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In Catholicism is it okay to ask a saint to say the rosary for you?
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Xanthippe_Voorhees
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Ummm…as I’ve discussed on other threads, the rosary is not a talisman or vending machine. Its purpose is not to guard us or give us a pile of graces.
It is about OUR reflection on Christ’s life and OUR turning our hearts to Him. Each mystery is contemplated while praying the Hail Mary prayers. This is just as much about our internal disposition is it is about the outward graces that are bestowed upon us.
That said, we are completely unable to understand the graces that Saints and angels just absolutely pour onto us on a daily basis. Asking them to pray the rosary is akin to asking your High School Economics teacher to finish your Elmo coloring page.
It is about OUR reflection on Christ’s life and OUR turning our hearts to Him. Each mystery is contemplated while praying the Hail Mary prayers. This is just as much about our internal disposition is it is about the outward graces that are bestowed upon us.
That said, we are completely unable to understand the graces that Saints and angels just absolutely pour onto us on a daily basis. Asking them to pray the rosary is akin to asking your High School Economics teacher to finish your Elmo coloring page.
What’s the difference of me asking you to say the rosary for me like if I find out you say rosary daily? Like please add me to your prayer list kinda thing.
Or say I find out you say the Divine Mercy Chaplet every day and I ask you to add me on your prayer list?
If I can ask you for prayers and the Saints in heaven please pray for me about "… "
why can’t I go and say hey please say the rosary for me?
Or like people asking Saint Anthony to help them find something.
Not forsaking saying the rosary but hopefully you got the idea.
By the way I’m not Catholic but thank you for your answer.
Or say I find out you say the Divine Mercy Chaplet every day and I ask you to add me on your prayer list?
If I can ask you for prayers and the Saints in heaven please pray for me about "… "
why can’t I go and say hey please say the rosary for me?
Or like people asking Saint Anthony to help them find something.
Not forsaking saying the rosary but hopefully you got the idea.
By the way I’m not Catholic but thank you for your answer.
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Xanthippe_Voorhees
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Its the difference between doing the homework yourself and reading spark notes.What’s the difference of me asking you to say the rosary for me like if I find out you say rosary daily? Like please add me to your prayer list kinda thing.
Or say I find out you say the Divine Mercy Chaplet every day and I ask you to add me on your prayer list?
If I can ask you for prayers and the Saints in heaven please pray for me about "… "
why can’t I go and say hey please say the rosary for me?
Or like people asking Saint Anthony to help them find something.
Not forsaking saying the rosary but hopefully, you got the idea.
By the way I’m not Catholic but thank you for your answer.
You absolutely may ask someone to pray the rosary or chaplet on your behalf. Should that person answer in the affirmative you get the graces.
However, you do not get the internal spiritual growth and the “accidental” benefits of praying the rosary or chaplet. You do not get the gift of the meditation on the life of Christ. You do not get the self-control of sitting and concentrating on the mysteries. You do not get the gift of peace from centering yourself. Sure, you get the grace…but that’s a small part of what the Rosary and Chaplet do.
As far as the Saints…they are in heaven. They can avail themselves too much more powerful prayer than the Rosary. Like I said, asking a Saint to pray the rosary is like asking your Economics professor to finish a kindergarten color page. Could they do so? Absolutely. However, we would be foolish to assume that this is the best prayer that they could manage. They SEE God. Their prayers are beyond our wildest imagination.
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psc17
Guest
praying the rosary for me is a sacrifice .ive been doing it for about 30 yrs,wk after week .I’m basically on my knees,when meditating it and at times, it can last up to an hour .I can easily pay somebody to do it for me ,but will never do,as I will feel empty and discontent!
Tis_Bearself
Patron
You can request the saint to pray a rosary for you, but it would be a more polite request if you either asked them to pray with you as you yourself prayed the rosary, or told them that if they wished they could substitute another prayer of their own choosing.
Some of us who put saint medals on our rosaries or touch them to a saint relic or tomb think of it as praying with the Saint when we pray on that rosary. My everyday rosary has a medal of St. Padre Pio and I touched the whole thing plus medal to the reliquaries of his touring relics, so I think of myself as praying the rosary with him when I say that one.
Some of us who put saint medals on our rosaries or touch them to a saint relic or tomb think of it as praying with the Saint when we pray on that rosary. My everyday rosary has a medal of St. Padre Pio and I touched the whole thing plus medal to the reliquaries of his touring relics, so I think of myself as praying the rosary with him when I say that one.
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RandomAlias
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I imagine saints know the best way to pray. It’s not possible that we could instruct them how to pray better.
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NiceIsAsNiceDoes
Guest
I am not Catholic either. I just tell the Saint (via prayer) what I am hoping for, and let him /her decide on the best way to intercede on my behalf. It works pretty well, I find. I don’t think you need to tell them how to ask the big guy for something. They know what they are doing.
