Primer on the Rosary

Not surprisingly, December is a full month for us in the Church. I wanted to keep this month's Christian Education Forum somewhat light and enjoyable, so we decided to tackle the Rosary. Folks have plenty of Catholic friends and loved ones, not to mention "high church" Lutherans and Anglicans who pray Our Lady's Psalter as well. Below is by no means an exhaustive treatment, but it's the handout that I'll be giving folks to take home after our presentation and discussion tomorrow (Tuesday) night. Credit to whom credit is due: the historical overview is drawn from The Scriptural Rosary published by Christianica. Do enjoy, and forgive me any careless errors.

The Rosary

The Practice of Meditative Prayer

Most Christians today, when speaking of prayer, focus upon vocal or oral prayer. In this we voice our petitions, thanksgivings, and the like. The great model for this, of course, is the Pater Noster or Lord’s Prayer. Traditionally, however, vocal prayer (oratorio) has been considered the most basic form of prayer, with higher forms including meditation (meditatio) and contemplation (contemplatio).

Christian meditation involves pondering, weighing, and considering a Scriptural passage. We wait for the Holy Spirit to speak to us through the written Word of God. Monks of old would often spend entire lifetimes pondering a single verse or simple prayer. Related to meditative prayer is contemplative prayer, which focuses on silence, waiting for the Spirit to speak to us. A simple image, such as the Cross, may be held in the mind to keep the mind from wandering.

The Rosary is the most popular and farthest developed form of meditative prayer in Christianity. Most historians trace its origins to Ninth Century Ireland. Irish Christianity was especially focused on the monastic life, and monks throughout their day, every day, would chant all 150 Psalms from memory. The laity sought to imitate this pious practice, but had little in the way of time or resources to memorize the Psalter. Instead, they took to reciting 150 Pater Nosters to substitute for the 150 Psalms. In order to keep a proper count, people began carrying pouches with 150 pebbles, or ropes with 50 or 150 knots, or even ropes marked off with small pieces of wood. Over the next few centuries, the Angelic Salutation (the first part of the Hail Mary) became a popular repetitive prayer as well. St. Peter Damian mentions this practice in A.D. 1072. Using 50 Angelic Salutations or 50 Our Fathers became a common meditation.

Each of the Psalms was understood to hold profound prophetic meaning regarding Jesus Christ. Soon “psalters” of 150 praises of Jesus Christ and 150 praises of Mary grew popular. When recited in smaller groups of 50 they were called a “rosarium” or bouquet. Thus by the 13^th Century we have four distinct practices of repetitive meditation: 150 Our Fathers, 150 Angelic Salutations, 150 Praises of Jesus, and 150 Praises of Mary. In the 14^th Century the Carthusians would combine these into one.

In A.D. 1365, Hanry of Kalkar, the Visitator of the Carthusian Order, grouped the 150 Angelic Salutations into decades with an Our Father before each decade. Around 1409, another Carthusian, Dominic the Prussian, wrote a book combining 50 thoughts about Jesus and Mary to a Rosary of 50 Hail Marys. By 1470 the Dominican Alan of Rupe founded the first Rosary Confraternity and popularized the “new” rosary with a special thought for each Hail Mary bead over the “old” rosary of Hail Marys without accompanying thoughts or images. Modern “Scriptural Rosaries” follow this pattern by attaching a biblical verse to each Hail Mary bead. The Rosary is often called “the Bible on a string”.

Around A.D. 1500, printed woodcut images became affordable to mass produce, though 150 different pictures would be a bit much for anybody. Rosary prayer books usually included only 15 woodcut pictures, one for each Our Father bead. This Rosary, with 15 “mysteries” associated with 15 decades of one Our Father and 10 Hail Marys, is the modern, quasi-final form. I say quasi-final because there are numerous variations on the main pattern of prayer. In the 16^th Century, Pope Pius V standardized the 15 Mysteries based on standing custom, grouping them into three groups of five: the Joyful, Sorrowful, and Glorious Mysteries. In the 20^th Century, Pope John Paul II added five additional (optional) meditations on the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. These are known as the Luminous Mysteries.

How to Pray the Rosary:

Begin on the crucifix. Make the sign of the Cross and recite the Apostles Creed.

Next, pray an Our Father on the first bead and then three Hail Marys on the three sequential beads (for the theological virtues of faith, hope, and love). For the following gap on the chain, pray a Glory Be.

On the next Our Father bead, recite the first Mystery of the given sequence. Contemplate this Mystery and its corresponding fruit as you pray an Our Father and 10 Hail Marys. Finish the decade with a Glory Be and, if desired, a Fatima Prayer.

On the Our Father bead of the second decade, recite the second Mystery and continue as above. Repeat this sequence until all five decades (one Rosary) have been prayed.

Finish by praying a Salve Regina (with traditional collect, if desired) and making the sign of the Cross.

Mysteries of the Rosary:

Joyful Mysteries—Mondays and Saturdays

1. The Annunciation (humility)

2. The Visitation (love of neighbor)

3. The Nativity (love of the poor)

4. The Presentation (purity, obedience)

5. Finding the Child Jesus in the Temple (joy at discovering Christ)

Luminous Mysteries—Thursdays

1. Jesus’ Baptism in the Jordan (openness to the Holy Spirit)

2. The Wedding at Cana (to Christ through Mary)

3. Proclamation of the Kingdom (trust in God, conversion to Messiah)

4. The Transfiguration (desire for holiness)

5. Institution of the Eucharist (adoration)

Sorrowful Mysteries—Tuesdays and Fridays

1. The Garden of Gethsemane (sorrow for sin)

2. Scouring at the Pillar (mortification of the flesh)

3. The Crown of Thorns (courage, contempt for the world)

4. Bearing the Cross (patience)

5. The Crucifixion (forgiveness, salvation)

Glorious Mysteries—Sundays and Wednesdays

1. The Resurrection (faith)

2. The Ascension (hope, desire for Heaven)

3. Descent of the Spirit at Pentecost (wisdom, charity, worship of the Holy Spirit)

4. The Assumption of Mary (desire for a good death)

5. The Coronation of the Queen of Heaven (perseverance, crown of glory, trust in Mary’s intercession)

Prayers of the Rosary:

Apostles Creed

“I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended to the dead. On the third day He rose again. He ascended into Heaven. He is seated at the right hand of the Father and He will come again to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.”

Our Father (Pater Noster)

“Our Father, Who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.”

Hail Mary (Ave Maria)

“Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with you. Blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death.”

Glory Be (Gloria Patri)

“Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end.”

Fatima Prayer

“O my Jesus, forgive us our sins. Save us from the fires of Hell. Lead all souls to Heaven, especially those most in need of Thy mercy.”

Prayer for the Dead (if dedicating a Rosary for the deceased)

“Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord. Let perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace.”

Hail Holy Queen (Salve Regina)

“Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our life, our sweetness, and our hope. To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve. To thee do we lift up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears. Turn then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us. And after this our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus.”

Collect for the Salve Regina

“O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary, pray for us, O holy Mother of God, that we might be made worthy of the promises of Christ. Almighty and everlasting God, Who by the co-operation of the Holy Spirit didst prepare the body and soul of the Blessed Virgin Mary as a dwelling place meet for Thy Son, grant that as we rejoice in her commemoration, so by her fervent intercession may we be delivered from present evils and from everlasting death, through this same Christ our Lord.”

A partial indulgence is granted for the devout recitation of the Rosary. A plenary indulgence is granted under the usual restrictions for those who pray the Rosary in a worship space or as a family.