The Rosary is a circular string of beads with a pendant of five beads and a crucifix.  To pray using beads is an ancient Christian practice.  Prayer is a matter for the body as well as for the mind and spirit.  The idea of the Rosary is that we move our fingers over the beads as we say prayers we know by heart and while we say the prayers we meditate on events in the lives of Jesus and Mary, called mysteries.  As we go on, the movement of our fingers stills the fidgetiness of our bodies and the automatic saying of the prayers quietens our minds so that they are free to think about the mysteries. This may sound very complicated but is in fact one of the easiest ways of meditating, being drawn through the eyes of Mary to see Jesus more clearly and love him more dearly.

The Rosary is believed to have its origin with S. Dominic (c1170-1221) who founded the Order of Preachers, to suppress the Albigensian heresy, which was spreading through France.  S. Dominic it is said had a vision of Our Lady whilst praying in a rose garden, hence the title ‘The Rosary’.

Begin by holding the Crucifix and make the sign of the Cross saying ‘In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit’ and then say the Apostles Creed.  Then hold the first bead between finger and thumb and say the Lord’s Prayer thinking of the intention for which you are praying – e.g. for someone who needs your prayers. Then move on saying a Hail Mary on each of the next three beads.  These 3 Hail Marys are said in honour of the Father, who made Mary, the Son who redeemed her and the Holy Spirit who gave her the fullness of grace.  On the fifth bead say the Gloria Patris.  All this helps to take us into the stillness of prayer and contemplation.

Now start on the circle. Say the Lord’s Prayer holding onto the medallion, a Hail Mary on each of the ten beads of the decade as it slips through your fingers, and a Gloria Patris on the last and separate bead.  Throughout all this you meditate on the mystery chosen.  You have now completed one decade.

Continue by saying the Lord’s Prayer on that same separate bead and then carry on through the next 10 beads etc as before. Meditating on the next mystery. Go on until you have completed one of the sets of five mysteries. The Rosary concludes with an ancient prayer in honour of Our Lady, called the Salve Regina and the concluding prayer.

The Joyful Mysteries

The Annunciation
Behold I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to you word.
Luke 1:38

The Visitation
Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb!
Luke 1:42

The Nativity
Mary kept all these things, pondering them in her heart.
Luke 2:19

The Presentation
A sword will pierce your own soul also.
Luke 2:35

The Finding in the Temple
Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?
Luke 2:49

 

The Sorrowful Mysteries

The Agony in the Garden
Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me; yet, not my will, but yours be done.
Luke 22:42

The Scourging at the Pillar
Prophesy!  Who is it that struck you?
Luke 22:64

The Crowning with Thorns
Hail, King of the Jews!
John 19:3

Jesus carries his Cross
If they do this when the wood is green, what will happen when it is dry?
Luke 23:31

The Crucifixion
Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.
Luke 23:34

 

The Glorious Mysteries

The Resurrection
Why do you look for the living among the dead?  He is not here but has risen.
Luke 24:5

The Ascension
Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up towards heaven?  This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.
Acts 1:11

Pentecost
How is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language?
Acts 2:8

The Assumption of Our Lady
A great portent appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.
Revelation 12:1

The Crowning of Our Lady
His bride has made herself ready; to her it has been granted to be clothed with fine linen, bright and pure - for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.
Revelation 19:8

 

The Luminous Mysteries

The Baptism of the Lord
A voice from heaven said, 'This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased'.
Matthew 3:17

The Marriage at Cana
The mother of Jesus said to the servants, 'Do whatever he tells you'.
John 9:5

The Proclamation of the Kingdom
The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel.
Mark 1:15

The Transfiguration
From the cloud came a voice that said, 'This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!'
Luke 9:35

The Institution of the Eucharist
Before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.
John 13:1

The Apostle’s Creed
I believe in God the Father Almighty,
maker 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, dead, and buried.
He descended into hell.
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 thence he shall come
to judge the quick 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.  
Amen.

The Lord’s Prayer
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

The 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

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.
Amen

Salve Regina
Hail holy Queen, mother of mercy,
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 vale of tears.
Turn then most gracious advocate,
your eyes of mercy towards us,
and after this our exile
show to us the blessed fruit of your womb, Jesus.
O clement, O loving,
O sweet Virgin Mary.

Concluding Prayer
O God, whose only-begotten Son, by his Life, Death and Resurrection, has opened for us the rewards of eternal life; grant that meditating on these mysteries in the holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we may both imitate what they contain, and obtain what they promise.  We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen