Pray the Rosary -
Often:
It Will Change Your Life!

The rosary as we know it today comes from St. Dominic who was instructed in the prayer by the Virgin Mary herself in a vision. She told him that it would be a most powerful protection against evil. The power of this prayer has been demonstrated innumerable times throughout the centuries since. Although generally associated with the Catholic faith, many Protestants are discovering the beauty of this prayer. Many people assume that because so many "Hail Mary's" are prayed that the Rosary's focus is on Mary, not God. This is simply not true. The humble Virgin Mary never seeks glory for herself but rather wants to assist others to grow in their knowledge and love of God. Mary and the saints are not worshiped but only given the honor due them for faithfully living out the will of God. The Mother of God is honored the most of all the saints as she conformed herself to God's will most perfectly. By honoring her we are really giving honor to God for His creation of such a beautiful creature. She, of all the saints is our prime model and intercessor. God has made her our Mother too, and she loves every soul that God creates with a greater love than any other human mother can. This is because she sees the image of her Son, her God, in every person.

So, how can the rosary help us to be pure in body, mind, and spirit?

It is a well known fact that when we associate with certain people we begin to resemble them in our thoughts and actions. To pray the rosary is to choose to "hang out" if you will with the holiest people that ever lived: Jesus and Mary along with St. Joseph, John the Baptist, the disciples, etcetera - you get what I mean. However, when we are in a state of sin, associating with people who are holy can be a bit uncomfortable. While meditating on the lives and choices made by these people who placed God above all things I was led to see those areas of my life that needed to be changed so as to conform more closely with the new life given to me in baptism. With each ten Hail Marys prayed we meditate on a scene from the life of Jesus and in doing so gain insights into how we can be more like Him in our own lives. That is the goal after all: to become more like God as He originally created us to be. Now you would not hesitate to ask a friend to pray for you in time of need and so we ask our Mother Mary to pray for us to the Father knowing that God in His love for His most perfect creature hears and will not fail to answer the prayer she makes on our behalf.

Okay, so how does one go about praying the Rosary? First we place ourselves in the Presence of God and quiet ourselves as much as we are able to. We begin by grasping the crucifix marking ourselves with the sign of the cross, that ancient gesture communicating to ourselves and to the world just Who it is we belong to: the Triune God. We then kiss the crucifix.

Holding the crucifix, the is recited slowly and thoughtfully, recalling that countless Christian martyrs died over the centuries for each point of dogma proclaimed in it.

After this, on the bead next to the crucifix, the are prayed asking Our Lady to intercede on our behalf for the theological virtues of faith, hope, and love.

After this on the chain following the three beads we pray the prayer invoking and giving praise to the Trinity.

Now we begin the first decade starting with an Our Father followed by ten Hail Mary's. However, before we begin each decade we announce the first mystery we will meditate on. The Church has formalized mysteries of the rosary grouping them as to whether they are Joyful, Luminous, Sorrowful, or Glorious. The Joyful mysteries are: Apostles Creed is recited slowly and thoughtfully, recalling that countless Christian martyrs died over the centuries for each point of dogma proclaimed in it.

After this, on the bead next to the crucifix, the Our Father is prayed. Some people like to offer this prayer for the intentions of the Pope.

On the next three beads three Hail Mary's are prayed asking Our Lady to intercede on our behalf for the theological virtues of faith, hope, and love.

After this on the chain following the three beads we pray the Glory Be prayer invoking and giving praise to the Trinity.

Now we begin the first decade starting with an Our Father followed by ten Hail Mary's. However, before we begin each decade we announce the first mystery we will meditate on. The Church has formalized mysteries of the rosary grouping them as to whether they are Joyful, Luminous, Sorrowful, or Glorious. The Joyful mysteries are:

1. The Annunciation to Our Lady that she would be the Mother of the Redeemer and her 'yes' to God's will.

2. The Visitation when Mary went in haste to offer assistance to her aged cousin Elizabeth, also with child.

3. The Nativity, or birth of Our Lord in the humble stable in Bethlehem.

4. The Presentation of Our Lord in the temple 40 days after His birth.

5. The Finding of Our Lord in the Temple when He was twelve years old and stayed behind in Jerusalem after Passover.

The Luminous mysteries or the Mysteries of Light are the most recent addition to the rosary given to us by the late Holy Father,
Pope John Paul II. These emphasize the public life and ministry of Jesus. They are:

