Why Pray The Holy Rosary?

The Holy Rosary is a process of reconnection and reminder. The prayer beads themselves are a memory system and prompt for the associated prayers, mysteries, concepts, and your own personal associations to all of these. The Rosary is also a daily reconnection to events in the life of Jesus Christ and his mother Mary. It is a daily reconnection to a sense of the divine.

Many who are not Catholic Christians probably consider the habit of praying the Holy Rosary old-fashioned and perhaps even superstitious. In today's world sitting for twenty or thirty minutes doing nothing but silently repeating centuries old prayers while counting them off with a set of prayer beads may seem like a waste of time. Some might even consider it delusional or a process of brainwashing.

For those who are not Catholic, like myself, the tradition may not be familiar at all. Holy Rosary refers to both the set of beads and the set of prayers that make up the practice. It is primarily focused on devotion to Mary the mother of Jesus. There are a number of benefits to the practice, as you'll see below.

The set of beads consist of a crucifix or cross attached in sequence to one larger bead, three small beads, another larger bead, and one connector bead that joins a large loop of additional beads together. This large loop has fifty small beads and four larger beads arranged so that the small beads are separated into five groups of ten beads. Each group of ten beads is called a "decade", from the Greek word for ten, resulting in five decades in the main loop of Rosary beads.

Each bead has a particular prayer associated with it and the beads help one keep place with the sequence of prayers being said. You can find very inexpensive books, or even free pamphlets at a church, that explain the sequence of prayers as well as the text of the prayers themselves. The main prayers consist of the "Our Father", "Hail Mary", "Glory Be", and the "Fatima Prayer", as well as others. One can follow the full and strict Catholic sequence or, as in my case, use a simplified or personalized set of prayers.

Each decade sequence of the Rosary also has a particular "Mystery" associated with it. A mystery in the Christian tradition refers to important events or turning points in the life of Jesus Christ as related in the Bible. Traditionally there are fifteen such mysteries in terms of the Holy Rosary and some practitioners would go through the entire set of fifteen every day in their prayers. Now the practice is to go through only five mysteries on each day of the week, that being one sequence of all of the beads of the Rosary. Each weekday has a particular set of five Mysteries associated with it.

In 2002 Pope John Paul II suggested adding five new mysteries to the prayer sequence. Virtually everyone has adopted this new set of mysteries as they make perfect sense to the concept of the Holy Rosary. As such, today there are twenty mysteries associated with the Holy Rosary. One good book on the Rosary, which has full color classical art and also includes the full text of the apostolic letter from Pope John Paul II, is "Rosary: Chain of Hope".

The twenty Mysteries are grouped together in four sets consisting of five in each. They are the "Joyful Mysteries", the "Luminous Mysteries" (those added by Pope John Paul II), the "Sorrowful Mysteries", and finally the "Glorious Mysteries". The mysteries follow the sequence of Jesus' life from his childhood, to his adult life, to his crucifixion, and finally the events after his resurrection.

As one goes through the prayers for a specific decade of the Rosary one is also meant to reflect upon and contemplate the Mystery associated with that decade. I find that as you go through life additional associations to these mysteries come up as a result of the current circumstances of your life. For example, you may feel all alone when having to make an important decision and Jesus' Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane, one of the five "Sorrowful" Mysteries, may take on a new meaning for you on that particular day. Associations of this type are one of the benefits of praying the Rosary on a regular basis.

Another of the key benefits of the practice is that of learning patience. Finding the time in the day and going through the sequence of the prayers requires one to settle the mind and one's environment in order to say the prayers. This is true of any religious tradition that uses meditation or prayer beads such as a mala in Buddhist practice. Going through the practice makes a habit of finding peace in your life and taking things one step at a time.

In addition, even if one does not fully believe in the words of a prayer, the concepts of the prayer are nonetheless important. Simply by repeating the words one begins to think about and reflect upon the mode of conduct implied and the associated ideas. Forgiveness of trespasses is an important concept whether one believes in the divinity of Christ or not, whether one is Christian or not.

Saying prayers also has its own value, depending on the level and kind of your personal faith. An entreaty to God, Jesus, Mary, or the Holy Spirit carries its own weight depending on the faith behind it. Of course saying a prayer is a personal decision and one based in faith.

So there are still benefits from this centuries old practice if you are Christian or believe in Christian ideas. Not the least of which is cultivating a more personal relationship with the ideas, principles, and beliefs of the Christian faith.

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Working in a "Spiritual" Organization

An interesting article from the UK came to my attention today. "Spirituality in the Ambulance Service" reports on the research of a former paramedic in Northern Ireland that shows the importance of "Spirituality" in the work place. In this context the researcher is not talking about religion but a general spirituality.

Here's a quote from Anita Kelso, the researcher: "This is about a oneness and wholeness between an individual and an organisation where all are interconnected in achieving common goals. It is about creating organisations where there is careful planning to attract, develop and retain an effective workforce with a 'volunteer' mindset and a desire to serve 'Self' and others without brandishing the emblems of the ego."

The report goes on to outline how current work environments often undermine workers sense of worth simply through the reliance on goals, targets, and objectives. The actual jobs they perform end up being given less value than business targets. Could this be the root cause of the oft reported job dissatisfaction that we hear so much of in the United States?

A focus on the "Whole" of an organization and the importance of the interconnectedness of all staff seem to be the way to promote a new kind of organization. A spiritual organization, not an ego driven one. Free and open communication at all levels seems to be one of the most important aspects of creating a spriritual organization.

See our list of Personal Development titles for more on workplace spirituality.

Prayer Is Poetry And Poe Dost Pray

Recently the similarity between poetry and prayer became more apparent for me.

A prayer is an entreaty or solemn request of some divine source such as God, Allah, or the Buddha. Often it has repeated phrases and a pattern of wording that uses the same number of words or rhyming words in each line of the prayer. Prayers are often spoken out loud or in groups where everyone speaks in unison. Prayers are often set to music and become carols. Sometimes prayers are said in turbulent emotional states such as despair or pain.

Poetry also makes use of rhyming, repeated phrases, and is both a type of speech and a type of song. Musical aspects of the words are suggested in the phrasing and wording of a poem. Poetry can often be easily set to music. Indeed most popular songs are at their source poetry. Invoking emotions or feelings being the intended goal.

I will often rewrite a common prayer in my own words. I do this partly because a prayer for me must be something I believe in. I can not just blindly repeat something that has no meaning for me or is not true to my understanding. Since most prayers are meant to be repeated one needs something not only applicable to the need of the prayer but also easy to remember. Poetic writing always seems the best way to write or rewrite a prayer.

In a sense a poem is also an entreaty to the subject of the work in that the essence of that is meant to be conveyed. A poem is speaking to the object or subject of the writing. Seeking to communicate that to others or to understand it. A prayer is asking for something and very often so is a poem. The only difference is the assumed divinity of the subject of the poem or prayer. Reverence can often be seen in both forms of writing and speaking.

The next time you read a poem think of it as a prayer and see if it doesn't give you some further insight. When you next say a prayer think of it as a poem and you may easily see how the words can be extended to include more. Prayer and poetry, very much the same thing.