How to Pray the Rosary Every Day

If you are reading this, you may be a Catholic who would like to reconnect with ancient traditions and devotions of the Church. If you are not, then I pray that you will find this prayer both soothing and instructional. Follow these steps to begin praying the most popular Catholic prayer in the world...the Rosary.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Rosary beads
• A printout of Catholic prayers (the Our Father, the Hail Mary, the Glory Be, the Apostles' Creed, the Fatima Prayer, the Hail Holy Queen Prayer, the Memorare, the St. Michael the Archangel Prayer, the
• Approximately 30-40 minutes to set aside for prayer
• Images of the Rosary's mysteries (Glorious, Joyful, Sorrowful, Luminous)

1. As you are holding your Rosary beads, find the crucifix at the end of the chain. This is where you will start praying. Start your prayer by making the sign of the cross.

2. Now hold the crucifix and state the name of the day's mysteries out loud (this whole prayer should be said out loud). Each day of the week is devoted to certain mysteries. There are 20 mysteries in all and 4 sets of mysteries (the Glorious Mysteries are prayed on Sundays and Wednesdays, the Joyful Mysteries are prayed on Mondays and Saturdays, the Sorrowful Mysteries are prayed on Tuesdays and Fridays, and the Luminous Mysteries are prayed on Thursdays).

3. 
   Pray for others!

   Okay, offer a short prayer to the Virgin Mary. This could be a prayer for a sick loved one or a prayer for the poor of your town. It can be anything, as long as it is not a selfish request (like asking for a brand new Playstation 3!).

4. Recite the 'Apostles' Creed' while holding the crucifix and then say an 'Our Father' on the first bead above the crucifix. You're catching on quick! Don't give up yet!

5. On the second bead, ask the Virgin Mary to grant you an increase in Faith, Hope, and Love. Proceed to pray 3 'Hail Marys' on the second, third, and fourth beads. On the fifth bead, say a 'Glory Be'.

6. 
   Meditate on each mystery!

   Now we come to the meat and potatoes of the Rosary. While holding the fifth bead, state the first mystery of the Rosary. For example, if today is Sunday, I would be praying the Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary. The first of the 5 Glorious Mysteries is 'The Resurrection of Our Lord'. So state the first mystery of whatever set of 5 Mysteries you are reciting for the day.

7. Here is a list of the 5 Mysteries for each set:
   
   A) Glorious Mysteries - 1. The Resurrection of Our Lord, 2. The Ascension of Our Lord into Heaven, 3. The Descent of the Holy Spirit Upon the Apostles and Our Blessed Mother, 4. The Assumption of Our Blessed Mother into Heaven, 5. The Coronation of Our Blessed Mother as Queen of Heaven
   B)Joyful Mysteries - 1. The Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin and the Incarnation of Our Lord, 2. The Visitation of Mary to St. Elizabeth, 3. The Birth of Our Lord, 4. The Presentation of the Child Jesus in the Temple, 5. The Child Jesus Lost and Found in the Temple
   C)Sorrowful Mysteries - 1. The Agony of Our Lord in the Garden, 2. The Scourging of Our Lord at the Pillar, 3. The Crowing of Our Lord with Thorns, 4. The Carrying of the Cross, 5. The Crucifixion and Death of Our Lord
   D)Luminous Mysteries - 1. The Baptism of Our Lord, 2. The Wedding Feast at Cana, 3. The Proclamation of the Kingdom of Heaven, 4. The Transfiguration of Our Lord, 5. The Institution of the Eucharist

8. 
   Mary helps you in your time of need.

   Okay. Are you still with me? Good. After you have stated the first Mystery, ask the Lord for the virtue of that mystery. Every one of the 20 mysteries has a virtue that you should adopt in your life, such as Humility and Courage. Type in 'virtues of the Rosary' on Google and you should find plenty of pages that will tell you the virtues for each Mystery.
   In my example, today is Sunday. So, for the 'Resurrection of the Lord', I would say, "Lord, grant me the virtue of Faith".
   After saying the virtue, pray an 'Our Father'.

9. For the next 10 beads, pray 10 'Hail Marys'. At the tenth bead, in addition to the tenth 'Hail Mary', pray a 'Glory Be' and a 'Fatima Prayer'. Meditate and think about each Mystery as you say the 'Hail Marys'.
   Repeat 4 more times until you reach the icon of Mary again and come full circle. Each of these sets of 10 beads are called 'decades'. The only difference is that the next 4 Mysteries are different. See step 7 for all of the Mysteries for each set.

10. At the end, recite a 'Hail, Holy Queen', the 'Memorare', and the 'St. Michael Prayer' while holding the icon (picture) of Mary. Finally, make the sign of the cross while holding the crucifix.
    That's it! I hope you have a deep, calming, and informative prayer experience with the Rosary. God bless you.

Tips & Warnings

• Buy plastic or stone Rosary beads. The wooden ones tend to absorb the oils from your skin and rot away eventually.
• Pray the Rosary with others if it is possible. Some people find it easier to focus with others, but if you are alone, then use pictures of the Mysteries to help focus your attention.
• YouTube also has some great Rosary videos to help you pray along with others. Just search for 'praying the Rosary'.
• While the 'Glorious Mysteries' are prayed on most Sundays, this is not the case during Advent (Late November to Christmas), when the Joyful Mysteries are prayed instead, and during Lent (Ash Wednesday to Easter), when the Sorrowful Mysteries are prayed instead.
• During October, it is traditional to add the prayer of 'St. Joseph' after you recite the 'St. Michael' prayer.
• During November, it is traditional to replace the 'Fatima Prayer' at the end of each decade (every 10 beads) with the 'Eternal Rest' Prayer for the souls of the dead.

[rondesi]

on 11/24/2009 The rosary is a very simple prayer but it may appear intimidating at first. I wrote an article for beginners at http://www.ehow.com/how_5684260_pray-rosary-first-time.html

[steacher]

on 11/21/2009 Wow! I didn't know praying the Rosary was so involved! Thanks for the information!

[jrockjams]

on 11/15/2009 very well written. I learned this at a very young age. 5* and a rec!

[goodselfme]

on 11/10/2009 Very uplifting and spiritual guiding message to pray the daily Rosary. 5*

[Cinderella7]

on 11/9/2009 very spritual! thank you