Marian Rosary and Vain Repetition

[Sociallycal]

Hello Dpeisenbeisz,

Loved to have a fellow Protestant here. I am converted from Protestant. Good news is that the Church does not require you to pray to Mary, or worship her, or ask her to pray for you. Not necessary, it’s not in the Dogma. The only 4 things in dogma

1. Perpetual Virginity - that’s quite common in most denominations
2. Mother of GOD - fair enough
3. Immaculate Conception - it is a bit tricky, it is talking about Mary being sinless upon conception of her in her mum’s womb (St Anne’s)
4. Assumption - it happens to Elijah, Enoch and so on.
   You also do not have to use rosary, or even believe in the apparitions !

In return, you get all the history, heritage and traditions !

 

[Techno2000]

I have been praying the marian rosary with the mysteries and I can understand how the prayer to the rosary points one to Jesus, however the repetition of the hail mary has been plaguing me a bit.

“And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.” (Matthew 6.7)

My understanding is that repetition in prayers is fine if it isn’t vain, but what constitutes the lines of vain repetition and if there is a danger of doing so while praying the rosary?

Cheers.

I’ve read, from private revelation, from Jesus, that said… for every Hail Mary…there is a Soul.

 

[Techno2000]

I have been praying the marian rosary with the mysteries and I can understand how the prayer to the rosary points one to Jesus, however the repetition of the hail mary has been plaguing me a bit.

“And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.” (Matthew 6.7)

My understanding is that repetition in prayers is fine if it isn’t vain, but what constitutes the lines of vain repetition and if there is a danger of doing so while praying the rosary?

Cheers.

The Fifteen Promises of Mary
to Christians Who Recite the Rosary
http://brizek.com/prayer/pieta.htm#rosaryscapular

 

[bassmansteiny]

The Fifteen Promises of Mary
to Christians Who Recite the Rosary
The Pieta

This little prayer booklet was given to me, by our Catholic group, when I was incarcerated. I still have it, great little booklet. Not sure if all the promises in it are recognized or accepted by mother church, but the prayers are great. I definitely recommend it. I cut mine down a little on the edge so it would fit in my “State Blues” pocket

 

[Techno2000]

Techno2000:

The Fifteen Promises of Mary
to Christians Who Recite the Rosary
The Pieta

This little prayer booklet was given to me, by our Catholic group, when I was incarcerated. I still have it, great little booklet. Not sure if all the promises in it are recognized or accepted by mother church, but the prayers are great. I definitely recommend it. I cut mine down a little on the edge so it would fit in my “State Blues” pocket

That little blue book is one of the reasons I reverted back to the Catholic faith 30 years ago.

 

[po18guy]

1. Does not apply! “Vain repetition” - focus on “vain” - was a form of self-serving babbling that certain Pharisees and others did on street corners for the purpose of public admiration. Thus, it was vain.
2. Look at Psalm 136. The Psalms are prayers. In it, the same prayer is repeated 26 times! Are the Psalms vain? No!
3. Jesus is our example. In the garden of Gethsemane, He prayed to the Father three times using the same words. Was He sinning? Were His prayers in vain? Nonsense!
4. Are you a convert? This is a common argument made by non-Catholics who do not know the bible themselves. We live in a Protestant-influenced nation (if you are in the US) and thus erroneous knowledge of the bible is common.
5. Google up some sites which explain Contemplative Prayer. The “Hail, Mary” prayers are indeed prayers, but also set a rhythm, a cadence for your contemplation.
6. The value of the Rosary is in the contemplation, not specifically in the words themselves, even though they are efficacious when offered with faith.
7. How many times have you told your loved ones that you love them? More than once? Was that “vain”? Of course not.

 

[bassmansteiny]

Right on

 

[Limoncello4021]

There are a number of books out there that go through each line of the Our Father (Lord’s Prayer) and meditate on it. They’ve really helped me say it well, with devotion and understanding. Probably my favorite of these books is Teresa of Avila’'s The Way of Perfection. She was trying to teach the sisters she was forming in her convents about prayer, and about 2/3rds of the book is devoted to a line by line meditation on the Our Father. Her point was that you don’t have to get all fancy or complicated in prayer if you are not called that way, but stick with the most basic and only prayer Jesus taught us and learn to say it very well.