Online Rosary

THE ROSARY  FROM A PROTESTANT

 

 

 

 

 

THE ROSARY

The Rosary is pivotal, central crucial and essential to our responding properly to Our Lady’s requests at Fatima. Why? It is because the Rosary is something we do, each one of us, on a personal basis, to respond to Our Lady’s requests.

Saying the Rosary leads to our own personal sanctification. Saying the Rosary helps benefit others and leads them to the Faith, or to a return to the Faith if they are fallen away. Saying the Rosary benefits the Church because it adds to the treasury of Grace. Saying the Rosary teaches us the essential story of our salvation. Saying the Rosary helps us penetrate the mysteries of our holy Religion. Saying the Rosary gives us humility, the necessary virtue of sanctity. Saying the Rosary puts the power of prayer squarely in the hands of even beginners. Saying the Rosary is efficacious like no other prayer because Our Lord wants us to go through Mary, His Mother and OUR Mother, in approaching Him, and He gives rewards to this approach — especially through her Rosary — as He does with no other approach and to no other form of prayer.

The Rosary is simple and direct, yet the Rosary is multifaceted and sophisticated; in it we can let our poor, weak minds concentrate on four different, legitimate things; we can concentrate on our intention; we can concentrate on the person to whom our prayers are directed, the Blessed Virgin Mary; we can concentrate on the mystery we are reciting; or we can concentrate on the prayers themselves that we are saying.

Through the Rosary, we can channel the power of our minds and hearts during a period of 15 or 20 minutes (the average time it takes to say five decades of the Rosary).

It has to be the Rosary if we want the things that Our Lady promised: our own salvation, the triumph of the church throughout the world, and a true God-given peace!

The Rosary, Msgr. J. A. Cirrincione & T. A. Nelson

ROSARY

The Rosary is a Scripture-based prayer. In Roman Catholicism the rosary became a popular method of public and private prayer. The most common rosary is the one devoted to Mary, the Rosary of the Blessed Virgin. It begins with the Apostles’ Creed, which summarizes the great mysteries of the Catholic faith. The Our Father, which introduces each mystery, is from the Gospels. The first part of the Hail Mary is the angel’s words announcing Christ’s birth and Elizabeth’s greeting to Mary. St. Pius V officially added the second part of the Hail Mary. The Mysteries of the Rosary center on the events of Christ’s life. The beads of the rosary are arranged in five decades (sets of 10), each decade separated from the next by a larger bead. The two ends of the chaplet are joined by a small string holding a crucifix, two large beads, and three small beads. Pope Pius V established a standard 15 Mysteries of the Rosary, based on long-standing custom. This groups the mysteries in three sets: the Joyful Mysteries, the Sorrowful Mysteries, and the Glorious Mysteries. In 2002 Pope John Paul II said that it is fitting that a new set of five be added, termed the Luminous Mysteries, bringing the total number of mysteries to 20. The Glorious mysteries are prayed on Sunday and Wednesday, the Joyful on Monday and Saturday, the Sorrowful on Tuesday and Friday, and the Luminous on Thursday. Usually five decades are recited in a session.

The origin of the Rosary of the Blessed Virgin is not certain, though it has been associated with St. Dominic, founder of the Dominican order in the early 13th century. The devotion probably developed gradually as a substitute for the recitation of the Psalms or for the divine office sung by monks at the various canonical hours each day. It reached its definitive form in the 15th century through the preaching of the Dominican Alan de la Roche and his associates, who organized Rosary Confraternities at Douai in France and at Cologne. In 1520 Pope Leo X gave the rosary official approbation.

How To Pray the Rosary

1. While holding the crucifix, make the Sign of the Cross and say the Apostles’ Creed.

2. On the first bead and all the single beads, say an Our Father.

3. Pray one Hail Mary on each of the next three beads for an increase in faith, hope, and charity.

4. On the next single bead, pray the Glory Be.

5. Before praying the next set of ten beads (called a decade), first meditate on the first mystery.

Announce the mystery, imagine the event, and begin to meditate on it by itself or in association

with whatever matter the mystery brings to your heart.

6. Pray an Our Father.

7. Pray a Hail Mary on the first bead of the decade, and on each following bead.

8. After praying the decade, pray the Glory Be. You may also want to add the Fatima invocation.

9. Reflect on the second mystery, then pray an Our Father on the next single bead.

10. Pray the Hail Mary on the next ten beads. Repeat the sequence around the rosary.

11. At the end of the last decade, pray the Hail Holy Queen.

The Apostles’ Creed

I believe in God, the Father almighty,

Creator of heaven and earth. and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,

who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary,

suffered under Pontius Pilate,was crucified, died, and was buried;

he descended into hell; on the third day he rose again from the dead;

he ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty; from there he will come 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 life everlasting.

Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer (Our Father)

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.

Amen.

Hail Mary

Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with thee.

Blessed art thou among 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.

Amen.

The Glory Be (The Doxology)

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.

Amen.

Fatima Invocation

O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, and lead all

souls to heaven, especially those most in need of thy mercy.

