[starbright]

I've had an idea.

We could swap details of how we meditate on the mysteries of the rosary, to give each other new ways of looking at them. I don't know about you but I find I tend to repeat the same thoughts each time I pray it.

I will start with the first joyful mystery, the visitation.

I think of Mary kneeling in an earth hut with an angel clothed in light in front of her. I think of the enormous task for her of being pregnant while unmarried in those times and just how much she gave up by accepting the angel's request. I imagine her being a gentle and very young girl. I imagine the glory of Gabriel and the power, and I imagine how frightened she must have been to be visited by him.

[Spera]

Basically, I choose one detail of the event and expand on it in my head. Ususally, I don't choose the detail but rather go with the first one to "pop" into my head (this can take several seconds). For the Annunciation, it can range from reflecting on how Mary's one "yes" changed the course of the whole world, to something simple as how she was frightened when she first saw an angel. It really varies quite a bit. Sometimes it even relates to something I'm going through in my own life. Don't know if that helps?

[starbright]

Yes that's interesting Spera. So yours changes. I wonder about other people?

[Maryschild]

[img]

Hi Starbright andSpera!

This is my first time to this topic "Prayer Reports."
There are several ways I pray Our Lady's Rosary, but
first, for the longest time I only prayed the Sorrowful Mysteries. Because, I found it easy for me to meditate on Our Lords Passion. I wanted to really enter into His Way of the Cross, by seeing in my mind each sorrowful mystery. I don't like to see Our Lord suffer, but for some reason, it was as if Jesus wanted me to see His Great Love for mankind. in the sorrowful mysteries.
Then I started to pray the Rosary with EWTN after the Divine Mercy Chaplet at 3:00PM. Naturally, each day is a different Mystery,
If I pray the Rosary at another time, I like to use my little rosary phamphlet which has pictures of the mysteries . This helps me keep my mind from wandering. I keep my eyes on the picture to keep me focused. I do not have any trouble keeping my mind focused on the Sorrowful Mysteries. For years, I had
trouble praying the Rosary, please forgive me God, but now with the help of my phamphlet I love Praying my Rosary. But I have to be truthful I don't pray it every day.
However I do have a lot of beautiful prayers I am faithful to every day, and I have a devotion to "Our Lady Of Sorrows" I love praying:

The Seven Prayers in Honor of The Seven Sorrows Of The Blessed Mother
every day.
I feel so close to her and sometimes I even cry because the prayers are of a Mother Suffering with her Son. Carrying in Her heart, Her Sons'
suffering and pain.

I have children, and I try to put myself in Her place as a mother and it tares at my heart. I want to comfort Her with those prayers. Just like I want to comfort Jesus in the Sorrowful Mysteries.
There I go again, with another long letter.

I know we all have our favorite prayers, I guess, I wanted you to know I truly LOVE Our Blessed Mother, even if I don't always Pray Her Rosary.
I will try to be more faithful to Praying Her Rosary.

All My Love to all !

Jesus, I Love You, Mary, I Love You, Save Souls . ( I LOVE THIS PRAYER)

[starbright]

Thanks, Maryschild. I love the sorrowful mysteries too. I don't manage to say any other prayers other than the rosary each day. I do sometimes miss the rosary but mostly I say it every day. I'd love to find time to say other prayers too but there just don't seem to be enough hours in the day.

I have decided to write out some rosary meditations for my parish magazine and maybe I'll post them here too, rather than share them in this thread as I originally intended. It may take me some time to do, but I think it will help me and may be useful to others if I take the time to do it.

It is always useful and interesting to read about other people's prayer lives so thank you for your post.

[Maryschild]

[img]


Hi Star shining so bright!

You must remember that I am home and able to pray often.

Now, your workplace with just getting along with your fellow workers,
the irritations you must have, the stress, the monotony that often marks our day, discomforts of all kinds, everytime you lend a helping hand, a kind smile to someone at a store while waiting in line instead of screaming, maybe giving another preference in traffic, a simple act of kindness, are all altars of prayers, when we offer our day to God.
No one else will be praying "Your Special Prayers."

