Learning to love praying the rosary?

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How do I get into the habit of praying the rosary daily and without feeling like I have to but more like I want to? I want to learn to love praying the rosary. I used to pray it daily but I don’t always get the chance now.
 
anon98328916 said:
How do I get into the habit of praying the rosary daily and without feeling like I have to but more like I want to? I want to learn to love praying the rosary. I used to pray it daily but I don’t always get the chance now.
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Some days we all feel rather dry and might pray the Rosary from habit and a little nagging sense that we should, rather than love - so you’re not alone!

I found reading St. Louis de Montfort’s ‘The Secret of the Rosary’ (available very cheaply various places, maybe your parish bookshop if you have a good one, or probably free online if you search), really helpful.

If you don’t know it it’s basically 53 little reflections or anecdotes or illustrations from the lives of the saints (some of which are probably apocryphal but no less inspiring for it!), one for each of the Hail Marys we pray. Turning either at random or successively to these, daily, when I can, is always very helpful for me, and has helped me to find or re-find the love of praying the Rosary when lacking it.

Also - we all lead busy lives of course, but even just a single decade offered with love is so valuable - so don’t ever feel distressed or down about not being able to on any given day!
 
Can’t help but will follow to hear what everybody comes up with.

Because in my childhood the Rosary was always something associated with death, I don’t pray it at all, so I do not fault those who can’t “love it.”

ICXC NIKA
 
In all honesty, I am very bad at it. I cannot say the prayers and reflect on the mysteries at the same time. That is to me like playing the piano and reading a book at the same time. I can’t do both at the same time. 😊
 
I don’t think anyone should feel guilty about not saying it. It’s a private devotion.

Pray the way that seems natural to you - in other words, pray the way you can, not try to shoehorn yourself into somebody else’s devotional practice.

There are many other ways of praying.
 
Do a decade.
Over 5 days you’ve prayed an entire rosary.
Don’t fret.
Love Mary first. Her rosary is a happy result.

I grew up (also) in the Hispanic tradition of a Rosary at the funeral home or the home before the funeral. I found it less about death, more about about consolation.
To this day, when I am sad, the rosary reminds me I am not alone. I think of Mary at the foot of the Cross. If she can persevere, I can make a point to emulate her. I like to think of it as a spiritual hug.

God bless you. ❤️
 
Sometimes it just happens.

I remember, as a child, praying a decade of the Rosary each night en famille. It was a pretty mechanical exercise, and as things changed (let me not get into details :p), the practice gradually died a natural death. I never bothered with it after that.

It was only when I was about 30 that I truly felt the need to start praying it again. Reading Fulton Sheen’s book The World’s First Love (about Our Blessed Mother, of course :)) was probably what pushed me into it.

Today, I can’t think of not praying it, or at least a part of it, each day. 😉
 
anon98328916 said:
How do I get into the habit of praying the rosary daily and without feeling like I have to but more like I want to? I want to learn to love praying the rosary. I used to pray it daily but I don’t always get the chance now.
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For many the rosary is a beautiful aid to their faith, and for others not so much. Being that it’s a private devotion it’s entirely up to you if you make it a part of your spirituality or not.

The rosary began as a “grass-roots” devotion in which illiterate lay people (or those who could not read/write Latin), who wanted to follow the example of religious who prayed all 150 Psalms of the Divine Office in Latin, could pray along with the hours of the office by praying a Hail Mary in their own vernacular in place of each Psalm. This is why the rosary has 150 Hail Marys in its main body of prayers. In time, the Our Fathers were added when the Hail Marys were broken up into decades. Other prayers followed after that. Being that it’s based on the Divine Office and follows the lives of Jesus and Mary, it has great spiritual merit, but it’s not mandatory for anyone nor is it part of the official liturgies of the Church.

The Divine Office (the Liturgy of the Hours) and the Mass are the Church’s official liturgies. I always encourage people to start praying Morning, Evening, and Night Prayer using Shorter Christian Prayer if they want to pray the official daily prayer of the Church, but praying the rosary instead, or as well, is fine for those who find it beneficial to their spirituality–to help them keep their baptismal vows.
 
Irishmom2 said:
In all honesty, I am very bad at it. I cannot say the prayers and reflect on the mysteries at the same time. That is to me like playing the piano and reading a book at the same time. I can’t do both at the same time. 😊
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I struggle with this also (doesn’t everyone?!). I find that changing up how I pray the rosary helps. Sometimes I can only meditate on a mental picture associated with the mystery. Sometimes I try to recall the scriptures associated with it.