Hail, Holy Queen (Salve Regina)

Hail, holy Queen, Mother of Mercy. Hail, our life, our sweetness, and our

hope. To you do we cry, poor banished children of Eve. To you do we send up

our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears. Turn, then most

gracious advocate, your eyes of mercy toward us and after this, our exile,

show unto us the blessed fruit of your womb, Jesus. O clement, O loving, O

sweet Virgin Mary.

Concluding Prayer

R: Pray for us, O holy Mother of God.

V: That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Let us Pray:

O God, whose only-begotten Son, by His life, death, and resurrection, has purchased for us the rewards of eternal salvation; grant we beseech Thee, that meditating upon these mysteries of the most holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we may imitate what they contain and obtain what they promise. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Joyful Mysteries (Mondays and Saturdays)

1. The Annunciation of the birth of the Lord to Mary by the archangel Gabriel

The angel went to her and said, “Greetomgs, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” ()

Fruit of the mystery: Humility

2. The Visitation of Our Lady with St. Elizabeth, the mother of St. John the Baptist

“Mary went into Zechariah’s house and greeted Elizabeth” (Luke 1:40)

Fruit of the mystery: Love of Neighbor

3. The Nativity of Our Lord

“Mary gave birth to a son, her firstborn. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger” (Luke 2:7)

Fruit of the mystery: Poverty

4. The Presentation of the Christ Child in the Temple

“Mary and Joseph took Jesus up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord” (Luke 2:22)

Fruit of the mystery: Purity of Heart and Body

5. The Finding of the Child Jesus in the Temple

“After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions; and all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers.” (Lk 2:46-47)

Fruit of the mystery: Devotion to Jesus

The Luminous Mysteries (Thursdays)

1. The Baptism of Our Lord in the River Jordan

“After Jesus was baptized, he came up from the water and behold, the heavens were opened [for him], and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove [and] coming upon him. And a voice came from the heavens, saying, ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.’” – Matthew 3:16-17

Fruit of the mystery: Openness to the Holy Spirit

2. The Self-Manifestation of Our Lord at the Wedding at Cana

Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”, so they filled them to the brim.  Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.” The master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew.

This was the first of the signs given by Jesus: it was given at Cana in Galilee through which He revealed his glory, and his disciples believed in him”(John2: 7-9, 11)

Fruit of the mystery: To Jesus through Mary

3. The Proclamation of the Kingdom of God

“’This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.’” – Mark 1:15

Fruit of the mystery: Conversion

4. The Transfiguration of Our Lord

“As he prayed, he was transfigured in their presence: his face shone like the sun and his clothes became as white as the light” (Luke9:29;Matthew17:2)

Fruit of the mystery: Desire for holiness

5. The Last Supper, when the Eucharist was Instituted

“[Jesus] took bread, and blessed, and broke it, and gave it to them, and said, ‘Take; this is my body.’ [Jesus] took achalice,and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it.” (Mk 14:22-23)

Fruit of the mystery: Adoration

The Sorrowful Mysteries (Tuesdays and Fridays)

1. The Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane

Going a little farther, Jesus fell with his face to the ground and prayed,  “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet, not as I will, but as you will.” – Matthew 26:39

Fruit of the mystery: Obedience to God’s Will

2. The Scourging of Jesus

“Pilate then had Jesus taken away and scourged” (John 19:1)

Fruit of the mystery: Mortification

3. The Crowning with Thorns

Weaving a crown out of thorns, they placed it on his head, and a reed in his right hand. And kneeling before him, they mocked him, saying, ‘Hail, King of the Jews!’” – Matthew 27:29

Fruit of the mystery: Courage

4. The Carrying of the Cross

“Carrying his own cross, Jesus went out of the city to the place of the skull” (John 19:17)

Fruit of the mystery: Patience

5. The Crucifixion

“When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him and the criminals there, one on his right, the other on his left.

Jesus cried out in a loud voice, ‘Father, into your hands I commend my spirit’; and when he had said this he breathed his last.” – Luke 23: 33, 46

Fruit of the mystery: Sorrow for our Sins

The Glorious Mysteries (Wednesdays and Sundays)

1. The Resurrection

“Entering the tomb, they saw a young man and they were amazed. And he said to them, ‘Do not be amazed; you seek Jesus of Nazareth, who wascrucified. He has risen, heis not here.’” (Mk 16:5-6)

Fruit of the mystery: Faith

2. The Ascension

“So then the Lord Jesus, after he spoke to them, was taken up into heaven and took his seat at the right hand of God.” – Mark 16:19

Fruit of the mystery: Hope

3. The Descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost

There appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them. And they were all filled with the holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim.” – Acts 2:1-4

Fruit of the mystery: Wisdom

4. The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

“Behold, from now on will all ages call me blessed. The Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name.” – Luke 1:48-49

Fruit of the mystery: Devotion to Mary

5. The Coronation of the Blessed Mother

“A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.” – Revelation 12:1

Fruit of the mystery: Grace of a happy death