Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Praying the Rosary - Praying the Gospels

The Rosary is an often misunderstood prayer of the Catholic faith. What many don't realize is that the Rosary is a wonderful meditation on the Gospels. Each day the Rosary is prayed has five different mysteries to reflect on, one for each of the five decades of the Rosary:

Joyful Mysteries (Mondays and Saturdays)
- Annunciation - Obedience
- Visitation - Love for Neighbor
- Nativity - Love for the Poor
- Presentation of Jesus - Humility
- Finding of Jesus - Prayer

Sorrowful Mysteries (Tuesdays and Fridays)
- Agony in the Garden - Submission to God's Will
- Scourging at the Pillar - Loathing of our Sins
- Crowning of Thorns - Christ, the King of Our Hearts
- Christ Carries the Cross - Our Daily Crosses
- Crucifixion - Sacrifice

Luminous Mysteries (Thursdays)
- Baptism by John - Renewal of the Holy Spirit
- Wedding Feast At Cana - God's Transforming Power
- Proclamation of the Kingdom - Word of God
- Transfiguration - Christ the Light
- Institution of the Eucharist - Christ in the World

Glorious Mysteries (Wednesdays and Sundays)
- Resurrection - Overcoming evil
- Ascension - New Life
- Descent of the Holy Spirit - Ourselves as Temples of the Spirit
- Assumption of Mary - Peaceful Death
- Coronation - Glory of the Kingdom of God

I don't pray the Rosary every day, but it is a very calming and beautiful way to spend time with God on those days I do pray it. And my mother made me a beautiful Rosary when I had my First Communion as a child:

2 comments:

Kajsa said...

That *is* a beautiful rosary, Celeste, and what a special treasure to have from your mother.

Best wishes to you during Lent and on through the year!

Your friend Kajsa

Anonymous said...

Your Rosary is just beautiful, and how special to have one dating from your First Communion. I'm afraid my First Communion Rosary broke a long time ago.

I began praying the Rosary daily when I joined the Legion of Mary. I'm afraid I've fallen out the habit, but I want to try to get accustomed to doing it daily again now that Lent has begun. I love praying it in the middle of the day, taking a little twenty-minute retreat from the world to reflect upon the life of Christ.