1/9/2022 – Rosary Pace

“A lot of people mistakenly think that saying the Rosary is just rattling off Hail Marys as fast as can be. For a lot of people, that seems to be exactly what is happening but that isn’t the way the rosary is properly said.

The rosary is a set of twenty meditations on twenty events in the Bible. To meditate on these biblical events means to deliberate about their spiritual meaning while saying the Hail Marys out loud.

One method to personalize this meditation is to put yourself in the event, next to Mary and Jesus. For instance, it helps me to think about Jesus looking right at me from the cross (the mystery here is the crucifixion), next to Mary, John, and Mary Magdalene, and telling me how much he loves me and forgives me, in spite of my many sins.

By personalizing the mysteries of sacred scripture, it helps to create a mindset of improving our life spiritually, eliminating sin, and desiring additional grace through the sacraments that we never seem to have had before. It’s important to remember that the very first words of salvation in the New Testament were “Hail, Full of Grace.” By repeating those salvific words over and over again, we not only drive the devil crazy, but we are asking Mary and her spouse, the Holy Spirit, to take over our lives, for Jesus.

Some people find it hard to say a Hail Mary and then simultaneously think about a bible mystery. It is sometimes difficult to think about one thing while saying another, but just think about how often this happens in our daily lives. Most of us have run across someone who flatters us with their speech, at the same time they’re thinking about how they are going to trap us into giving them our money (saleswomen!).

Politicians often say that they are going to help us, at the same time that they are thinking about how they are going to personally benefit from our vote for them. Husbands also say “Yes, Dear,” at the same time they are thinking, “Please, Lord, let Dallas make that field goal!” So it’s not uncommon to say one thing while thinking about another. (Ray Sullivan)