Help with the Rosary

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Stephen_Dirse

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Hello everyone.

Does anyone have any ideas on how to say the Rosary and enjoy it.

What I mean is I try hard to say it everyday because our lady asked us to.

But I wish I would enjoy it instead of feeling like its a chore.

I thought the more I said it, that after time it would get easier, but it hasn’t.

Thanks for any help.

I love Mother Mary and Jesus that’s why I want to do this, but feel as if they care that I am.

Am I making sense? Do you understand?

thanks in advance.
 
Are you saying the rosary all at once? If so you could try to break it up throughout the day. 2 decades in the morning. 1 decade at lunch. And then 2 decades before you go to bed, that may help. Or if that is still overwhelming for you maybe you can just make a commitment to pray 1 decade of the rosary for now and slowly build yourself up to praying all 5 mysteries. There is absolutely nothing wrong with praying 1 decade devoutly rather than praying all 5 decades begrudgingly
 
Or instead of making a commitment to pray the rosary daily you can make a commitment to pray all 4 mysteries during the week for now and build yourself up to praying daily. But something that has helped me has been to pray the rosary novena. I don’t know why but when I pray something as a novena I’m more inclined to stick with it.
 
Perhaps the Rosary isn’t for you. Have you considered other devotions to our Lady or perhaps some novenas or chaplets that use rosary beads.

While praying the Rosary is commendable it isn’t always the best fit or everybody’s devotional practices. That doesn’t make you a bad Catholic by any stretch of the imagination.

If you are intent on praying the Rosary you could use one of the other suggestions above to make it seem more manageable, like breaking it up through the day or perhaps committing to one decade a day for a while or to make a commitment to say at least one decade 3 times a week or something along those lines.

ChadS
 
For example, with exercise, people sometimes find that groups help. That principle helps some people with prayer. When I was in the US, I had several rosary groups I participated in! Had you ever considered trying out some rosary prayer groups? A lot of churches have them. There are also groups online, podcasts, radio rosary groups, just all kinds of variations on this.

Some people like praying the rosary silently, by themselves. Others prefer praying aloud or in groups. I’ve known people who have enjoyed walking and praying the rosary.
I once went to a site that even had a rosary-walk…flat circular rocks that formed a rosary in the ground. Each step was a prayer!

There are also even variations on the rosary, itself. These can also be found online or in booklets.

Also, you could vary the setting. For a long time, I only went to one Catholic Church. Then, it seemed nice to try several. That’s what I’ve been doing, and it works, in part due to my schedule. I think I enjoy the variation.

I’ve had different times where I’ve participated in rosary processions. Now, these are not everyday occasions but do serve to keep it interesting.

Some people have the rosary with background music. I’m fortunate here. We have a ton of churches nearby. I have my pick. I can even say the rosary with the sisters a couple of blocks away. They say the rosary, their community with the public, twice a day and the Divine Office.

If groups don’t exist, some people who have wanted them have created their own.

Anyway, I think you are on the right path, trying to get closer to God. Good luck and God bless!
 
Why not pick up or record the Rosary on cd or mp 3-- Sometimes it helps with a prayer leader and the cd can stand in for this purpose. This can be prayed with and played anywhere.
The more you pray the Rosary the less of a chore it becomes.

Mommyk:)
 
mommy_k said:
Why not pick up or record the Rosary on cd or mp 3-- Sometimes it helps with a prayer leader and the cd can stand in for this purpose. This can be prayed with and played anywhere.
The more you pray the Rosary the less of a chore it becomes.

Mommyk:)
Click to expand...
This is a great idea, I had a rosary set to music I loved to sing along with in the car.
Mary.
 
Stephen_Dirse said:
Hello everyone.

Does anyone have any ideas on how to say the Rosary and enjoy it.

What I mean is I try hard to say it everyday because our lady asked us to.

But I wish I would enjoy it instead of feeling like its a chore.

I thought the more I said it, that after time it would get easier, but it hasn’t.

