Protestants and the rosary

[rinnie]

As far as I know, praying the Rosary is almost entirely a Catholic practice. I have never seen a Protestant of any denomination pray the rosary, although I do understand that some (very few) Anglicans use a similar concept (Anglican prayer beads or something).

I have a very good friend who is very Protestant. But guess what? Its not the rosary directly but she has learned to go to the Blessed Mother for help!

Yep you heard me right, she goes to Mother to pray for her and her problems. So she may never enter the RCC. But she still goes to Mother Mary for prayers.

I think God would think thats pretty awesome!

 

[rinnie]

Even though I am Orthodox I still pray the Marian Rosary from time to time. But since the stroke I find it much easier to use the Orthodox prayer rope. With it you just concentrate on the prayer “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God have mercy on me, a sinner.” You just concentrate on one thing, the prayer.

But with the Marian Rosary you have to do two things at a time. Say the prayers while at the same time meditate on the Mysteries. I can only do one thing at a time with my stroke ridden mind now.

Thats okay. God understands and I will pray my rosary for you and do what you can’t!

I will be your new partner in crime as they say!

 

[landon13]

My grandmother had a true devotion to the Rosary from a very young age from what I was told. She was raised Baptist but lived across the street from the Catholic church and would sit outside listening to Mass (in Latin–this way the 1910’s) and the Rosary being said. She taught herself the prayers and was severely punished by her father when he caught her “casting those evil spells” like the Catholics did. Well, she left home at 15 and took a job in a pharmacy. She was the only non catholic at her job, so she took it as a sign from God that it was time to convert. She converted at 16, married the next year and went on to have 12 children. She continued to pray the rosary daily until she died at the age of 85.

Yes, I love seeing Protestants pray the rosary, but it would be good to warn them that it may be a dangerous thing to do…they may become Catholic by doing so.

That is amazing and wonderful! What a blessing of a story!

 

[landon13]

When I was a protestant in my childhood, my Catholic family had a big impact on my life (my dads family). My vava gave me a rosary when I was a kid and I prayed the rosary, no matter how much I did not care for catholicism and argued against it as a young person. The rosary is wonderful and is a great practice for protestants! If only more could be led by Mary through it!

 

[trailrunner]

I don’t post very often, but I “lurk” on these forums on a frequent basis.

I was raised Protestant, and I began to pray the rosary three years ago while in a combat zone overseas. It began a chain reaction in my spiritual life…and led to my conversion to Catholicism this past Easter.

 

[Falco]

Falco, thanks, that’s a very thorough answer. From your answer would one assume that the
Anglicans don’t say the Hail Mary at all, if not, would tha be because they don’t regard the Blessed Mother as highly as we Catholics do? Or is that something to do with the difference between “high-church” and “low-church” anglican parishes? ( one being more catholic in their doctrine than the other perhaps?). Considering that I live in England, ive only been in Anglican churches three times in my whole life, and don’t know much about them.

Paul.

.

Hi Paul - it was a good C&P that I found.

From my 20 years as an Anglican, I don’t remember ever saying the Hail Mary, but I did at school as I attended a convent school at the same time.

I went to a very high church anglican church - they even had the Stations of the Cross, but they didn’t say their rosary either. Mary is highly esteemed, but not acknowledged as often - that is one of the things that the Protestants objected to, and protested about, though I think it was a bit of ‘throwing the baby out with the bath water’. They pared too much away from the church when they left.

I think the Anglican ‘rosary’ is a recent thing - I discovered it when I was making rosaries in New Zealand, and made a few for sale. They prefer a cross to a crucifix. The chaplet is a very pretty one, easy to handle, and different parishes had their own set of prayers.

