WHY PRAY THE HOLY ROSARY?

"When the wine had given out, Jesus' mother said to him, “They are out of wine.” Jesus' mother then told the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”. Jesus said to the servants, “Fill these jars with water.” They filled them to the brim,  and then he told them, “Now draw some water out and take it to the man in charge of the feast.” They took him the water, which now had turned into wine, and he tasted it." (John 2:3, 5, 7-9).

There is a worrying confusion and an unsettled controversy, among Catholics and non-Catholics alike, about the Holy Rosary. This confusion is caused by the lack of indepth knowledge of the foundation, content,  purpose and merits of the Holy Rosary. This post takes you deep into the the Scriptures and the Tradition of the Church to uncover the mystery of the Holy Rosary. When you will know the essence, purpose and merits of the Holy Rosary, your heart will open and you will be able to pray it, not just because the Church says it, but with purpose, motivation and devotion. Follow me - "You will Know the Truth and the Truth will set you free" (John 8 :32)

MEDITATION WITH THE HOLY ROSARY 

1.THE WILL AND  WAYS OF GOD 

The Will of God 

Surely, you have heard the saying: "What goes up must come down". This is the manifestation of Sir Isaac Newton's Law of Gravity - the law of the world. 

But the law of divinity is different; and stays that: "What goes down must come up". - the law of death and resurrection.  This is why Jesus Christ came down from heaven and took human form, lived, suffered, died and rose from the dead - order to raise human beings who had fallen in sin, and restore them to the glory of God. (Philippians 2:5-11; James 4:6-20; Acts 1:7-11). 

The Ways of God 

The ways of God are different from, and higher than,  the ways of human beings (Isaiah 55:8-9;. Romans 11:33) 

The ways of God are perfect and sure; they lead us to his salvation (Isaiah 48:17).

The surest way to salvation is to follow the ways of God, in total obedience and submission (Psalm 25:9; Proverbs 3:5-6).

Jesus Christ himself is the model of obedience to the will and the ways of God (Philippians 2:6-8).

So, until you start to question meditatively why God became incarnate through the Virgin Mary, instead of coming down directly as an extraterrestrial being, or  why David released the stone against Goliath, using a sling instead of shooting it directly from his hands - you will never  appreciate the will and the ways of God. 

The Imitation of God 

The way by which God was made Man, is the same way by which Man may, also, be made like God. This brings us to the mystery and the foundation of the Holy Rosary. As God was Incarnate through the womb of the Virgin Mary, so Man also may disincarnate by meditating with the Holy Rosary, on the life and mysteries of Christ, who is the incarnate and living Word of God. 

Logically, the surest and easiest way for the world to go to God is to take the same path by which God came into the world. Lets use an analogy of the transmission of electricity to demonstrate this point: for God - with a very high spiritual "voltage",  to incarnate in the physical world, of very low spiritual "voltage", without burning or destroying it, He had to use a suitable interface, - the Virgin Mary - as the step-down transformer. So also, in order for humans, with very low spiritual voltage to attain to the high spiritual voltage of God, without being burned or destroyed, they has to use the same interface - the Holy Rosary - as a step-up transformer.

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2.THE WORK OF THE VIRGIN MARY 

The Antithesis of Eve

The pride and disobedience of Eve led to the consummation of the original sin in the Garden of Eden and the exile of Man  from the presence of God (Genesis 3:1-23) But the obedience and submission of the Virgin Mary led to the renunciation and reparation of the original sin, and the restoration of Man to the love of God through Christ (Luke 1:38; John 3:16-17).

Eve was quick to disobey God in order to satisfy her desires whereas Mary was rather quick to give up both herself and her personal desires for the will of God to be fulfilled through her. Eve had a choice between glory (presence) of God and the enjoyment of the forbidden fruit, between the love of God and the taste of the forbidden fruit; and she chose the taste of the fruit and lost the love of God. (Genesis 3:1-7). 

On the other hand, Mary had a choice between the will of God and her own will, between the love of God and the love of the world; she chose the love of God, at the risk of losing both her good name and the  man - Joseph - to whom she was betrothed in marriage (Matthew 1:18-20). But she chose to do the will of God, by accepting to be the mother of Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:38).

