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Rosary

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Our Lady of Lourdes - Mary appearing at Lourdes with Rosary Beads

The Rosary (from Latin rosarium, "crown of roses"), an important and traditional devotion of the Catholic Church consisting of a set of prayer beads and a system of set prayers. The Rosary is sometimes used by High Church Protestants including, but not limited to, Anglicans, Episcopalians, Lutherans and Methodists. It combines prayer and meditation centered around sequences of reciting the Lord's Prayer followed by ten recitations of the "Hail Mary" prayer; one such sequence is known as a decade. A complete Rosary traditionally involved the completion of fifteen decades, as well as other prefatory and final prayers. John Paul II, in his Apostolic Letter of October 16, 2002 Rosarium Virginis Mariae [1], added a new set of five decades to the former standard of fifteen. As a result, in current Catholic practice a complete Rosary consists of twenty decades.

Origins of the Rosary

It is said that when Roman explorers came into India and encountered the Japa mala, they heard jap mala instead of japa mala. Jap means "rose", and the mala was carried back to the Roman Empire as rosarium, and into English as rosary. However, this etymology seems unlikely because of the dating. According to the 1911 edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica, "Thomas of Chantimpre, who wrote about the middle of the 13th century, first mentions the word 'rosary' (De apibus, ii. 13), using it apparently in a mystical sense as Mary's rose-garden." The term was first used in connection with prayer beads in 1597, about 300 years later, and more than 1000 years after the fall of the Roman Empire.

An alternative, similar (and also quite likely apocryphal) explanation is that in Arabic, the word for "rose" (ward) is close to the word for "invocation of sacred Names" (wird).

Similar bead-prayers (originally using knotted ropes) date to about the fourth century, when they were used to pray the Jesus prayer. Prayer beads are also found in many other religions (notably Hinduism, where the practice appears to have started), and some have been found dating back to antiquity.

According to tradition, in 1214 the Virgin Mary gave to St. Dominic the basic form of the Rosary as it is known today, with minor variations in the wording of the Hail Mary, such as the addition of the Name "Jesus" by St. Bernardine of Siena (1380-1444). The historicity of this association with Dominic is generally disputed, although Dominicans apparently were involved in the early promotion of the rosary.

Another theory on the origins of the rosary is that , in the Middle Ages, monks used to say all of the 150 psalms each day. At the time, it was very expensive to purchase a copy of the psalms as there was no printing presses, so many of the monks could not afford a copy. They replaced praying the 150 psalms with saying 150 Pater Nosters (The Lord's Prayer). To count the number of Pater Nosters they were saying they strung fifty rocks or beads on a string and prayed with those 50 beads three times. In time, some people began saying, instead of Pater Nosters, Hail Marys, in devotion to the the Blessed Virgin. After many years, other prayers were added before and after the rosary and between the decades, as were the mysteries. In this way, the traditional fifteen decades of the Rosary with their 150 Hail Marys, mirrored the 150 Catholic psalms.

In her apparition at Fatima (1917), the Virgin Mary revealed that every time a Hail Mary is recited, it is as if a rose was offered to her, so a complete Rosary is like a crown of roses. (The idea of a Rosary being a crown predates Fatima by centuries, and was expressed on several occasions by medieval and later Catholics, notably St. Louis de Montfort in his promotional book Secrets of the Rosary.)

Rosary beads

Rosary beads

A set of Rosary beads usually contains 50 beads in groups of ten (a decade), with an additional large bead before each decade. Some beads have been known to have one hundred or one hundred and fifty. These numbers were chosen to match the number of psalms, or a third or two-thirds of them. This was because in ancient times monks and clergy used to recite the entire psalter every day; the practice of saying one hundred and fifty Pater Nosters (Our Fathers in Latin) developed as an alternative for those who were illiterate or who could not afford a psalter. (In a similar way, some parts of the Eastern liturgy can be replaced by a specified number of repetitions of the Jesus prayer.) It was only in the Middle Ages, however, when prayer to Mary became common among Catholics, that the use of Hail Marys instead of Our Fathers came about.

The beads were traditionally made from the seeds of the "bead tree", but are now more usually made of artificial materials.

In a common form, the beads are true olive seeds; in past times there was a respectable trade in Rosaries made with olive seeds supposedly from the Garden of Gethsemane. Beads are sometimes made with sacred relics, or (some of the larger ones) contain holy water.

A set of Rosary Beads is considered a sacramental.

Traditionally, 15 decades used to be said in total, a total increased to 20 with the addition of the Luminous Mysteries in 2002 by Pope John Paul II. Some Catholics do not include the Luminous Mysteries in their recitation of the Rosary, rejecting the addition as unnecessary.

Each decade of the Rosary traditionally corresponds to a "Mystery of Redemption," although the mysteries did not originate until the 15th or 16th century, and even then there was not universal agreement on what they were.

The Mysteries

The recitation of the Rosary is traditionally dedicated to one of three sets of "Mysteries" to be said in sequence, one per night: the Joyful (sometimes Joyous) Mysteries; the Sorrowful Mysteries; and the Glorious Mysteries. Each of these three sets of Mysteries has within it five different themes to be meditated on, one for each decade of ten Hail Marys. Pope John Paul II, in his apostolic letter Rosarium Virginis Mariae (October 2002), introduced an additional set called the Luminous Mysteries (or the "Mysteries of Light").

(The list of mysteries below corresponds to moments in the life and death [the Passion] of Jesus and Mary chronologically.)

