Rosary help... Am I doing it right?

[Amnagrla]

Hello!!

I have some questions regarding the rosary:

1. is it a sin to fall asleep without finishing the rosary?
2. if I only have time for a partial rosary, is that wrong?
3. I can remember all the prayers, but not the mysteries. If I don’t have. My reference book with me, can I do the rosary without them?
4. if I am praying the rosary for a certain intention, when do I say it?
5. any thoughts on car rosaries? Or rosary “apps” for phones?

Thank you in advance for answering… I looove to pray the rosary but have no one to really talk about it with to make sure I am doing it right!!

Thank you and have a worthy Lenten season!

 

[cjmclark]

Hello!!

I have some questions regarding the rosary:

Let me see if I can help…

1. is it a sin to fall asleep without finishing the rosary?

Not at all. For one, the Rosary is a private devotion. There is nothing that requires you to pray one, so it’s not as though you’re “breaking the rules” if you fall asleep. In fact, the Blessed Mother would likely want you to go to bed if you’re so tired that you fall asleep in the middle of praying!

1. if I only have time for a partial rosary, is that wrong?

Again, as this is a private devotion, you may pray as much or as little of it as you see fit. The important part is the attention you give to the mysteries, rather than how much you pray.

1. I can remember all the prayers, but not the mysteries. If I don’t have. My reference book with me, can I do the rosary without them?

I would urge you to keep the mysteries a part of the Rosary whenever possible. Maybe carry a small card with them listed (with the appropriate days?). Meditation on the mysteries is what separates the Rosary from ordinary prayer.

1. if I am praying the rosary for a certain intention, when do I say it?

I’m not sure if there’s a “rule” regarding this. My wife and I generally list our intentions after the introductory prayers but before the first decade.

1. any thoughts on car rosaries? Or rosary “apps” for phones?

When my wife was working, she would pray the Rosary in her car during her morning commute. I’m not as familiar as my wife is with all the prayers, so I use an app for my Android phone called “iMissal” that lists the Rosary with all the mysteries (could help with question #3!) and all the accompanying prayers. (It also has many other Catholic prayers as well as the daily readings.)

Thank you in advance for answering… I looove to pray the rosary but have no one to really talk about it with to make sure I am doing it right!!

Thank you and have a worthy Lenten season!

Hope I helped. Have a blessed Lent!

 

[BigdogAman]

hello my sibling in Christ. my grandmother always taught me to always to pray the rosary i still try to she told me if i fall asleep while doing it or only finish part of it my angel will finish the rest for me. And worry not i don’t know the mysteries either its ok just get a book or like you mentioned a app for a phone i actually have app for my ipod which i’m not using because i gave my ipod up for lent but besides that the app is very helpful and useful. and someone correct me if i’m wrong i’m pretty sure you can’t say the rosary with out the mysteries. a app or a small folded piece of paper may help.

 

[Gordon_Sims]

We try to pray the Rosary as a family each night, but I also like to pray it while I’m out hiking, so I have one of those rosary rings for when I’m out on the trail. It’s a huge help as it lets me get through it with the correct number of prayers. When I was trying to say it on my fingers and pay attention to the trails, rocks, mud, ice, etc., I found that I was saying 1.5-2+ times the number of Hail Marys as I was supposed to. I don’t see any harm in that, other than having it take 40+ minutes to get through instead of about 20.

Unlike the OP, I’m pretty good at remembering most of the mysteries (except Luminous), but I still can’t remember the Hail Holy Queen or the Rosary Prayer. When saying it at home, I have them printed out or pulled up on the computer. While hiking or in the car, I kind of fudge my way through them, saying as much as I can remember then asking God to forgive me for not knowing the rest.

I try to say my intentions before even starting with the sign of the cross. If I forget, then I’ll say them before starting on the mysteries.

For the record, my wife’s pregnant so the Joyful mysteries are by far my favorite and the easiest for me to remember. If I’m in the car or on the trails and forget to look up which mysteries I’m supposed to be saying (I have a little prayer book in the little compartment beneath the radio which lists pretty much everything you need to know about the Rosary except the Hail Holy Queen and the Rosary Prayer), I’ll just go with the Joyful mysteries.

 

[DoGodsBidding]

Frequent praying of the Rosary will help you to be more familiar with the prayers and with the mysteries. And remember, praying the Rosary is not supposed to be a stressful situation. Just do the best that you can, and if it helps to keep an aid or Rosary prayer card handy then do so. The Rosary is a wonderful devotion.

DGBI

 

[Steady_Eddy]

Hi Amnagrla,

I once told a priest in the confessional that I fell asleep whilst praying the Rosary. He just smiled and replied “Good, all you need do now is learn how to wake up the same way” In one sense I do in fact wake up the same way because I rise at 4am and meditate on the Sorrowful Mysteries shortly afterwards.

I wrote a poem some years ago about my meditation practice. It’s probably too long to post here; I’ll send it to you privately. I will also send you the story behind the poem. If you like it and it helps you can share it with others.

2 Cor 13:13
Eddy Barry

 

[Amnagrla]

Thank you, everyone! This has been extremely helpful!!

 

[DadDave]

Great Answers everyone!

1. is it a sin to fall asleep without finishing the rosary?

No – only if you say the rosary to try to go to sleep – like counting sheep. Which it doesn’t sound like you do.

1. if I only have time for a partial rosary, is that wrong?

No – Better to say one sincere Hail Mary than rush through a whole rosary without any thought.