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LoveTLM
Guest
Hi Guest1! I’m curious to know why you would ask a saint specifically to pray the rosary for you? I’m asking out of genuine curiosity and not in a condescending way. Like another person commented, I’ve just never considered asking a saint to say a certain type of prayer, only to pray for me.
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LoveTLM
Guest
I don’t think OP was suggesting that the rosary is a talisman or that he wouldn’t say the rosary himself and purposely miss out on the graces of doing so. Respectfully, I agree that we have no idea what wonderful things the saints do for us each day, but the rest of your comment makes unhelpful assumptions about the OP’s intentions and comes across a bit combative.
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Mary_Ellen
Guest
@LoveTLM,
@Xanthippe_Voorhees may be referring to previous posts by the OP,
To the OP,
Most Catholics would never presume to direct a saint to pray a specific prayer for them. As noted by PP, they would simply ask the saint to intercede for them.
Besides, the Hail Mary, the core prayer of the Rosary, says in part “pray for us sinners.” This phrase would be inappropriate for a saint in heaven to pray, as they are no longer sinners. On the same track, the Our Father asks that He “lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil”…also phrases which would be inappropriate for those in heaven.
@Xanthippe_Voorhees may be referring to previous posts by the OP,
To the OP,
Most Catholics would never presume to direct a saint to pray a specific prayer for them. As noted by PP, they would simply ask the saint to intercede for them.
Besides, the Hail Mary, the core prayer of the Rosary, says in part “pray for us sinners.” This phrase would be inappropriate for a saint in heaven to pray, as they are no longer sinners. On the same track, the Our Father asks that He “lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil”…also phrases which would be inappropriate for those in heaven.
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pianistclare
Guest
Mary_Ellen nails it.
The Lord desires OUR prayers.
When Mary has appeared, she always admonishes US to pray.
It’s for OUR sanctification.
The whole reason Saints can intercede is because they are with God.
We want to be with God, right? We have to do the work to get there.
Lastly, prayer is not a chore. It’s a conversation. A very personal one.
We don’t give Saints a task that we should be doing ourselves.
The Lord desires OUR prayers.
When Mary has appeared, she always admonishes US to pray.
It’s for OUR sanctification.
The whole reason Saints can intercede is because they are with God.
We want to be with God, right? We have to do the work to get there.
Lastly, prayer is not a chore. It’s a conversation. A very personal one.
We don’t give Saints a task that we should be doing ourselves.
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Xanthippe_Voorhees
Guest
I was addressing the general trend I see from the OP and a few others recently to see the Rosary as the end-all-be-all to their spiritual life. While not directly addressing the concerns of the OP, I wanted to quelsh that line of thinking.@LoveTLM,
@Xanthippe_Voorhees may be referring to previous posts by the OP,
To the OP,
Most Catholics would never presume to direct a saint to pray a specific prayer for them. As noted by PP, they would simply ask the saint to intercede for them.
Besides, the Hail Mary, the core prayer of the Rosary, says in part “pray for us sinners.” This phrase would be inappropriate for a saint in heaven to pray, as they are no longer sinners. On the same track, the Our Father asks that He “lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil”…also phrases which would be inappropriate for those in heaven.
As you’ve covered, the good that comes from the rosary is primarily in ourselves—and saints could not pray the vast majority of it anyway.
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Xanthippe_Voorhees
Guest
Not trying to be combative. Part of my reference was to impart that the rosary is, by itself, nothing “special” there are many wonderful graces from the church in MANY ways. There have been quite a few posts lately, by the OP and others, that put sacramentals in places that they don’t fit. There is also a notion that the Rosary is vital to our faith (it is not). In that understanding, it is important to stop the notion that one must have a daily rosary prayed for them or pray it themselves to be in good standing. “Do it for me” harkens to a childish relationship where we ask our parent to do something we need (like give food or water). To me, it was important to end the line of thinking that the rosary had any powers in itself.I don’t think OP was suggesting that the rosary is a talisman or that he wouldn’t say the rosary himself and purposely miss out on the graces of doing so. Respectfully, I agree that we have no idea what wonderful things the saints do for us each day, but the rest of your comment makes unhelpful assumptions about the OP’s intentions and comes across a bit combative.
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MonteRCMS
Guest
If I fall asleep while praying the Rosary, my Guardian Angel finishes it for me.
The Rosary is form of chaplet, which means it’s a rite. We use rite because we are currently limited in our wayfaring state: we do not see God face to face, and so the Church has given us both public and private rites to help us immerse ourselves in the mysteries of salvation.
The saints no longer have this limitation, being in the Beatific Vision, so their manner of praying is not necessarily the same as ours down here.
We therefore should not presume to dictate to a saint what “form” he should use for intercession. It is sufficient to simply invoke him: “pray for me/this intention”.
The saints no longer have this limitation, being in the Beatific Vision, so their manner of praying is not necessarily the same as ours down here.
We therefore should not presume to dictate to a saint what “form” he should use for intercession. It is sufficient to simply invoke him: “pray for me/this intention”.
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