The Mother of God 

The Virgin Mary, as the Mother of God, is the one who conceived in her sacred Womb, carried, and delivered Jesus Christ, the Messiah (Revelation 12:2-5; Luke 1:38; 2:5-7), to defeat Satan (Colossians 2:15) and save the world (Colossians 1:20).

The Virgin Mary, as the Mother of the Word Incarnate, is the one who conceives in her Immaculate Heart, carries and delivers the living and active Word (Hebrews 4:12) into our hearts during meditation, to teach, heal, deliver us and transform our lives.

The Virgin Mary, as the Mother of God, is the one who conceives in her Immaculate Heart, carries and delivers our prayers to Jesus Christ, when we petition God through him who is the Mediator.

The Virgin Mary, as the Mother of the Living Stone (1 Pt 2:4) and of the Sword of the Spirit (Eph 6:17), is the one who conceives in her Immaculate Heart, carriers and delivers our prayers of spiritual warfare as fatal bullets against the Enemy (Eph 6:12).

The Catapult of the Word 

The divine strategy for the salvation of the world is unveiled in the conflict between David and Goliath (1 Sam 17:40-50). Here the Virgin Mary, as the Vessel of Salvation, is the Sling (Mt 1:20-21; Lk 2:7) which God used to shoot the Stone of Salvation (Acts 4:11-12) to destroy Satan (Col 2:15), save the world (Jn 19:30), and opened the way to Heaven (Mt 27:50)..

When you stand, as David, in humility to God and offer your prayer in the Holy Rosary, your victory is sure because: your target is precise, the range is attainable, and the speed high, and the force is irresistible. This wisdom to use the sling, instead of his empty hands, to release the stone against Goliath was given to David by the Holy Spirit (the stream from which he took the five stones) because of his humility (1 Sam 17:46) and ardent love of God (1 Sam 17:45).

3.THE MYSTERY OF THE ROSARY 

 Origin   

The origins of the rosary are "sketchy" at best. The use of "prayer beads" and the repeated recitation of prayers to aid in meditation stem from the earliest days of the Church and has roots in pre-Christian times. Evidence exists from the Middle Ages that strings of beads were used to count Our Fathers and Hail Marys. Actually, these strings of beads became known as "Paternosters," the Latin for "Our Father."

The structure of the rosary gradually evolved between the 12th and 15th centuries. Eventually 50 Hail Mary's were recited and linked with verses of psalms or other phrases evoking the lives of Jesus and Mary. During this time, this prayer form became known as the rosarium ("rose garden"), actually a common term to designate a collection of similar material, such as an anthology of stories on the same subject or theme. 

Contents 

The Holy Rosary of the Virgin Mary is a contemplative and meditative prayer, centered on Jesus Christ - as both the Word and the Incarnate Word of God. With the Holy Rosary we meditate the mysteries of joy, of sorrow, of light, and the glory of Jesus and Mary. The word Rosary means Crown of Roses. How to pray the Rosary, The Rosary prayer is composed of twenty decades of Hail Mary and twenty Rosary mysteries.

The Blessed Holy Father John Paul II (St John Paul II) on October 16th, 2002 with the Apostolic Letter Rosarium Virginis Mariae on the Most Holy Rosary has added 5 new mysteries of the Rosary: The Mysteries of the Light. The whole Rosary is composed of twenty decades. Each decade is recited in honor of a mystery in Our Lord's Life and that of His Blessed Mother.

The Holy Rosary is considered a perfect prayer because within it lies the awesome story of our salvation. With the Rosary in fact we meditate the mysteries of joy, of sorrow, of glory and of light Jesus and Mary. It's a simple prayer, humble so much like Mary.

Symbolisms 

The five decades of the Holy Rosary are the five stones which David collected from the stream (Holy Spirit), and they stand for the five Precious Wounds of Jesus by which he conquered Satan on the Gross (Col 2:15); - and the one stone that David used to kill Goliath stands for the wound at the side of Jesus (which testified to his death). 

The five wounds of Jesus on the Cross is the testimony which Jesus gave to Thomas for him to believe in him (John 20:27), and it is the same symbol that Christ has legated to the Church as the testimony of his victory over Satan and death (sin) - that all may believe and be saved through faith in Him.

The first three Hail Marys stand for Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and also for Good Friday, Holy Saturday, Easter Sunday (that is, Death, Burial and Resurrection or Repentance, Confession and Conversion). 

