The Rosary
History of the Rosary |
How to Pray the Rosary |
Many popular devotions such as the Rosary evolved from a particular practice of religious life. Nuns and priests were considered holy because they spent so much time praying. Except for some members of society’s privileged classes most people had neither the time nor the literacy to pray in the same way. Ordinary family people were busy finding food and shelter for the family. While monks and nuns were able to recite the whole of the Psalter - 150 Psalms - by praying the Divine Office (which is also known as the Prayer of the Church) in their normal daily routine, the laity were not. Ordinary people were able to reflect this prayer by praying one hundred and fifty Our Fathers. These Our Fathers were then replaced by hundred and fifty Hail Marys; the Rosary was a mini Psalm book and therefore “Our Lady’s Psalter” was an early name given to the Rosary. As the Hail Mary’s were said individuals sometimes used a cord with counters on it to keep an accurate count, eventually these became more structured until the familiar Rosary Beads evolved. The name Rosary means a crown of roses
Making your own Rosary |
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For details of how to pray the Rosary including the prayers used explore - Praying the Rosary
THE ROSARY SOME FACTS
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