Thanks for any help.

I love Mother Mary and Jesus that’s why I want to do this, but feel as if they care that I am.

Am I making sense? Do you understand?

thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Try listening to the Rosary Army podcast. I listen to them recite and recite along while walking. They also have a scriptural rosary where they recite scripture for each mystery and do you can change up the style here and there.
 
Stephen_Dirse said:
Hello everyone.

Does anyone have any ideas on how to say the Rosary and enjoy it.

What I mean is I try hard to say it everyday because our lady asked us to.

But I wish I would enjoy it instead of feeling like its a chore.

I thought the more I said it, that after time it would get easier, but it hasn’t.

Thanks for any help.

I love Mother Mary and Jesus that’s why I want to do this, but feel as if they care that I am.

Am I making sense? Do you understand?

thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Oh, I can only recommend the following that made me really enjoy saying the Rosary every single time.

montfort.org.uk/Writings/MSR.php

I use fourth method. I not only enjoy praying it that way but also learned things over time as to what some of the meditations for each bead means. Felt like God was leading me to learn them at the correct time which itself was a very pleasant experience.

I also recommend reading “True devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary” by Louis De Montfort (same author as the methods) if you get a chance. It’s available online on ewtn here

ewtn.com/library/montfort/truedevo.htm
 
Some ideas:
  1. Before starting each decade, try to meditate on it for a moment. For example, today we are praying the sorrowful mysteries: before praying the first of them, the Agony in the Garden, you can think about the acceptance of God the Father’s will by Jesus, or about the necessity of praying before difficult moments.
  2. Try to offer each mystery for a particular intention. For example, when I pray I use to offer the 5th mystery for the Pope, my Bishop, the Prelate of Opus Dei and the priestly vocations.
  3. Each day try to focus in one sentence of the Hail Mary, and try to say it deeply, understanding its meaning. For example, “Full of Grace”.
  4. Any more suggestions?
 
Stephen_Dirse said:
Hello everyone.

Does anyone have any ideas on how to say the Rosary and enjoy it.

What I mean is I try hard to say it everyday because our lady asked us to.

But I wish I would enjoy it instead of feeling like its a chore.

I thought the more I said it, that after time it would get easier, but it hasn’t.

Thanks for any help.

I love Mother Mary and Jesus that’s why I want to do this, but feel as if they care that I am.

Am I making sense? Do you understand?

thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
You can’t chase after sensible consolation in prayer. Prayer will at times feel like a chore, that’s the way we are. Consider all the natural factors at play when we enter into prayer. We may not have had enough sleep and we’ll be tired, or we’ve been working on our feet all day doing this and that, or we’ve not had a good breakfast or we may have a horrible diet altogether. These are all factors that will affect how we feel during the day and that will translate to our prayers. Then we must consider the supernatural effects at play. Interior consolation is a gift from God that He uses to help weak souls. We should not rely on it however because it is but a grace, a condescension from God. I entirely believe we should be happy with our prayer, but that doesn’t mean we should at all “feel” happy whilst doing it. We should be joyous through the hardships.

Just because you reach a hardship in your prayer, that does not mean you should abandon it as not working for you. God forbid if Saint Teresa gave up prayer because of dryness she experienced! If your prayer is harder, then pray all the more. Look to Our Lord’s example. He prayed all the more in His Agony when He was in the Garden on the eve of His Passion. Whatever you do, do not chop and change your devotions because of sensible consolations. Therein you will face your peril, and I speak from personal experience.

Now the rosary is suited for every single class of person. The rosary is truly a universal devotion. Anyone and everyone should pray it. Outside of the liturgy it is the most perfect prayer by combing all of the best and primary vocal prayers of the Church with meditative prayer. Both things, according to Saint Alphonsus, as being essentially to obtaining our salvation. Countless Popes and saints have exalted the Psalter of the Blessed Virgin.