 

[Immacolata]

My grandmother had a true devotion to the Rosary from a very young age from what I was told. She was raised Baptist but lived across the street from the Catholic church and would sit outside listening to Mass (in Latin–this way the 1910’s) and the Rosary being said. She taught herself the prayers and was severely punished by her father when he caught her “casting those evil spells” like the Catholics did. Well, she left home at 15 and took a job in a pharmacy. She was the only non catholic at her job, so she took it as a sign from God that it was time to convert. She converted at 16, married the next year and went on to have 12 children. She continued to pray the rosary daily until she died at the age of 85.

Yes, I love seeing Protestants pray the rosary, but it would be good to warn them that it may be a dangerous thing to do…they may become Catholic by doing so.

A beautiful story of Our Lady’s intercession for bringing your grandmother into her Son’s Church. I find great inspiration that despite her father’s prejudice towards Catholics, she followed her heart (through Our Lady’s prayer).

As for the topic of the OP, I find the Rosary to be, in origin, a strictly Catholic practice, although, of course, any one (regardless of denomination) can pray it (in fact, I find the practice by non-Catholics inspirational, as shown in 7armyrugrats’s story).

 

[Dorothy]

I don’t post very often, but I “lurk” on these forums on a frequent basis.

I was raised Protestant, and I began to pray the rosary three years ago while in a combat zone overseas. It began a chain reaction in my spiritual life…and led to my conversion to Catholicism this past Easter.

Thanks be to the Lord, and our Lady!

 

[JonNC]

Probably referring to how the first half is directly from the Bible and the second half is asking for her intersession. So I’m assuming they’re cutting out “Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death” (You can tell I’m not used to thinking of it in two parts because I needed to recite the first half to remember the second )

Jon

 

[writer12]

Hi Everyone,

I’m a recent convert (Easter Vigil this year) from LCMS. I’ve been praying the rosary for a year and a half, and love how it focuses attention and worship.

I have quite a large circle of Protestant friends, but am not aware of any Protestants who pray the rosary. In fact, since I’m now Catholic “Exhibit A” I field many questions and have shown my rosary quite often. No one yet (except my Protestant pastor) has even seen one or has any idea how it works. One person asked me about vain repetition of prayer as being the sign of a heathen – I explained that by concentrating on the mysteries it’s more like doing two things at once; the prayers are not vain or nonsensical.

My Lutheran pastor was originally Catholic. He suggested instead of the Hail Mary I pray:

Lord Jesus Christ
Son of the Living God
Have mercy on me, a sinner.

I don’t have a problem praying either this or the Hail Mary, but most of the time use the Hail Mary.

I must admit I don’t pray the HHQ at the end. To end I pray the Rosary prayer, the prayer to St. Michael, and the St. Gertrude prayer.

Interesting question. I do think the Protestants are missing out on a powerful prayer tool.

Elaine

 

[concretecamper]

…“abandoning the Mother is one step from abandoning the Son…”

Posted from Catholic.com App for Android

 

[jrose90]

Maybe this is the wrong place to ask this, but since you’re already discussing the rosary being used…

How do you pray the Hail Mary and meditate about something else all at the same time?

Sorry for my ignorance on the topic, I’d appreciate a layman’s terms explanation though if possible! Thanks

 

[Indifferently]

I have no particular prejudice against it. But I usually just stick to what’s in the Prayer Book, only really saying ‘Hail Mary’ if occasion demands.

 

[Dorothy]

Maybe this is the wrong place to ask this, but since you’re already discussing the rosary being used…

How do you pray the Hail Mary and meditate about something else all at the same time?

Sorry for my ignorance on the topic, I’d appreciate a layman’s terms explanation though if possible! Thanks

For me it is like holding the hand of Blessed Mother while I meditate on the life of her son. No one knows Him better than she does!

 

[Gullveig]

I know a couple of neo-pagans that pray the Rosary regularly, which I thought was weird, but it makes a sort of sense given their particular religious bent. A Baptist friend of mine also prays the rosary regularly, but I think she’s a closet Catholic or something.

