The Rosary is a prayer made up of lots of little prayers, Rosary beads help a person to keep count so that they can fully concentrate while praying.
Roman Catholic AnswerThere are many different things involved in answering your question. First of all, one of the most important things that we must do as Christians is to pray, and beginning prayer is meditation. Realize that Christian meditation has absolutely nothing in common with Eastern meditation. That are completely different things and that fact that they are called by the same word is an unfortunate happenstance. Christian meditation is recalling and thinking about the truths of the faith. Meditation using Sacred Scripture (The Bible) is called Lectio Divinia.The rosary is a series of prayers based on the Bible - the Our Father, and the Hail Mary (the Angelic Salutation from the Gospel of Luke). But the vocal prayer is like the background music, if you will, to the meditation of the mysteries of the faith, which is the heart of the rosary.
The rosary meditations are:
Joyful:
Annunciation of angel Gabriel to Mary
Visitation of Mary to her cousin Elizabeth
Nativity of our Blessed Savior
Presentation in the Temple
Finding in the Temple
Luminous
Baptism of Jesus in the Jordan
Self manifestation of Jesus at the Miracle of Cana
Proclamation of the Kingdom of God
The Transfiguration on the Mount
The Institution of the Blessed Eucharist
Sorrowful
The Agony in the Garden
The Scouring at the Pillar
The Crowning with Thorns
The Carrying of the Cross
The Crucifixion
Glorious
The Resurrection
The Ascension
The Descent of the Holy Spirit
The Assumption of the B.V.M.
The Crowning of the B.V.M. as Queen of Heaven and Earth.
So we are praying by meditating on the mysteries of our Redemption. And this form of prayer was very ancient, but the form that we currently use was given by Our Blessed Mother to St. Dominic (who was founder of the Dominicans). As Catholics, we walk in our Savior's footsteps, and one of the ways in which we imitate Him is in His love and devotion to His mother.
So the rosary is important to us, as Catholic Christians, as fulfilling our Blessed Lord's command to pray always, as meditation on the events of His life, as a form of prayer that was given to us at the express wish of Our Blessed Mother, and as one of the forms of prayer, above most others that leads many saints to intimate union with God.
Below is the form that I made up for my students in Sunday school:
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen CRUCIFIX
L. I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of Heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into Hell. On the third day He rose again.
He ascended into Heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
R. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church,
the Communion of the Saints, the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen
Our Father (for the Pope). Three Hail Mary's (Faith, Hope, Charity) Glory be.
All. O my Jesus, forgive us our sins,
save us from the first of Hell.
Lead all souls to Heaven,
especially those who have most need of Thy mercy. Amen
For each decade (group of ten beads):
L. Our Father, who art in heaven, BIG BEAD
Hallowed be Thy Name,
Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done,
On Earth as it is in Heaven
R. Give us this day, our daily bread,
And forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive those who trespass against us,
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
L. Hail Mary, full of grace, SMALL BEADS - 10 TIMES
The Lord is with thee,
Blessed are thou amongst women,
And blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
R. Holy Mary, Mother of God,
Pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.
L. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. CHAIN
R. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
L. O my Jesus...
R. forgive us our sins,
save us from the first of Hell.
Lead all souls to Heaven,
especially those who have most need of Thy mercy. Amen
Final prayers:
Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy! Our life,
our sweetness, and our hope! To thee do we
cry, poor banished children of Eve; to thee do
we send up our sights, mourning and weeping
in this valley of tears. Turn, then, most
gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward
us; and after this our exile show unto us the
blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus. O clement,
O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary!
L. Pray for us, O holy Mother of God,
R. that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ. Amen.
All: O God, whose only-begotten Son, by His life,
death, and Resurrection, has purchased for us
the rewards of eternal life, grant, we beseech
Thee, that meditating on these Mysteries of
the most holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin
Mary, we may imitate what they contain, and
obtain what they promise, through the same
Christ our lord. Amen.
The rosary is a series of meditations on various mysteries in the life of Our Blessed Lord. The rosary helps one to pray by putting the mystery forward for our meditation.
Answer
Not being Catholic myself I can but say with respect, that though the above answer is correct to a point the Rosary is but a string of beads used in counting prayers. It has no sacred significance, only in that each bead is related to a significant prayer which should not be a mystery to the one praying, but has a comprehensible meaning i.e fully understood by the one who prays.
pope john paul gave us the luminous mystery which is added to the rosary.
the rosary
You honor the Virgin Mary by praying the rosary. She always tells us to pray the rosary everyday. You can notice it on reading and analyzing stories about Her apparitions.
Check with your pastor. There may be a rosary society in the parish that makes rosaries that may be able to help you. Otherwise, try a jeweler. He/she may be able to make the repair.
This dream suggests that you feel a need for prayer and divine help.
No, there is no capitalize when referring to rosary beads. You may choose to capitalize when referring to set of prayers called the Rosary, but not for rosary beads.
The rosary helps Catholic Christians to concentrate on sacred mysteries and provides them with a formula of prayers when they may not otherwise be able to find their own words to express their prayers. The Catholic Church has also heavily indulgenced recitation of the rosary, especially in a family setting, thereby granting special graces to those who pray the rosary.
In My Rosary was created in 1993.
The Apostles' Creed is prayed in the Rosary. It is the first prayer in the Rosary.
Jesus never said pray the rosary. The Church has come up with the prayer of the rosary to the virgin Mary.Roman Catholic AnswerThe Rosary recalls important events in the life of Our Blessed Lord, He didn't say the Rosary, He lived it. Our Blessed Lord sent His Mother to earth to give us the form of the Rosary that we have today, she appeared to St. Dominic, who founded the Dominican Order, and gave him the Rosary in order to convert the heretics that he was preaching to. As the rosary is primarily mental prayer on the Mysteries (the events in the life of Our Blessed Lord, and His Mother) it is a wonderful way to learn basic prayer. You should learn it well, and stick with it your whole life.
The rosary and the crucifix are use to remind us about JESUS'S teaching when he said who ever wants to follow him must carry the CROSS. Since the Cross symbolizes suffering. To be strong when problems come to us. Its only through suffering can you be saved.
rickety rosary