The Rosary

The Rosary is a popular prayer for Christians and is especially popular among Roman Catholics. It consists of reciting a series of prayers out loud or in silence while you keep track of them on a string of beads. The word, Rosary comes from a Latin word, which means a garland of roses, and it is a prayer in honor of the Virgin Mary.

The Rosary is divided into five decades and in the beginning of each decade, a mystery is announced which it is intended to honor. There are four sets of mysteries in the Rosary (Joyful, Luminous, Sorrowful and Glorious), which are to be said on specific days of the week and these four sets contain a total of twenty mysteries.

The Joyful Mysteries: are said on Mondays and Saturdays

• The Annunciation
• The Visitation
• The Nativity
• The Presentation
• The Finding in the Temple

The Luminous Mysteries: were recently included by Pope John Paul II. They are said on Thursdays.

• The Baptism of Christ in the Jordon River
• Christ's Self-Manifestation at the Wedding Feast at Cana
• Christ's Proclamation of the Kingdom of God with his call to conversion
• Christ's transfiguration
• Christ's institution of the Eucharist

The Sorrowful Mysteries: are said on Tuesdays and Fridays.

• The Agony in the Garden
• The Scourging at the Pillar
• The Crowning with Thorns
• The Carrying of the Cross
• The Crucifixion

The Glorious Mysteries : are said on Wednesdays and Sundays

• The Resurrection
• The Ascension
• The Coming of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles
• The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin
• The Coronation of the Blessed Virgin

How to pray the Rosary

To pray the Rosary, you should hold your beads (also known as the Rosary) in your right hand and take the sign of the cross. The person who leads the prayer will then begin the Apostles Creed and say the Our Father and three Hail Mary's. Our Father's are recited on the large beads of the Rosary while Hail Mary's are said on the smaller beads. After this, the leader will then pronounce a Mystery before each decade and pray the Our Father again on the large bead and say ten Hail Mary's on the smaller beads. He or she will then end the decade by saying the Glory Be. This same cycle will continue for the next decades of the Rosary.