It’s important to remember that in prayer, something objective occurs. That is that when we are in a state of grace, we can supernaturally merit. When we are in sin, we can obtain all the graces necessary to restore us to the state of grace. Every time you say your rosary, you are supernaturally meriting, regardless of whether you “feel” good or whether to feel it at all. Say you have a friend that’s in need. You’ve had a hard day and can’t really be bothered talking to them But it’s a work of mercy, you are comforting one in need, even if it feels like a chore. And through that action, you have merited. In fact to use an even more direct approach. All the great saints and spiritual directors say that we should sanctify our daily actions. That means by actually doing our chores, the mundane task of cleaning our dishes or sweeping the floor, if done with recollection and for the right reasons, will obtain for you supernatural merit. If you are consecrated to Our Lady using Saint Loui’s method, imagine, just imagine, that by merely sweeping a floor, Our Lady, to whom you have surrendered all the value of our good actions, could use that merit to apply the graces to someone on their death bed in danger of loosing their eternal salvation. By sweeping a floor, you have assisted in the salvation of a soul. Just imagine what saying the rosary can do!

I hope you do not abandon your devotion to Our Blessed Lady’s rosary. But all that being said, there are a few practical tips that may make saying the rosary easier.

Say your rosary at the time best suited to you. I don’t necessarily mean when you’ve got the most free time, but when you’re most relaxed. Make it the first priority before you ejjoy the rest of your recreation. Want to read the next few chapters in your book? Aye, they can wait 15-20 minutes. When is the less hectic period of your day? Also, look into your sleeping patterns and diet needs, this could be a symptom of something more at work. Do you feel like this in your other duties as well? Consider that you may need to adjust a few things. It sounds like a cliché but a good breakfast in the morning is half the battle!

Continued below:
 
Continued from above:

Don’t worry about how long it takes to say a rosary either. You don’t need to artificially drag it out for half an hour. Spiritual authors usually recommend at least a quarter of an hour’s meditation a day. The rosary sufficies for that, and you can say a rosary in 15 minutes. That doesn’t say you should rush through it either. Go at a natural pace. For instance, I’m quite quick in how I say my Hail Mary. Others are naturally slow. Avoid timing it, as that will just give you a burden. The spirit is willing, the flesh is weak. Our natural human reaction is to pretty much dread giving even five minutes to something which doesn’t come sensibly to us. Namely, prayer. Even 20 minutes of prayer can seem daunting in the mind’s eye. But when you pray at a natural rhythm, the time does fly by.

Do you have trouble in your meditation? Saint Teresa says that meditation is mostly concerned about the loving colloquy, the intimate conversation between the soul and God. Don’t worry about set forms in your head with meditation, it should in a sense be entirely spontaneous (though authors to state some general guidelines and objectives, and rightly so). Avoid the trap of believing that the end of the meditation is how well you can picture it or imagine yourself to be there. Visualisation is a crutch to aid us to the conversation part of prayer.

Also, you may consider matching your meditation to the vocal prayers. Not all meditation must consist in conversing with God. In fact it is just and right that we should also freely and loving converse with Our Blessed Lady, the angels and saints, and this is also mental prayer and mediation. Say you have the 5th Sorrowful Mystery, the Crucifixion. As you’re saying the Our Father, address God in love and wonder with your thoughts and feelings regarding this Mystery. When you say the ten Hail Mary’s, do the exact same, but talk to her in your meditation. Express your sorrow for your sins to her, your sorrow for crucifying her Son and wounding her Immaculate Heart, ask her to help you be better, etc. Our Lady’s Psalter is entirely Christocentric. All true Catholic devotion is. But we do not sin by conversing with others. Our Lady is the path to Christ, she is here to conform us to His Grace. Build a relationship with her so she can help you find Him.
 
