to Jesus through Mary and Joseph
the Holy Rosary
"Pray the Rosary every day, in order to obtain peace for the world, and the end of the war."
- Our Lady of Fatima
May 13, 1917
The Rosary is one of the most cherished prayers of our Catholic Church. Introduced by the Creed, the Our Father, three Hail Marys and the Doxology ("Glory Be"), and concluded with the Salve Regina, the rosary involves the recitation of five decades consisting of the Our Father, 10 Hail Marys and the Doxology. During this recitation, the individual meditates on the saving mysteries of our Lord's life and the faithful witness of our Blessed Mother.
Journeying through the Joyful, Sorrowful and Glorious mysteries of the rosary, the individual brings to mind our Lord's incarnation, His passion and death and His resurrection from the dead. In so doing, the rosary assists us in growing in a deeper appreciation of these mysteries, in uniting our life more closely to our Lord and in imploring His graced assistance to live the faith. We also ask for the prayers of our Blessed Mother, who leads all believers to her Son.
Let us Pray the Rosary
Choose the appropriate mysteries below based on the day of the week then click on title or the gold tab to start.
MONDAYS AND SATURDAYS
1. The Annunciation
2. The Visitation
3. The Nativity
4. The Presentation
5. The Finding of the
Child Jesus in the Temple
The Adoration of the Shepherds by Guido Reni, 1640
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
The Elevation of the Cross by Peter Paul Rubens, 1610
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
The Last Supper by Juan De(Vicente) Juanes, 1560
WEDNESDAYS AND SUNDAYS
1. The Resurrection
2. The Ascension
3. The Descent of the Holy Spirit
4. The Assumption
5. The Coronation
The Resurrection by Noel Coypel, 1700
the History of The Rosary
THE ANTECEDENT TO THE ROSARY
As early as the 3rd century the use of beads or even small pebbles was a practical method used by early Christians to keep track of how many prayers they had said. Prior to the 13th century, the prayer that was most commonly said on prayer beads was the Our Father. The name given to this type of prayer bead was Paternoster beads. In many eight century penitential books, the prescribed penance for certain sins consisted of reciting up to 50 Paternosters. In 1096, the monks of Cluny were in the habit of praying 50 Paternosters upon the death of a fellow monk.
From ancient times, the faithful have prayed a beautiful liturgical prayer known as the Breviary( Liturgy of the Hours ). This form of prayer has its roots in many monastic traditions of Catholicism which required monks to participate in praying the 150 psalms of the Old Testament. In monasteries, this practice required the monks to have the ability to read and understand Latin. However, in those days, most monks were illiterate and therefore unable to participate in the daily prayers. For this reason, as early as early as the ninth century the monks were allowed to substitute the chanting of the 150 psalms with the recitation of 150 Paternosters. This version of the Paternoster beads became known as the “poor man’s breviary”.
In the 12th century, the Hail Mary also became a more widely used in devotions. One of the main reason was the renewal of Marian devotion brought about by several monastic movements. Monks began to develop a Psalter that parallels the poor man’s breviary. Instead of praying 150 Our Fathers they prayed 150 Hail Mary’s. Within a short period of time, 15 Our Fathers were inserted to break up the 150 Hail Marys into 10 sets. The Cistercian Monks was credited for being the originators of the Marian Psalter.
ST. DOMINIC AND THE BIRTH OF THE ROSARY
In the beginning of the 13th century, a heretical sect known as the Albigensians were spreading rapidly. During this time, a Spaniard and a member of the Cannons Regular named Dominic Guzman set out on a preaching campaign to proclaim that truths of Christianity. In 1208, he retreated in the Prouille forest near the town of Toulouse, France, to pray and begged heaven to come to his aid and give him what he needed to overcome the Albigensians. After three days of prayer, fasting and penitential acts, the Virgin Mary came to his assistance. The Blessed Mother instructed St. Dominic to preach the Marian Psalter and combine it with the specific saving mysteries of Christ. The Virgin Mary instructed him to divide the 150 Hail Marys of the Marian Psalter into 10 Hail Marys, with each decade attached to a particular mystery. They focused on the Incarnation, Passion and Glorious triumph of Her divine Son. The mysteries that Mary provided served as a weapon and directly answered the errors promoted by the Albigensians.
During the life of St. Dominic and many years after his death, this method of prayer entrusted by the Blessed Mother continued to be called the Marian Psalter. It took centuries for the prayer to transition being universally known as the Rosary. The word “rosary” came from the Latin word “rosarium”, a word used to describe a rose garden or a wreath or bouquet. Evidence that the Marian Psalter of St. Dominic was described as rosary during the 13th century can be seen in Abbot Englebert of Admot’s book, The Psalter of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In the book he describes how each Hail Mary of the Marian Psalter is akin to giving Mary a rose.
"The Rosary is my favorite prayer. A marvelous prayer! Marvellous in its simplicity and in its depth...the simple prayer of the Rosary beats the rhythm of human life" - St. John Paul II