Rosary Days

[thistle]

Although I pray all 20 decades daily I’m nevertheless curious about the days order of the Rosary:

Joyful Monday
Sorrowful Tuesday
Glorious Wednesday
Luminous Thursday

Sorrowful Friday
Joyful Saturday
Glorious Sunday

If you were to follow the actual gospel sequence of the mysteries the order should be Joyful, Luminous, Sorrowful, Glorious.

Any ideas on the existing order of days?

 

[St.Curious]

Actually you (and most of the websites out there) have the order wrong. The beginning of the week is the sabbath (sunday). If “the Christian week, centred on Sunday, the day of Resurrection,” (ROSARIUM VIRGINIS MARIAE #38) is to be so, then it must start with the ressurection much like the rosary starts with the crucifix.

Consider this…

Glorious Sunday
Joyful Monday
Sorrowful Tuesday
Glorious Wednesday
Luminous Thursday
Sorrowful Friday
Joyful Saturday

As far as the order having any biblical character, I’m not sure other than the obvious (Sorrowful fridays for the passion of Our Lord, etc.), but I do not believe that Luminous Thursdays have any special meaning. Below is the exerpt from Pope John Paul II’s “ROSARIUM VIRGINIS MARIAE” on the subject…

According to current practice, Monday and Thursday are dedicated to the “joyful mysteries”, Tuesday and Friday to the “sorrowful mysteries”, and Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday to the “glorious mysteries”. Where might the “mysteries of light” be inserted? If we consider that the “glorious mysteries” are said on both Saturday and Sunday, and that Saturday has always had a special Marian flavour, the second weekly meditation on the “joyful mysteries”, mysteries in which Mary’s presence is especially pronounced, could be moved to Saturday. Thursday would then be free for meditating on the “mysteries of light”.

This indication is not intended to limit a rightful freedom in personal and community prayer, where account needs to be taken of spiritual and pastoral needs and of the occurrence of particular liturgical celebrations which might call for suitable adaptations. What is really important is that the Rosary should always be seen and experienced as a path of contemplation. In the Rosary, in a way similar to what takes place in the Liturgy, the Christian week, centred on Sunday, the day of Resurrection, becomes a journey through the mysteries of the life of Christ, and he is revealed in the lives of his disciples as the Lord of time and of history.

 

[Michael038]

Yes, if you were to pray in the sequence of the Gospel it would be Joyful, luminous, sorrowful, glorious. I usually pray the one the church designates for the day first, then do the three remaining in the proper sequence.

 

[tee_eff_em]

St.Curious:

Actually you (and most of the websites out there) have the order wrong. The beginning of the week is the sabbath (sunday).

FTR, you are correct that Sunday is the first day of the week, but you are mistaken in that it is not the sabbath. (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church #2175 )

tee