Millie123 said:
Are you saying the rosary all at once? If so you could try to break it up throughout the day. 2 decades in the morning. 1 decade at lunch. And then 2 decades before you go to bed, that may help. Or if that is still overwhelming for you maybe you can just make a commitment to pray 1 decade of the rosary for now and slowly build yourself up to praying all 5 mysteries. There is absolutely nothing wrong with praying 1 decade devoutly rather than praying all 5 decades begrudgingly
Click to expand...
I just want you to know that their are four Mysteries : Joyful Glorious,Sorrowful Luminous’
They are each said on a certain day;
Like the Joyful Mysteries, are said on Monday and Saturday
The Sorroeful Mysteries , are said on Tusday and Fridayday
The Glorious Mysteries are said on Wednsday and Sundays
The Liminous Mysteries are said on Thursday.

Also when you said the Rosary,you said the whole Mystery of that day,and you finish the whole Rosary,I never hear once say,I,ll stop saying the Rosary after I finish one or two decades and do the rest later. When you say the Rosary, you start from the beinging,with the sign of the cross,than you continue on, tell you finish all the decades and end up with making the sign of the cross,as a op and a Catholice,I say it the way I told you,and if you watch EWTN,when they say the Rosary,the whole Rosary is said,they don,t stop after two decades said.
 
johnthebaptist2 said:
I just want you to know that their are four Mysteries : Joyful Glorious,Sorrowful Luminous’
They are each said on a certain day;
Like the Joyful Mysteries, are said on Monday and Saturday
The Sorroeful Mysteries , are said on Tusday and Fridayday
The Glorious Mysteries are said on Wednsday and Sundays
The Liminous Mysteries are said on Thursday
Click to expand...
The Luminous mysteries are optional. The Dominicans still ask only for the traditional fifteen mysteries to fulfill the obligations of the Rosary Confraternity.
Also when you said the Rosary,you said the whole Mystery of that day,and you finish the whole Rosary,I never hear once say,I,ll stop saying the Rosary after I finish one or two decades and do the rest later. When you say the Rosary, you start from the beinging,with the sign of the cross,than you continue on, tell you finish all the decades and end up with making the sign of the cross,as a op and a Catholice,I say it the way I told you,and if you watch EWTN,when they say the Rosary,the whole Rosary is said,they don,t stop after two decades said.
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Saint Louis Marie de Montfort, the great apostle of the Most Holy Rosary (and the addition of the Gloria Patri at the conclusion of decades is attributed to him) actually suggests splitting the decades up throughout the day. It’s optional and a complete legitimate option and is in no way less Catholic or pious.
 
Jon_Paul said:
The Luminous mysteries are optional. The Dominicans still ask only for the traditional fifteen mysteries to fulfill the obligations of the Rosary Confraternity.

Saint Louis Marie de Montfort, the great apostle of the Most Holy Rosary (and the addition of the Gloria Patri at the conclusion of decades is attributed to him) actually suggests splitting the decades up throughout the day. It’s optional and a complete legitimate option and is in no way less Catholic or pious.
Click to expand...
I hear of Saint Louis Marie de Montfort when I one of he,s books,if he didn,t say the Rosary when he want to, he would say it later,but he never suggest splitting the Rosary up,saying some of it and than finish the rest,ever person I view at church ,say the whole Rosary,than put away in their pockets.
 
Jon_Paul said:
The Luminous mysteries are optional. The Dominicans still ask only for the traditional fifteen mysteries to fulfill the obligations of the Rosary Confraternity.
Click to expand...
That’s not what I have been told. I recently joined the Confraternity of the Most Holy Rosary (Dominican Friars). I am informed that I am obliged (without pain of sin) to “recite and meditate on Fifteen Mysteries of the Holy Rosary once a week.” It is not stated which fifteen mysteries are to be said, and the word “traditional” does not occur. So presumably, if I chose to say the Luminous, Sorrowful, and Glorious one week, that would fulfill my obligation.

Additionally, in the welcome letter, it is stated that members are encouraged to do things like remind others of the importance of praying the rosary as a family, start confraternity societies, make and distribute rosaries, etc. One of the things we are encouraged to do is to “Promote the new ‘Luminous Mysteries’ of the Rosary.”

So consider them promoted.
 
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