Using an audio rosary to go along with helps, particularly scriptural versions. The video versions found on EWTN and YouTube help tremendously. I really like Fr. Pacwa’s “Rosary from the Holy Land” which shows the places where the events took place.

There is a quote from Mother Angelica that I need to find… to roughly paraphrase it, she says that everyone gets distracted and that all we need do is turn our minds back to God the moment we realize it.
 
GEddie said:
Can’t help but will follow to hear what everybody comes up with.

Because in my childhood the Rosary was always something associated with death, I don’t pray it at all, so I do not fault those who can’t “love it.”

ICXC NIKA
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When I was young we were taught that saying the Rosary for someone who died was a very Blessed thing to do for them. I definitely want my family to say the Rosary for me. I say it for them now every day. Evidently you do not understand the Rosary and it’s importance in Catholic Life. God Bless, Memaw
 
anon98328916 said:
How do I get into the habit of praying the rosary daily and without feeling like I have to but more like I want to? I want to learn to love praying the rosary. I used to pray it daily but I don’t always get the chance now.
Click to expand...
I was in your shoes for too long. I converted in 2014 thanks to a lot of help from members on here answering the same questions I had. But I never got the hang of how to pray the rosary. So this past Lent, I decided to dedicate time to praying the rosary.
First, I asked my brother and he gave me a "Pocket Rosary Prayers Leaflet, I tried everything I could get my hands on to help me but nothing helped!
I was really feeling bad because little kids were able to pray but not me. Cradle Cayholivs looked st me in horror as I tried to keep up with my tangle of beads.
So Google became my best friend. I found out that if you like you beads, think they are pretty, they feel good in your hands (they aren’t too small and you can tell by the sizes what prayer to say) then you will want to use them.
So yeah, I wanted to use them but I was not very good at reciting the prayers and I didn’t have the rhythm down so I could really meditate on the mysteries.
Then I found Mother Angelica and the sisters on EWTN reciting the rosary every night at 9pm. I started out praying with her every night. I had my pamphlets out in front of me. One was open to the mysteries and the other to the prayers. I just followed along. I did this every evening at 9pm. I made it all the way to Easter but when Mother Angelica died Easter Sunday, everything went awry.
I prayed all day about it. I knew she was on somewhere as a repeat so I downloaded the EWYN app on my phone. But even then, scheduling was interupted for every detail of her funeral. Someone mentioned YouTube. So now I just look her up and prayer with her as I always have!
I also bought a booklet for $3 called Praying the Rosary with Pope Francis. It explains what each mystery means and I know how the rhythm flows with the beads so I can take my time with them. Just make sure to keep that set time like a doctor’s appointment where you get charged if you don’t show up.
In His Name,
Cheryl
 
Memaw said:
Evidently you do not understand the Rosary and it’s importance in Catholic Life. God Bless, Memaw
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I have called you out on this before.
Please stop making your opinions about the Rosary seem like they are Church teaching.

Yes, the Rosary is an important part of Catholic life, for SOME CATHOLICS!
It is a private devotion, and the Church does not now, nor has it ever said that someone must pray it.

It it works for you fine, but please stop with the snarkiness to those for whom it does not.

OP, some good advice I got once from a very holy priest-
“Pray as you can, not as you can’t! What matters is that you pray!!” 😃
 