1. I can remember all the prayers, but not the mysteries. If I don’t have. My reference book with me, can I do the rosary without them?

Yes – Do the best you can. I find the sorrowful mysteries are the easiest to remember and you can use those as a default. They are said twice a week and mirror the passion of palm sunday. They are also said everyday during Lent. I also made a couple of cheat sheets and use my smart phone.

1. any thoughts on car rosaries? Or rosary “apps” for phones?

**
Laudate App is good.**

 

[RastaPasta]

I looove to pray the rosary but have no one to really talk about it with to make sure I am doing it right!!

Here’s a website that you might like. You can pray the Rosary with other people.
comepraytherosary.org/

 

[Rutabaga]

Hi Everyone. I also have a question about praying the rosary and I thought I would ask them here instead of starting a new thread. I hope no one minds…

1. When you say the mysteries do you say only the title of the mystery or do you also say Scripture? If you are praying a rosary from memory, is it appropriate to just say the name of the of the mysteries. (i.e. Agony in the Garden, Scourging at the Pillar, etc).
2. How do you “meditate on the mysteries?” Do you reflect on them the mystery while praying the Hail Mary’s? What do you do if you start to feel your mind wander?

 

[Leon_Bloy]

Hello!!

I have some questions regarding the rosary:

1. is it a sin to fall asleep without finishing the rosary?
2. if I only have time for a partial rosary, is that wrong?
3. I can remember all the prayers, but not the mysteries. If I don’t have. My reference book with me, can I do the rosary without them?
4. if I am praying the rosary for a certain intention, when do I say it?
5. any thoughts on car rosaries? Or rosary “apps” for phones?

Thank you in advance for answering… I looove to pray the rosary but have no one to really talk about it with to make sure I am doing it right!!

Thank you and have a worthy Lenten season!

1. No
2. No
3. Yes
4. anytime - but I do it after the sign of the cross at the beginning
5. fine, and hopefully they get used sometime! ; great.

 

[RastaPasta]

1. When you say the mysteries do you say only the title of the mystery or do you also say Scripture?

The beauty of the Rosary is the fact that there are no “set” rules for praying it. Some people might use scripture readings when they pray the Rosary, but you don’t HAVE to use scripture. Some Rosary devotions provide some reflective passages, but you don’t have to use a devotion book either. Certain mysteries are prayed on certain days, but if you have a favorite mystery i.e Joyful, Sorrowful, Glorious or Luminous, you can focus on that.

If you are praying a rosary from memory, is it appropriate to just say the name of the of the mysteries. (i.e. Agony in the Garden, Scourging at the Pillar, etc).

That’s how I do it.

1. How do you “meditate on the mysteries?” Do you reflect on them the mystery while praying the Hail Mary’s? What do you do if you start to feel your mind wander?

Yes… it’s good to reflect on the mystery as you pray the Hail Marys, and it’s not uncommon for the mind to wander as you pray the Rosary. It’s a simple prayer (the Rosary) but it does require discipline. If my mind starts to wander, I just try to re-focus and get it back on track (reflecting on the mystery). Sometimes (if my mind has REALLY wandered, I’ll repeat some of my Hail Marys… or even the decade, over again.

 

[Rutabaga]

Thank you, RastaPasta! That is very helpful. I decided to pray the rosary everyday for Lent and there have been times when I wasn’t sure I was praying it correctly.

 

[RastaPasta]

Addendum:

This is a great little book that was written by Saint Louis De Monfort. The book provides a good deal of insight insofar as praying the Rosary is concerned:

amazon.com/Secret-Rosary-Louis-Grignion-Montfort/dp/0899421083/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1330623244&sr=1-1

It’s relatively inexpensive and after reading it, I realized just how powerful a prayer the Rosary is. You could even say that it’s the “perfect” prayer. If you read this book, you might decide to continue praying the Rosary daily, even after Lent has come to a conclusion.

 

[Elisabeth51]

Hi Everyone. I also have a question about praying the rosary and I thought I would ask them here instead of starting a new thread. I hope no one minds…

1. When you say the mysteries do you say only the title of the mystery or do you also say Scripture? If you are praying a rosary from memory, is it appropriate to just say the name of the of the mysteries. (i.e. Agony in the Garden, Scourging at the Pillar, etc).
2. How do you “meditate on the mysteries?” Do you reflect on them the mystery while praying the Hail Mary’s? What do you do if you start to feel your mind wander?

Helpful Thread, I have found myself falling asleep a few times, I try to say it earlier at night now. I have a little booklet I use that has the scripture with the Mystery and I read that.

Meditate, I reflect on them as I pray the Hail Mary’s. Mind wandering…well, I find it helpful to pray out loud if my mind is wandering. Meditation on the Mysteries, I think some people need to be careful, I have a friend who said he was reflecting on the Agony in the Garden and decided that that meant God wanted him to do everything all alone, like Jesus, he has to be completely without help … God complex? Arrogance? Uh, interference from the Devil? Personally, I do reflect on them, but don’t usually get an epiphany or anything, just a better appreciation for the importance of each and how it all goes together.

 

[powerlinemom]

I make rosaries to give away, and I’ve made up a little “cheat sheet” on how to pray the rosary that folds up to a business card size. I use small plastic jewelry bags to package up individual rosaries with the little card folded up inside. I’ll try to attach a PDF of it here so you can print it out for yourself. It has a little diagram on the back of which prayers go with each bead, all of the Mysteries, the Apostles’ Creed, and the words to all the other prayers, too.