Now, isn't that an awesome thought?"

All My Love,
Sandy (Maryschild)

[starbright]

Yes it is. God bless you, Mary's Child

[mdes]

Those are lovely thoughts, Sandy. Life is a prayer.

I was blessed to make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 1999. I am so glad that I got to go at that time because it is not safe now.

What is especially nice when I am praying the Rosary is that I have a visual to start off with. We visited many of the sites that we meditate on when praying the Rosary and so I start there. I can even smell the smells at times.

I meditate on the surroundings as well. What happened right before, what other people might be doing, and what might happen after that. For example, when Mary visited Elizabeth, she had to travel miles over rough terrain to get to Elizabeth's home. I know in my early stages of pregnancy, I easily tired and many others have this experience so this type of traveling was no easy task. Plus they had to walk by foot or ride an animal. What were her thoughts along the way?

My soul magnifies the Lord,
And my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.
For He has regarded the low estate of His handmaiden,
For behold, henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.
For He who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is His name. And His mercy is on those who fear Him from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with His arm:
He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
He has put down the mighty from their thrones,
and exalted those of low degree.
He has filled the hungry with good things;
and the rich He has sent empty away.
He has helped His servant Israel, in remembrance of His mercy;
As He spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to His posterity forever.


God blessings,
Michele

[Maryschild]

[img]
Hi Michele!,

I am so happy that you traveled to the Holy Land when it was safe to do so. What a wonderful experience! It is good to share the reason and the way people pray. Thank you for posting Mary's most beautiful prayer.
I love it!
I made a Pilgrimage to Lourdes, France in the early 90's. It was so beautiful there. I was disapointed that St. Bernadette's body wasn't in Lourdes at that time. Her Body was somewhere in Paris. please
click on and see photos of our lovely St. Bernadette:

http://www.catholicpilgrims.com/lourdes ... oto_aa.htm

I know I was so happy to be at the grotto where Our Lady appeared. It is wonderful to make a pilgrimage. I hope many here can visit Medjugorje together.

It is a wonderful idea of yours Starbright of how we could swap details of How we Meditate on praying Our Lady's Rosary. Thanks to all for your sharing!!!

[mdes]

Sandy,

I went to Lourdes too! And other shrines throughout France. We were originally supposed to go on 9/14/01, but the airports were shut down because of 9/11. I finally went in April of 2002. We were able to visit and pray before the incorrupt bodies of St. Bernadette, St. John Vianney, St. Therese the Little Flower, St. Catherine Laboure and St. Margaret Mary… St. Margaret Mary’s heart and brain are incorrupt and are enclosed in a wax figure. My 9 year old son knew right away that the body was wax. He surprised all of us adults!

Lourdes was amazing, I could go there again and again.

Yes, it helps all of us when we share. Thank you Starbright.

Michele

[starbright]

Dear Michele and Sandy

I found Lourdes a very peaceful and prayerful experience. I have not been to the Holy Land but would love to go, as long as it was safe. A woman I know said that one thing that struck her was that the sheep and the goats look very similar and that made her understand better the sayings of Jesus where he talks about the sheep and the goats. She said that it struck her that the sheep and goats among people must look very similar outwardly too.

Thank you for sharing too. I am interested in what others meditate upon because I think, like you, that we can all learn from each other. I think that in prayer we get locked into our own methods and sometimes some outside influence is useful.

I am going to write a short article for our parish magazine about reflections while saying the rosary and before I send it in I will post it here for other people to comment on and to add their own thoughts. In particular it would be good to know where I have missed something glaring or obvious! But more about that when I've finished it.

Thank you two for sharing

[augustine]

I tend to try to think about the corresponding grace for each mystery....so for the annunciation I think about Mary's HUMILITY, and I ask for it, because it was her humility that allowed the possibility of God's incarnation.