Joyful

To be recited on Mondays and Saturdays

  1. The Annunciation
  2. The Visitation
  3. The Nativity
  4. The Presentation at the Temple
  5. The Finding in the Temple

Luminous

To be recited on Thursdays

  1. The Baptism of Jesus
  2. The Wedding at Cana
  3. The Proclamation of the Kingdom of God
  4. The Transfiguration
  5. The Institution of the Eucharist

Sorrowful

To be recited on Tuesdays and Fridays

  1. The Agony in the Garden
  2. The Scourging at the Pillar
  3. The Crowning with Thorns
  4. The Carrying of the Cross
  5. The Crucifixion and Death of Jesus

Glorious

To be recited on Wednesdays and Sundays

  1. The Resurrection of Jesus
  2. The Ascension of Jesus
  3. The Descent of the Holy Spirit
  4. The Assumption of the Virgin Mary
  5. The Coronation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Crucifixion of Jesus - the fifth of the Sorrowful Mysteries

Note: Before Rosarium Virginis Mariae the Joyful Mysteries were prayed on Mondays and Thursdays.

Types of Rosaries

Some national variations in terms of prayers used and structure occur in the form of the recitation of the Rosary.

One frequently used form

File:Glorycrop.jpg
The Resurrection of Jesus - the first of the Glorious Mysteries
  • an "Our Father" on the large bead;
  • a "Hail Mary" on each of the adjacent ten small beads;
  • a "Glory Be to the Father" on the next large bead;
  • again an Our Father, ten Hail Marys, the Glory Be to the Father, and Fatima Prayer for each of the following decades;
  • a "Hail Mary" and a sign of the cross.

A regularly used alternative

File:Glory5crop.jpg
The Coronation of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Heaven - the fifth of the Glorious Mysteries (linked into the Hail Holy Queen prayer)
Holy Mary, Holy Mother of God, Holy Virgin of virgins, Mother of Christ, Mother of divine grace, Mother most pure, Mother most chaste, Mother inviolate, Mother undefiled, Mother most amiable, Mother most admirable, Mother of good counsel, Mother of our Creator, Mother of our Savior, Virgin most prudent, Virgin most venerable, Virgin most renowned, Virgin most powerful, Virgin most merciful, Virgin most faithful, Mirror of justice, Seat of wisdom, Cause of our joy, Spiritual vessel, Vessel of honor, Singular vessel of devotion, Mystical rose, Tower of David, Tower of ivory, House of gold, Ark of the covenant, Gate of heaven, Morning star, Health of the Sick, Refuge of sinners, Comforter of the afflicted, Help of Christians, Queen of Angels, Queen of Patriarchs, Queen of Prophets, Queen of Apostles, Queen of Martyrs, Queen of Confessors, Queen of Virgins, Queen of all Saints, Queen conceived without original sin, Queen assumed into heaven, Queen of the most holy Rosary, Queen of Peace. Pray for Us.
  • Lamb of God, who take away the sins of the world,
  • R/ Have Mercy on Us
  • Lamb of God, who take away the sins of the world,
  • R/ Have Mercy on Us
  • Lamb of God, who take away the sins of the world.
  • R/ Hear Our Prayer
  • Pray for us, O holy Mother of God.
  • R/ That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
  • Final prayer (variable)
  • One Our Father, three Hail Marys, One Glory be to the Father.

Single-decade Rosaries

The schema for a single-decade rosary.

Single-decade Rosary variations can be worn as a ring or carried easily. These small Rosaries were used in the 16th Century as persecution became pronounced, but are popular today. A rosary ring is a ring worn around the finger with 10 indentations and a cross on the surface, representing one decade of a rosary. This is often worn as jewelry, and used through the day. Some ring Rosaries use a small bearing on the inside of the ring to permit easy turning. A finger Rosary is similar to a ring, but is a bit larger. Rosary like these are used by rotating them on a finger while praying. A hand Rosary is a decade in a complete loop, with one bead separated from ten other beads, this is meant to be carried while walking or running, so as not to entangle the larger type. Credit card-sized Rosarys have also appeared, especially among members of militaries, where holes or bumps represent the prayers, and the person praying moves their fingers along the bumps to count prayers.

Rosaries in other faiths

Eastern Christians use similar strings of beads, called "chotki," to pray, although among the Orthodox their use is mainly restricted to monks and bishops, not being common among laity or secular clergy. Many Eastern Christians use a prayer rope instead; its use is much more prevalent, and it is typically associated with the Jesus Prayer.

Another form of prayer beads is popular among members of the Anglican Communion. Originally called Anglican prayer beads, this bead set is also known as the "Anglican Rosary" or as "Christian prayer beads" because of the popularity it has found among Protestants generally. Anglican bead sets contain 28 beads in groups of seven (the "weeks"), with an additional large bead before each. In total, there are thirty-three beads representing the years of Jesus' life on Earth. The most common prayer used is the Jesus Prayer, but there are no appointed prayers or meditations. Additionally, there is a relatively new form of the rosary used by those of the Anglican tradition which is somewhat similar to the Roman Rosary.

Other faiths also use similar objects for prayer, including Sufi Muslims, certain Buddhist groups, and some Hindus (see japa mala), among others.

Rosaries worn outside of religion

Young woman wearing a rosary

Though considered sacrilegious by the Catholic Church, rosaries are often worn for non-religious purposes as a fashion or jewelery item and are sold in different variations in popular jewelry and clothing stores. Such ornamental use was heavily popularized by singer Madonna in the early 1980s.

See also

Roman Catholic

With the Luminous Mysteries

Without the Luminous Mysteries

Other

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