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Methods of Praying the Rosary
Praying the rosary
John Paul II advised the Catholic faithful to pray the rosary.
He especially emphasized this in his apostolic letter, Rosarium
Virginis Mariae, On the Most Holy Rosary. It is also in this
letter that he officially included the light or luminous mysteries
to be part of the traditional joyful, sorrowful and glorious mysteries.
The holy rosary is a very popular Catholic devotion that ensures its
devotees of a life led to Christ through the maternal intercession
of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Origin of the holy rosary
In his book, "The Secret of the Rosary", St. Louis-Marie de
Montfort mentions that it was only in the year 1214 that the Church
received the holy rosary in its traditional form. It was given
to the Church by St. Dominic, who had received it from the Blessed
Virgin as a means of converting the Albigensians. Since then,
the rosary has been used by the Dominicans and other missionaries
to bring the faith to the people and lead them to a better
Christian life.
Methods for saying the holy rosary
Although there is a standard way of praying the holy rosary,
many religious and missionaries often adapt the praying of the
rosary to their communities and to the people they share the
Catholic faith. St. Louis-Marie de Montfort is one of those
missionaries who have adapted the praying of the holy rosary
according to methods that employ the inclusion of prayer
petitions, the inclusion of short phrases centering on Jesus
in the mysteries, and the inclusion of descriptions of each
mystery. Five of these methods are given in the book,
"
God Alone." Following is the third method he composed for
the Daughters of Wisdom, the congregation of sisters he organized
for the missions.
The third Montfortian method of praying the holy
rosary
After the praying of the "Our Father", the leader of the
rosary [if said in group], says:
We offer you, Lord Jesus, this decade in honor of [the
name of the mystery]. Through this mystery and the intercession
of your holy mother we ask for [prayer intention related
to the theme of the mystery]. Amen.
Our Father...Hail Mary...Glory be...
The leader then concludes the mystery with this prayer:
May the grace of [name of the mystery] come down into our
souls.
A concrete example of this praying is:
We offer you, Lord Jesus, this decade in honor of the
Annunciation. Through this mystery and the intercession
of your holy mother, we ask for humility of heart.
Our Father, ten Hail Marys, Glory be...
May the grace of the mystery of the Annunciation come down
into our souls.
To say the rosary individually, the words can be adapted
to make it personal..."I ask for humility of heart",
"come into my soul".
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