And, how could I possibly expect give birth to the child Jesus in my own heart unless I obtained the grace of humility.
Joyful
mysterys; ask for this....... grace; ................my understandingof it;

annunciation humility no peace for the proud
visitation charity/agape no love for the selfish
nativity poverty of spirit God won't fill the full,
(empty yourself of all your preconceptions, judgments and resentments)
dedication @ temple holy obligation no mass = no blessing
find the child Jesus in the temple zeal, joy of God do your duty to God and you will find Jesus in your heart.

Sorrowful mysteries; ask for this grace; my take on it;

agony in the garden sorrow for sin no remorse = no forgiveness
scourging at the pillar purity of thought deviancy = (spiritual death)
crowning of thorns courage fear is not of God
carrying the cross patience impatience impeades God
crucifixion and death final perserverance faith will out but you must hold on till the end.

Glorious mysteries ask for this grace; my take;

ressurection faith we, the living-dead can be raised
ascension hope we live in hope of receiving the HS.
sending of the Holy Spirit charity/agape/love let me be love
assumption Mary's intercession Our Mum will help us
crowning of Mary A happy death we will die in God's peace

But, I need help, does anybody know the graces associated with the Luminous mysteries?

And, I may be all wrong in my interpretation of the meaning of all the mysteries, please respond. thanks jb

[augustine]

I tend to try to think about the corresponding grace for each mystery....so for the annunciation I think about Mary's HUMILITY, and I ask for it, because it was her humility that allowed the possibility of God's incarnation.

And, how could I possibly expect give birth to the child Jesus in my own heart unless I obtained the grace of humility.
Joyful
mysterys; ask for this....... grace; ................my understandingof it;

annunciation ..... humility ..... no peace for the proud
visitation ..... charity/agape ..... no love for the selfish
nativity ..... poverty of spirit ..... God won't fill the full,
(empty yourself of all your preconceptions, judgments and resentments)
dedication @ temple ..... holy obligation ...... no mass = no blessing
find the child Jesus in the temple.... zeal, joy of God.... do your duty to God and you will find Jesus in your heart.

Sorrowful mysteries; ask for this grace; my take on it;

agony in the garden ..... sorrow for sin ..... no remorse = no forgiveness
scourging at the pillar ..... purity of thought .....deviancy = (spiritual death)
crowning of thorns ...... courage ......fear is not of God
carrying the cross ..... patience ......impatience impeades God
crucifixion and death .....final perserverance..... faith will out but you must hold on till the end.

Glorious mysteries ......ask for this grace; ........ my take;

ressurection ..... faith .....e, the living-dead can be raised
ascension ..... hope .....we live in hope of receiving the HS.
sending of the Holy Spirit.....harity/agape/love ,..... let me be love
assumption ..... Mary's intercession .....Our Mum will help us
crowning of Mary ..... A happy death ..... we will die in God's peace

But, I need help, does anybody know the graces associated with the Luminous mysteries?

And, I may be all wrong in my interpretation of the meaning of all the mysteries, please respond. thanks jb

[bluecross]

Some thoughts on the Rosary’s Joyful Mysteries...

• Everything I have in life is gift from God... my very life is such a gift... a gift is a present... it is given. There are two actions involved in making a gift or presentation – giving and receiving. To receive, I have to be present or present myself in some way. By making myself present or available, I am also giving of myself. Each Joyful Mystery is linked by a presentation theme... a present or gift.

The Annunciation: Mary is presented with the good news – the gift of Jesus in her womb. Mary gives of herself when she says, yes. She presents herself to accept or receive the gift.

The Visitation: Mary and Jesus present themselves to Elizabeth and the child in her womb, John. Elizabeth acknowledges the visitation; first giving praise to Jesus: “Blessed is the fruit of your womb,” and then to Mary: “Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord?” Even the child in Elizabeth’s womb, an unexpected gift from God, is delighted and leaps for joy! Mary, too, then proclaims the gift of Jesus when she responds with the Magnificat.

The Nativity: Wise men, kings and shepherds present themselves to Jesus. Mary presents Jesus to the world, rich and poor. Jesus offers Peace to all men; but not everyone will present or give of themselves to receive and accept the gift.