1. The Baptism of Our Lord in the Jordan River by His cousin, John the Baptist.

2. The Wedding at Cana when Jesus turned water in wine for the newly married couple, His first public miracle.

3. The Proclamation of the Kingdom, specifically the teachings of Jesus Who calls each of us to repentance.

4. The Transfiguration on Mount Tabor when Jesus was transfigured before His disciple eyes, revealing His Divinity.

5. The Institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper.

The Sorrowful mysteries help us to appreciate the great love that God has for us in giving up His only Son for the forgiveness of our sins. They are:

1. The Agony in Garden on the night before Jesus died.

2. The Scourging, when Jesus was mercilessly whipped by the Roman soldiers.

3. The Crowning with Thorns, the only time that Jesus allowed men to crown Him.

4. The Carrying of the Cross up the hill to Calvary, the place where He would be crucified.

5. The Crucifixion and Death of Our Lord for the sins of all men of all time.

Finally, the Glorious mysteries focus on the hope we have as Christians for heaven and life everlasting with God.

1. The Resurrection on Easter Sunday.

2. The Ascension, when 40 days after the Resurrection Jesus was taken up to heaven.

3. Pentecost or, the coming of the Holy Spirit in the upper room nine days following the Ascension.

4. Mary's Assumption into heaven at the end of her earthly life.

5. The Coronation of the Mother of God as Queen of the Universe.

Now, some of you might be put off by the last two mysteries thinking that we Catholics just made them up, as nowhere are they specifically mentioned in the Bible. There do happen to be supporting scriptures for these mysteries of our faith, but they are veiled references. The Catholic Church relies on scripture as well as Tradition and the Tradition that has been carefully handed down to us from the very earliest ages in the Church is the belief that Mary was bodily assumed into heaven at the end of her life. This has been affirmed by the Church Fathers from the beginnings of Christianity. God would not allow that most pure vessel, the Holy of Holies that carried Our Lord to undergo the corruption of death. Also, the dogma that Mary was crowned Queen goes along with the Hebrew scriptures where the emphasis was always placed upon the queen mothers of David's descendants. She was more powerful than any of the kings' wives (and there were often many).

The twenty mysteries of the rosary are great material for meditation, but there is nothing that says you may not meditate on other scenes of Jesus' life found in scripture. When we announce the mystery we usually ask God for help growing in some virtue or specific graces for ourselves or others. After we have finished praying the decade of Hail Mary's we say a "Glory be" followed by the Fatima prayer . Not all people pray this short prayer but most Catholics do, knowing that it was expressly requested by Our Lady of Fatima . At the end of the five mysteries we conclude with a Hail Holy Queen asking again Our Lady's intercession in obtaining graces for us from her Son.

Now, all of this may very well appear quite overwhelming - especially to one who might be unused to prayer. Or maybe you do pray but not in such a "set" way. Most likely at the beginning your mind and body will not want to cooperate with what you may initially perceive as a repetitive and boring prayer. Most of us in our fast paced society are not used to sitting still and trying to meditate or pray. Trust me on this one and stick with it really trying to give the meditation some effort. You will begin to see things differently. You will be more at peace in many situations that riled you in the past. It will stretch you as a person. Start with a decade at a time if five decades really seem like too much for you, but really try to pray that decade with as much attention as you can. The intent is to give God the glory and grow closer to Him. Prayer is the primary means of communication that we have with our Creator. Just as in any relationship if we don't communicate the relationship suffers. Making time for prayer involves making a conscious decision and then sticking to it.

A virtue very much in need today in our world is the virtue of modesty. Praying the Rosary helps us to see and appreciate our bodies as temples of the Holy Spirit. The rosary draws down great graces for all who pray it with a pure intention. Praying the Rosary will help you if you have an addiction to pornography or any other sexual addiction. It is THAT powerful. Jesus wants to give all the graces necessary for those who desire to walk away in freedom from their slavery to sexual sins. The rosary is the perfect place to begin. For many saints who were great sinners it is what brought them back to God.

When you pray the rosary, pray it as a little child in wonder, holding trustfully to the hand of your heavenly Mother.

God bless you!

Return from rosary page to the soapmaker page.


I'd like to shop for soap.

© bemadeclean.com 2010