Rosary Prayer
Prayer rosary CatholicThere are many people
who know little about the prayers said on rosary beads, including a large number
of modern Catholics. Although there have been various ways that Catholics have
prayed the rosary throughout its history, one way is universal today: meditating
on fifteen mysteries while reciting a series of Hail Mary's broken into groups
of ten by Our Father's and Glory Be's. The rosary prayer begins, as does all Catholic
prayer, with the sign of the cross, and continues with the recitation of the Apostles'
Creed on the rosary's crucifix. Then an Our Father is said on the closest large
bead, followed by Hail Mary's on the next three smaller beads. The prayer continues
with the Little Doxology or Glory Be on the next large bead. Here the pendant
part of the rosary that carries the crucifix, (a uniquely Catholic symbol), is
attached to the circle of beads upon which the meditations begin. Catholics start
each decade with An Our Father on the large bead and then say a Hail Mary on each
of the ten small beads. Although there is no bead for it, it is customary to say
the Little Doxology after each meditation. The prayer continues in this manner
to the end of the rosary's circle of beads. The complete rosary prayer has fifteen
decades although most rosary beads have only five sets of ten beads. It is perfectly
acceptable to stop the prayer after each group of five decades as the Catholic
rosary is broken up into three sets of five meditations. The meditations are all
on episodes in the lives of Jesus and Mary in accordance with the Gospels and
the teachings of the Catholic Church. The first set of meditations, or mysteries
as they are customarily called, has been named the Joyful Mysteries. It contains
the Annunciation, the Visitation, the Nativity, the Presentation in the Temple,
and the Finding of the Child Jesus in the Temple. The second set is called the
Sorrowful Mysteries and includes the Agony in the Garden, the Scourging at the
Pillar, the Crowning with Thorns, the Carrying of the Cross and the Crucifixion.
The third set of meditations, called the Glorious Mysteries begins with the Resurrection,
followed by the Ascension, the Descent of the Holy Spirit, the Assumption of the
Blessed Virgin and the Crowning of Mary as Queen of Heaven. In 2003, proclaiming
that year the Year of the Rosary, the Roman Catholic Pope, John Paul II added
a fourth set of mysteries known as the Luminous Mysteries. These are the Baptism
of Jesus, the Wedding at Cana, the Proclamation of the Kingdom, the Transfiguration
and the Institution of the Eucharist. Meditating while vocalizing prayers is a
very old practice in the Catholic Church and, in fact, is a method of prayer for
many religions. Science has shown that there are physiological benefits to saying
the rosary, as well as spiritual ones; meditating as you pray the rosary, can
lower your blood pressure and heart rate. The rate of breathing is reduced and
brain activity resembles that of those in a state of deep relaxation. So, praying
the rosary is beneficial for your soul and body, good reasons to dust off those
old rosary beads, and turn your heart to the rosary prayer.
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