The Presentation: Mary and Joseph present Jesus to God. Two doves are also presented as sacrifice. Simeon is given the gift of enlightenment and recognises God’s gift to the world and the hearts of mankind.

Finding Jesus in the Temple: The discovery of the ever-present Jesus in the hearts of men – an eternal present, an everlasting gift. Jesus gives of himself in the Temple, is present with the doctors, listening and giving answers to their questions.

LIFE IS PURE GIFT!

[starbright]

Life is pure gift.

Thank you Bluecross. That made me think a lot.

[Duane H]

When I say the rosary I guess I think of different things at different times. I have a forty-five minute commute and for the last three years I have made it a habit to say the rosary in my car to and from work every day.

Sometimes, I say it with mother Angelica at 7:30, but mostly I say it quietly to myself. Usually I have the local public radio station playing quietly in the background--classical music. I can actually meditate better with quiet music if it is classical—but no aria’s or singing. I have learned to enjoy concertos and symphonies but I do not enjoy arias.

When I say the rosary sometimes I like to imagine I am saying it with everyone in the entire world who has ever said the rosary (past, future, and present), and I like to imagine what the sound of billions of Hail Mary’s would sound like in heaven around the throne of God. The sound I imagine is kind of the same sound you hear when you are in a large church congregation and you are all praying aloud in unison and the voices all blend together to make one voice.

Other times I try to say it for others. For each Hail Mary instead of saying “…pray for us sinners now and at the end of our death …” I say “…pray for (add person’s name) now and at the…” I also like to visually imagine that person saying the Hail Mary with me. If I am praying for a particular person (who has a problem), I will say more than one Hail Mary that way. Sometimes I try to substitute a different person for each Hail Mary. Actually it is pretty easy to think of someone and keep going as I usually have a backlog three or four people pop into my head for each prayer.

For the mysteries: I try to recite, “short snippets of appropriate scripture—from memory” for each mystery. I also try to visualize the scene in my head.

For the sorrowful mysteries I tend to imagine I am in Jesus’ place and contemplate what it would feel like to be scourged etc., whipped, etc…

For the joyful mysteries: I believe that the first mystery represents surrendering to God, the second mystery represents caring and giving to others, the third represents sacrifice, the fourth represents honoring the church, and the fifth represents doing God’s will. And I try to contemplate on how I can do those things better in my life.

For the luminous mysteries: I think of Jesus’ ministry; the baptism, the wedding at Cana, The proclamation of the kingdom– I imagine Jesus reciting the Beatitudes, the transfiguration I usually replay this in my mind as me being Peter (I do not know why?).
The institution of the Eucharist – I imagine sitting at the last supper and receiving communion from Jesus.

For the Glorious mysteries, I try to visualize being at the tomb—I especially enjoy visualizing Mary talking to Jesus thinking he is the gardener, and then realizing who he really is. For the ascension, I like to imagine I am with the apostles and watching Jesus ascend, for the descent of the holy spirit I like to imagine that I am in the room with the apostles and Mary and imagine being filled up with the holy spirit, for the ascension of Mary, I visualize Mary ascending in glory into heaven, and for the Crowning of Mary as Queen of heaven and earth I imagine Mary before the throne of God receiving the crown from God.

Thanks,
Duane

[starbright]

Nice post, Duane. Thank you.

I find it fascinating to read other people's ways of praying

I don't think I will ever be able to write rosary reflections for the parish magazine, though. There is too much to say and I@m only a beginner. The humblest of priests would be able to say so much more htan me. Sorry, that is what I was going to do, but now I'm admitting that it is beyond me.

God bless

[Duane H]

Strabright,
Actually, I think you could do it. I enjoy reading your posts to this website. I am sure that whatever you wrote would speak from your heart and that is exactly what people want to hear. People are really are good at discerning when someone is genuine and I am convinced you are the real deal.

Don't let lack of a certain degree or some specific training stop you. The "best" school in the world is the school of hard knocks!

Thanks,
Duane

[starbright]

Oh thank you my friend, that is a kind post!