 

[7armyrugrats]

Maybe this is the wrong place to ask this, but since you’re already discussing the rosary being used…

How do you pray the Hail Mary and meditate about something else all at the same time?

Sorry for my ignorance on the topic, I’d appreciate a layman’s terms explanation though if possible! Thanks

It takes practice to be able to meditate on the mysteries while praying. My grandmother taught her kids to meditate by looking at pictures in a prayer book of which ever mystery was being prayed. I learned the same way. Eventually you will no longer need the pictures because you can “see” them in your mind. I still struggle to keep my mind from wandering at times, but I stop, regroup, appologize to God and continue where I left off.

I’ve been working on teaching my older kids to pray the rosary. I found some pictures online that I printed off and stapled together. The pictures are larger than in the prayer books I have found so it’s easier for the kids to see. I have also used coloring sheets of the mysteries with the younger kids and had them color the picture as they pray the Hail Mary as a learning tool.

It takes time, practice, motivation and discipline to really get the hang of it, but I think that is part of what makes the Rosary so powerful. Padre Pio called it his weapon! So many graces come from this devotion

 

[BernadetteM]

As a former Anglo Catholic in TEC, our parish had a gift shop and only sold Catholic rosaries.

We also said the Angelus on Sundays. I find that this was true is many Anglo Catholic parishes.

TEC/Anglican Communion was such a diverse denomination that one could believe whatever one choose to believe. At this point it appears that most of the orthodox Anglicans are leaving or have left the church.

Anglo Catholics were never looked kindly upon and many are now Catholic, either attending a Latin Rite parish or one of the Anglican Use/Ordinariate parishes.

God Bless

Bernadette

 

[kmcarl56]

I am not Catholic, but would have no objection to praying the Rosary. However, as a Protestant, I always pray to God directly. That is one of the big differences between Catholics and Protestants. I would enjoy holding the Rosery cross while in prayer for keeping me focused on God.

I do not think that most Protestants even understand what the Rosery is used for, and basically, most do not pray to Mother Mary. Most Protestants do not have a prayer book as such, but simply speak from the heart directly to God. They do not believe that they have to go through Mother Mary to reach God or Jesus, because God is always there listening & hears our prayers. We do say, “In Jesus Name, I pray” before saying, “Amen.”

I hope this answers some of your questions.

May God bless you and keep you in all you do and say from this day until eternity.

 

[MartinJordan]

I am not Catholic, but would have no objection to praying the Rosary.

Very nice of you to consider it.

However, as a Protestant, I always pray to God directly.

Yes, even as Catholics we pray to God directly . However, we also ask people to pray for us. Have you ever asked anyone to pray for you?

Even St. Paul asked others for their prayers -

Romans 15:30-32 (NIV)

30 I urge you, brothers and sisters, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me. 31 Pray that I may be kept safe from the unbelievers in Judea and that the contribution I take to Jerusalem may be favorably received by the Lord’s people there, 32 so that I may come to you with joy, by God’s will, and in your company be refreshed.

MJ

 

[AveChriste11]

Interestingly enough, I was first introduced to the rosary through New Age ideas. I used to believe that Mary was an “ascended” being, instead of the Mother of God. However as I came to learn about what the early Church actually taught my understanding and love for Mary only increased. I said the Catholic rosary a lot, but haven’t found it within me to say it every day as I probably should.

I always felt better, as if all of the cares and stresses of the day were to fade away. To know that I have a mother in Heaven who loves me intimately, who understands me, and who can bring all of my thoughts and problems to her Son is a beautiful concept. That even though the Son sits at the right hand of the Father, of one essence with him. I still find it easier to relate to Mary, rather than Jesus in many ways.

I was brought up Southern Baptist, then left that church and have been on a spiritual quest ever since. I have even abandoned Christianity, but who knows where I might be through Mary’s intercession and the intercession of St. Therese the Little Flower, another saint whom I’ve always been drawn to in a way I could never understand…