Theological Thursdays

The Most Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary

After the Mass and the Liturgy of the Hours, the Rosary is probably the most important prayer in the Catholic Church (at least in the Latin rite). It is a meditation on the major events in the life of Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ, the Son of the Living God, at many of which he was accompanied, or at least in the presence of, his mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary.

To pray the Rosary, one meditates or thinks about or ponders (pick a verb) on a set of logically grouped events in the life of Jesus, which we call "mysteries". The mysteries follow a linear cycle (mostly—you'll find a chart below) from his conception through his ascension and then some. The string of beads, often called a "rosary" by itself, helps you keep track of your progress through the meditations and gives your hands something to do.

Below is a list of the mysteries and some scriptural references for them. Toward the end of the page are instructions on how to pray the rosary. May your meditations on the life of Our Lord in the company of his mother bear much fruit...

The Mysteries of the Rosary

The Joyful Mysteries

1. The Annunciation. The angel Gabriel announces to Mary that she is about to be with child. (Luke 1:26-38)
2. The Visitation. The unmarried pregnant girl Mary goes to visit her kinswoman Elizabeth in another town. Sounds familiar if a little old fashioned. (Luke 1:39-56)
3. The Nativity. God in the flesh, creator and king of the cosmos is born in a stable. His mother, now royalty by virtue of being the king's mother, can't get a decent room. (Luke 2:1-21)
4. The Presentation. Jesus is presented in the Temple and sacrifices are offered, but he isn't ransomed (see Exodus on the priesthood for more) so is never bought back from God. Being an unransomed firstborn, he remains a priest. Though not from the line of Aaron, Moses's brother. Instead he belongs to the priestly order of Melchizedek. (Luke 2:22-35)
5. The Boy in the Temple. The fact that he is a priest might have some explanatory value on why the pre-teen Jesus left his family on the road and went back to Jerusalem to be in the Temple. The fact that he is a pre-teen may also have had something to do with it. (Luke 2:41-52)

The Sorrowful Mysteries

1. The Agony in the Garden. Jesus is about to be betrayed by his friend and handed over to the authorities, and he knows it. (Matthew 26:36-46; Luke 22:39-46)
2. The Scourging. Jesus is scourged by Roman soldiers, each lash the equivalent of the pain of third-degree burns. By his stripes we are healed. (Matthew 27:24-26)
3. The Crowning with Thorns. The king is arrayed in scarlet, given his staff, and crowned with headdress that stabbed his scalp and forehead. (Matthew 27:27-31)
4. The Carrying of the Cross. Our Lord, king of the universe, is led to his death and must carry his own instrument of torture. (Luke 23:26-31)
5. The Crucifixion. Nails in hands and feet. Hanging stark naked from a Roman cross. Drowning in your own fluids as your blood and water separate. All for a bunch of lousy humans who still, for the most part, don't get it. (John 19:17-37)

The Glorious Mysteries

1. The Resurrection. Death? Eh. (John 20)
2. The Ascension. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. (Mark 16:14-20)
3. The Descent of the Holy Spirit. A mighty wind and tongues of fire. And a lot of funny talk. (Acts 2)
4. The Assumption. At the end of her earthly life Mary, the mother of the king, is taken body and soul into heaven by her Son. (Nothing explicit in the scriptures for this one, but think about oh, say Genesis where Enoch was taken up by God and "was no more", but it doesn't say he died. Elijah is another good example. It is the historical witness of both the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic churches that Mary was taken to heaven at the end of her earthly life. The next mystery sort of adds some credence.)
5. The Coronation. Mary, the mother of the king, is crowned Queen of Heaven. She is, after all, royalty. (Revelation 11:19-12:5)

The Luminous Mysteries

This set of mysteries was suggested by Pope St. John Paul II in the early 2000s in his Apostolic Letter Rosarium Virginis Mariae (beginning at paragraph 21). They bridge the wide gap between the Joyful and Sorrowful mysteries, that is between Jesus's infancy and his death. And well, you know, they also are important events in his ministry. Worthy of meditation, but optional.

1. The Baptism in the Jordan. Water, the Dove, the Voice. "To fulfill all righteousness," he tells the Baptist. (Mark 1:1-11)
2. The Wedding at Cana. The first of the Signs. (Not to downplay the miracle's importance, but since the water had already been created through him, Jesus turning it into wine surely wasn't that big a deal.) (John 2:1-11)
3. The Proclamation of the Kingdom of God. Jesus calls us to conversion and offers the forgiveness of sins. (Luke 4:16-21)
4. The Transfiguration. Jesus's face and clothes are radiant with his divinity on display. And Peter still doesn't get it. (Matthew 17:1-13)
5. The Institution of the Eucharist. This is my body which is given for you. Whoever eats my flesh will have life in him, and I will raise him up at the last day. (John 6:48-59)

How to Pray the Rosary

There are several ways to pray the Rosary, how to start, how to finish, what prayers to say in addition to the standard prayers, etc. Depending on... well, just depending... the beginning and end might be different. And maybe the middle a little. Really, everybody's got their own way—The Vatican suggests one way, the Dominicans who claim the Virgin Mary gave the rosary directly to St. Dominic do it another way, and the old ladies at St. Ben's downtown before the 12:15pm mass do it yet another. But in the middle, there are always 5 sets of Our Fathers, Hail Marys, and Glory Be's (unless you're one of those folks who carrys around a 150-bead rosary and says all 15 traditional mysteries every day).

Because I generally like to keep things simple and because I would like this to be easy for beginners to pick up, I'm giving only my preferred method here.

The little crossy things ✠ below mean make the sign of the cross as you're saying whatever text the crossy thing ✠ appears in. Prayers are given also in Latin because, well, Latin seems to be in style these days...

May the Virgin Mother of God lead you closer to her Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, by praying the rosary with her, and may God richly bless you.