butlerbulldogs1 said:
I was in your shoes for too long. I converted in 2014 thanks to a lot of help from members on here answering the same questions I had. But I never got the hang of how to pray the rosary. So this past Lent, I decided to dedicate time to praying the rosary.
First, I asked my brother and he gave me a "Pocket Rosary Prayers Leaflet, I tried everything I could get my hands on to help me but nothing helped!
I was really feeling bad because little kids were able to pray but not me. Cradle Cayholivs looked st me in horror as I tried to keep up with my tangle of beads.
So Google became my best friend. I found out that if you like you beads, think they are pretty, they feel good in your hands (they aren’t too small and you can tell by the sizes what prayer to say) then you will want to use them.
So yeah, I wanted to use them but I was not very good at reciting the prayers and I didn’t have the rhythm down so I could really meditate on the mysteries.
Then I found Mother Angelica and the sisters on EWTN reciting the rosary every night at 9pm. I started out praying with her every night. I had my pamphlets out in front of me. One was open to the mysteries and the other to the prayers. I just followed along. I did this every evening at 9pm. I made it all the way to Easter but when Mother Angelica died Easter Sunday, everything went awry.
I prayed all day about it. I knew she was on somewhere as a repeat so I downloaded the EWYN app on my phone. But even then, scheduling was interupted for every detail of her funeral. Someone mentioned YouTube. So now I just look her up and prayer with her as I always have!
I also bought a booklet for $3 called Praying the Rosary with Pope Francis. It explains what each mystery means and I know how the rhythm flows with the beads so I can take my time with them. Just make sure to keep that set time like a doctor’s appointment where you get charged if you don’t show up.
In His Name,
Cheryl
Click to expand...
I also have praying the Rosary with Pope Francis. I really like it. I joined the Church over 8 years ago. Before I joined I had the mysteries and prayers memorized and said them on the appropriate days and then I got lazy and stopped praying the Rosary. I use the term lazy because I did not want to make it a habit or make the commitment. That lasted 3-4 years. Then this past Lent I began praying it again and so far I have done it daily. I plan to make it part of my daily prayer life from now on.
 
I bring the Rosary up on my computer and listen/join at will as I work or am busy. Granted, it is not quite the same as having the Rosary in hand and not being distracted, but at times it is what applicable for the time or place. If you have a Smart Phone it will work for you and your hands will be free for driving. Peace.
 
Oneofthewomen said:
I have called you out on this before.
Please stop making your opinions about the Rosary seem like they are Church teaching.

Yes, the Rosary is an important part of Catholic life, for SOME CATHOLICS!
It is a private devotion, and the Church does not now, nor has it ever said that someone must pray it.

It it works for you fine, but please stop with the snarkiness to those for whom it does not.

OP, some good advice I got once from a very holy priest-
“Pray as you can, not as you can’t! What matters is that you pray!!” 😃
Click to expand...
Snarky? My My. The Rosary IS important in Catholic Life, and while it IS a private devotion, more than one Pope has encouraged that we pray the Rosary. I think the accusation of "snarkiness was unkind. Just my opinion.
 
anon98328916 said:
How do I get into the habit of praying the rosary daily and without feeling like I have to but more like I want to? I want to learn to love praying the rosary. I used to pray it daily but I don’t always get the chance now.
Click to expand...
The Rosary is like love; it grows. like a good marriage you need to be attentive. Or if you garden you need to pull a few weeds from time to time. I find that the Rosary gives me a sense of peace and calmness. The Rosary isn’t for everyone, but it is a good meditation tool as each mystery is reminding us on the aspects of the Life of Christ. Do/pray with what you are comfortable with. Peace.
 
Oneofthewomen said:
Yes, the Rosary is an important part of Catholic life, for SOME CATHOLICS!
It is a private devotion, and the Church does not now, nor has it ever said that someone must pray it.
Click to expand...
This is, of course, very true and very well said.

But can we both agree that the Church has, in the strongest of terms, encouraged the laity to pray the Rosary, going even so far as to attaching plenary indulgences to the act?

Could we maybe even also agree that a layperson should probably have a very, very good reason to avoid this powerful prayer? Perhaps something more than just personal taste or frustration?
 
For me personally, add these three intentions every time, for the conversion of sinners, perseverance of the just, and relief for souls in purgatory.

And you can read St Louis the Montfort books, or try St Louis de Montfort’s Methods of saying the Rosary

Don’t forget to add Divine Mercy Devotion too, and various chaplets of the saints. Always said with the same three intentions. This gives you a purpose. It’s taken from St Anthony Mary Claret’s Autobiography. The three intentions.

St Anthony Mary Claret’s Autobiography (PDF)
 
LaetenturCaeli said:
This is, of course, very true and very well said.

But can we both agree that the Church has, in the strongest of terms, encouraged the laity to pray the Rosary, going even so far as to attaching plenary indulgences to the act?

Could we maybe even also agree that a layperson should probably have a very, very good reason to avoid this powerful prayer? Perhaps something more than just personal taste or frustration?
Click to expand...
Did Our Lady of Fatima ask that the rosary would be prayed daily?
ewtn.com/library/MARY/FIRSTSAT.HTM
I kind of thought if the mother of Jesus asked us to pray the rosary daily it must be a powerful prayer.
 
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