Should I be praying the Rosary?

[DebChris]

Go Irish,
A person could become so caught up in daily devotions as to lose sight of their purpose, relationship with God and one another. In such a case, prayer becomes one more item to be checked off the to do list…
The Angelus is a great prayer, said at 6am, noon, and 6pm. Of course the time for Lauds and Vespers is also 6:00. Many pray the Divine Mercy at 3pm, a recommended hour of devotion.
The rosary followed by the Angelus and the prayer to St. Michael is prayed before daily Mass in my parish. As much as many of us would love to attend daily Mass, it is not always possible because of other obligations.
.
Am I advocating forgetting about prayer, or the rosary? Of course not. As you wrote, our prayer must fit our life and who we are. The form our prayer life takes will change as our life changes. What is important is that we put God first.
One book I read about prayer ended with the story of a monk who finally received the vision for which he had spent years praying. At the same time, the bell rang for the feeding of the poor. The monk answered the bell and when he returned to his cell prostrated before the vision. The vision replied, “If you had not gone I would have.”

 

[mattkubes]

I think that’s it Jason - I do feel like I’m just saying the words of the prayers when I meditate on the mysteries of the Gospel…there’s some sort of disconnect there for me. I’m not saying it’s the same for everyone, but I couldn’t understand why I was saying these prayers when my mind became so engrossed in meditating on the Gospel.

Maybe someone can explain what purpose the prayers themselves hold - what’s the difference between simply meditating on the mysteries versus meditating on the mysteries + the prayers. I’m convinced that for most Catholics there is one, I’ve just never been sure what that difference was.

Hey, Mental Prayer as always been a favourite of mine - well, without knowing that it was called that. That’s how I pray after I receive communion or after I go to confession, and sometimes I fall to sleep just pouring my heart out to the Lord.

Lucy: Yep, I’ve been kind of worried that when I tell people that I don’t pray the rosary, someone might think that, on some level, I’m ignoring Mary. I don’t know whether I started this thread to prove to myself that that’s not the case, but I don’t feel distant from our Blessed Mother at all. In fact, ending the Night Prayer with the Hail Holy Queen and reciting Mary’s Magnificat in Vespers are two of the high points of my day in a spiritual sense. I also always attach prayers to Our Lady to the petitions during Vespers asking for her intercession…hmmm, I guess I go about this differently than a lot of Catholics, but it seems like the essential similarities are there.

 

[Go_Irish]

Matt-

It sounds like you are on the Way brother…

I share your love for the Divine Office. I started out with the single volume and a couple of years later I was given the 4-volume as a gift.

Keep up those intimate conversations with God and Our Lady- it is there, I think, that you will most quickly advance in holiness- All for the Glory of God and the building up of His Kingdom!

God love you!

Jason

 

[DebChris]

I think that’s it Jason - I do feel like I’m just saying the words of the prayers when I meditate on the mysteries of the Gospel…there’s some sort of disconnect there for me. I’m not saying it’s the same for everyone, but I couldn’t understand why I was saying these prayers when my mind became so engrossed in meditating on the Gospel.

Maybe someone can explain what purpose the prayers themselves hold - what’s the difference between simply meditating on the mysteries versus meditating on the mysteries + the prayers. I’m convinced that for most Catholics there is one, I’ve just never been sure what that difference was.

Hey, Mental Prayer as always been a favourite of mine - well, without knowing that it was called that. That’s how I pray after I receive communion or after I go to confession, and sometimes I fall to sleep just pouring my heart out to the Lord.

Lucy: Yep, I’ve been kind of worried that when I tell people that I don’t pray the rosary, someone might think that, on some level, I’m ignoring Mary. I don’t know whether I started this thread to prove to myself that that’s not the case, but I don’t feel distant from our Blessed Mother at all. In fact, ending the Night Prayer with the Hail Holy Queen and reciting Mary’s Magnificat in Vespers are two of the high points of my day in a spiritual sense. I also always attach prayers to Our Lady to the petitions during Vespers asking for her intercession…hmmm, I guess I go about this differently than a lot of Catholics, but it seems like the essential similarities are there.

There are different ways in which Mary is the intercessor in our prayer life. You may be correct in saying that the words of the rosary become the background to our meditation on the life of Christ. Learning to add the single word/phrase after “blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus ___________” helps me focus on that life, For instance when meditating on the first Sorrowful mystery, I add “in the garden.” With these words I place myself within the garden as Christ prayed. Adding “king of kings” when meditating on third Sorrowful mystery leads me to reflect not only on the mockery of the crowning with thorns, but also on how God continues to be mocked today. I have felt the burden lifted by adding “taking my cross” for the fourth Sorrowful mystery and His forgiveness during the crucifixion.
I want the focus of my prayer to be Christ and I believe Mary honors that and does not feel neglected. Mary points to Jesus.
As you and I have already stated, Marian devotion is part of Night Prayer and the Magnificat is part of Lauds.