The fifty Hail Marys (10 x 5 decades) stand for the fifty days from the Resurrection to the Ascension of Christ. 

The 10 decades signify the 10 days between the Ascension and the Pentecost (the Spiritual birth of the Catholic Church) - within this 10 days the Virgin Mary accompanied the Apostles to pray for the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:14).

 Testimonies 

The rosary gained greater popularity in the 1500s, when Moslem Turks were ravaging Eastern Europe. Recall that in 1453, Constantinople had fallen to the Moslems, leaving the Balkans and Hungary open to conquest. With Moslems raiding even the coast of Italy, the control of the Mediterranean was now at stake.

In 1571, Pope Pius V organized a fleet under the command of Don Juan of Austria the half-brother of King Philip 11 of Spain. While preparations were underway, the Holy Father asked all of the faithful to say the rosary and implore our Blessed Mother's prayers, under the title Our Lady of Victory, that our Lord would grant victory to the Christians. Although the Moslem fleet outnumbered that of the Christians in both vessels and sailors, the forces were ready to meet in battle. The Christian flagship flew a blue banner depicting Christ crucified. On October 7, 1571, the Moslems were defeated at the Battle of Lepanto. The following year, Pope St. Pius V established the Feast of the Holy Rosary on October 7, where the faithful would not only remember this victory, but also give thanks to the Lord for all of His benefits and remember the powerful intercession of our Blessed Mother. 

There are countless other testimonies of personal conversions and victories over sins, trials, temptations, afflictions and evil spirits - as well as graces, healing and other blessings - obtained through the Holy Rosary. I, writing to you, owe my deep conversion to Christ and insight into the scriptures to the intercession of the Virgin Mary - through my meditations in the Holy Rosary. I would love to share my testimonies with you in a future post . 

4.HOW TO PRAY THE HOLY ROSARY

The Chaplet of the Rosary 

CHAPLET OF THE HOLY ROSARY 

The Method of Prayer  

The Holy Rosary begins with the Apostolic Creed, the Our Father, three Hail Marys and the Doxology ("Glory Be"), and concluded with the Salve Regina, the Holy Rosary involves the recitation of five decades consisting of the Our Father, 10 Hail Marys and the Doxology. During this recitation, the individual meditates on the saving mysteries of our Lord's life and the faithful witness of our Blessed Mother.

Journeying from the Joyful, through the Sorrowful, the Luminous and Glorious mysteries, the individual brings to mind our Lord's incarnation, His passion and death and His resurrection from the dead. In so doing, the rosary assists us in growing in a deeper appreciation of these mysteries, in uniting our life more closely to our Lord and in imploring His graced assistance to live the faith. We also ask for the prayers of our Blessed Mother, who leads all believers to her Son. 

The Holy Rosary is most effective when you pray with an intention, faith, attention, concentration and devotion. Your prayer intention is offered to Jesus Christ - through the Virgin Mary - at the beginning  of the Rosary, just after the "Glory Be" and the first decade. You may pray the Rosary aloud, or silently - especially, when you are praying alone. 

5.THE BENEFITS OF THE ROSARY 

The Holy Rosary is a step-up transformer for human beings who, live in the flesh, to attain to the divinity of God, who lives in the Spirit. (John 1:1-5,14)

The Holy Rosary is an instrument for the conversion of sinners and growth in holiness through the intercession of the Virgin Mary.  (John 2:5)

The Holy Rosary is a channel of divine grace to transform the souls, hearts, and lives of the believers in the salvation of Jesus Christ.  (John 2:3, 7-9).

The Holy Rosary is a weapon of battle, deliverance and victory against Satan, temptation and sin. The Rosary of the Virgin Mary is the Stone of David against Goliath. ( Rev 12:17; 1 Samuel 17:40 - 51) 

The Holy Rosary is an instrument of prayer and meditation through the Virgin Mary for the Incarnation of the Word in the believers. (Isaiah 55:10-11, John 1:14). 

Wish you  a happy reading and feedback!

Author: Aying Godman, is a Catechist, Evangelist & Blogger of the Roman Church; Founder of CATHOLIC FRONT (The Catholic Frontline Community™) Email:  ayinggodman@gmail.com 

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