"Oftentimes, Matthew 6:7 is cited as the basis for criticizing the Rosary, since some translations of this verse use the phrase 'vain repetitions,' and the recitation of ten Hail Mary prayers within a decade of the Rosary could be seen as such. In the Revised Standard Version – Catholic Edition, however, it reads, 'And in praying do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard for their many words.'
If the Rosary WAS vain repetition, then this criticism may be valid. In reality though, it is anything but vain! Here’s a well-known Scripture verse that certainly applies to the Rosary: 'Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man has great power in its effects' (James 5:16)."

So, I don't know if this website is correct in its characterization:

As bullets and shrapnel tore through the vulnerable paratroopers, Cook, a devout Catholic, recited the Rosary loudly, giving his men inspiration in a desperate situation.

I suspect if there were Protestants in the boat, they were extremely annoyed at hearing an "evil" "pagan idol worshiper" reciting what some Protestants believe to be blasphemy....but they got across and completed their leg of the mission, regardless.