The Holy Rosary
Praying the Rosary has been a treasured devotion among Catholics for centuries. When we pray the Rosary we are meditating on important events in the life of Christ and His Blessed Mother, Mary. These events we meditate on are central to our Catholic faith. As always, our prayer is directed to God and as we pray the Rosary we are praying with Mary and asking her to pray for us and our special intentions.
For those who haven't prayed the Rosary before, the events in the life of Jesus and Mary are called "Mysteries." There are four different groups of Mysteries, and each of the four have five "decades." Why "decades"? Because there are 10 beads on which to pray the Hail Mary and meditate on the event. The four Mysteries are the Joyful, Luminous, Sorrowful and Glorious Mysteries.
We recommend picking up a pamphlet called "How to Pray the Rosary" (there are countless pamphlets teaching you how to pray the Rosary available-we have them at church). If the Rosary is new to you, this will walk you through praying the Rosary and give you the Scripture verses to meditate on for each Mystery. As you become more familiar with the Rosary, open up your Bible and read the Scripture accounts of the Mysteries in full as you pray.
If your children are really young, don't attempt to pray the whole Rosary all at once with them. Start with one decade at a time each day and build up to 5 decades of a Mystery as their attention span increases. When my grandmother first taught me the Rosary, she concentrated on teaching me the prayers of the Rosary, and on which beads to say each of those prayers. Once I got that down, we moved on to the Mysteries and the Scripture passages for each.
October is the Month of the Rosary- make plans with your family to pray the Rosary every day; pick a time and a spot in your home. Each day, take turns choosing the prayer intention- are you praying for world peace or peace in the family? For someone who is ill, or a child who is struggling at school? To overcome a particular bad habit or strengthen a virtue?
I love to pray the Rosary in part because as I pray with the rosary beads that have been passed down from my great-grandmother to my Gramma to my mom and finally to me, I feel connected not only to Mary, Our Blessed Mother, but to all the generations in my family who have prayed this great prayer, especially the women who used my rosary in the past.
After you've been praying the Rosary for a few weeks (or months), share with us how praying the Rosary together as a family has impacted the faith of your family!
For those who haven't prayed the Rosary before, the events in the life of Jesus and Mary are called "Mysteries." There are four different groups of Mysteries, and each of the four have five "decades." Why "decades"? Because there are 10 beads on which to pray the Hail Mary and meditate on the event. The four Mysteries are the Joyful, Luminous, Sorrowful and Glorious Mysteries.
We recommend picking up a pamphlet called "How to Pray the Rosary" (there are countless pamphlets teaching you how to pray the Rosary available-we have them at church). If the Rosary is new to you, this will walk you through praying the Rosary and give you the Scripture verses to meditate on for each Mystery. As you become more familiar with the Rosary, open up your Bible and read the Scripture accounts of the Mysteries in full as you pray.
If your children are really young, don't attempt to pray the whole Rosary all at once with them. Start with one decade at a time each day and build up to 5 decades of a Mystery as their attention span increases. When my grandmother first taught me the Rosary, she concentrated on teaching me the prayers of the Rosary, and on which beads to say each of those prayers. Once I got that down, we moved on to the Mysteries and the Scripture passages for each.
October is the Month of the Rosary- make plans with your family to pray the Rosary every day; pick a time and a spot in your home. Each day, take turns choosing the prayer intention- are you praying for world peace or peace in the family? For someone who is ill, or a child who is struggling at school? To overcome a particular bad habit or strengthen a virtue?
I love to pray the Rosary in part because as I pray with the rosary beads that have been passed down from my great-grandmother to my Gramma to my mom and finally to me, I feel connected not only to Mary, Our Blessed Mother, but to all the generations in my family who have prayed this great prayer, especially the women who used my rosary in the past.
After you've been praying the Rosary for a few weeks (or months), share with us how praying the Rosary together as a family has impacted the faith of your family!
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Check out On a Mission to Love to help you pray the Rosary with your children.
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