Build Your Faith Through Praying the Rosary

The following article is (more or less) a transcript of a show I did in 2014, Say the Rosary with Dellani. 

In these difficult times, having faith can see us through. It isn't always easy to get to church or find someone to pray with you. Praying alone can also be hard. It's not easy to focus on our wants and needs into words.

As a Catholic, I find comfort in saying my rosary. Do I say it daily? No, but I am trying to. It's easy to get busy and forget. I did the broadcast to share it with others who aren't familiar with it the rosary, as well as those who, like me, forget to say it on their own.

Even non-Catholics can say the rosary. You don't have to own the beads to say the prayers. This post is designed to teach you the prayers and how to say the rosary. Just follow along until you find out how easy it is.

I am not an expert. I am not a member of any religious order. I, like you, am looking to build my faith. I am doing so through teaching and sharing the rosary with you.

There are three main prayers we use during the rosary: The Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be. There are a few others, but we will begin with these. All the prayers can be found at Catholic Online  (We will not use all the prayers)

Let's begin with the Our Father.

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name

Thy kingdom come, thy will be done

On Earth as it is in heaven

Give us this day our daily bread

And forgive us our trespasses

As we forgive those who trespass against us.

And lead us not into temptation

But deliver us from evil.

Amen

Now, we'll move on to the Hail Mary. This prayer is most repeated during the rosary.

Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with thee. Blessed are thou among women and blessed is fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now, and at the hour of our death. Amen

The third most used prayer is the Glory Be. During this prayer, we make the sign of the cross using your right hand.

Glory be to the Father – touch your forehead

To the Son – touch your waist

And to the Holy – touch your left shoulder

Spirit – touch your right shoulder

Then continue the prayer – as it was in the beginning is now and ever shall be. World without end, Amen.

We have all these prayers, now what do we do with them? If you have a rosary, lay it in front of you or hold it in your lap. At the bottom you see a crucifix. This is where we begin by saying the Apostle's Creed.

THE APOSTLE'S CREED

I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and Earth; and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, Our Lord, Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified; died, and was buried. He descended into Hell; the third day He arose again from the dead; He ascended into Heaven, sitteth at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

Above the crucifix is a single bead. This is where we say our first Our Father.

Next, we say three Hail Mary's.

Here, we pause to say our intentions for the rosary. I often ask for health and protection of all my friends and family. I also pray for those souls in purgatory and those who have no one else to pray for them. Intentions for your rosary will vary as your needs change.

As we begin our rosary, there are meditations called Mysteries. Each of these is focused around the life of Mary and Jesus. There are four sets of Mysteries, each day of the week we prayer a specific one. I will lead more advanced rosary sessions with each of these four sets of Mysteries.

On the next single bead, state the first Mystery and say a Glory Be and another Our Father.

Now we begin our first decade of the rosary (10 beads) On each of the 10 beads, you will say a Hail Mary.

At the end of the decade, cross yourself and say Glory Be. At this point, there are two additional prayers that can be said. If you don't want to say The Fatima Prayer and the Conyers Prayer, you can leave them out.

FATIMA PRAYER (OPTIONAL)

O my Jesus, forgive us of our sins. Save us from the fires of hell. Lead all souls into heaven, especially those in most need of thy mercy.

Conyers Prayer (Optional)

God, our Father, please send us holy priests, all for the Sacred and Eucharistic Heart of Jesus, all for the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary, in union with Saint Joseph. Amen

State the second Mystery and begin with the Hail Mary's.

At the end of this decade, repeat the Glory Be, Fatima and Conyers Prayers.

Continue this pattern with the third, fourth and fifth Mysteries. Once you have completed the final Hail Mary, end with a Glory Be and Our Father as well as the Fatima and Conyers Prayers.

End with the Hail Holy Queen

HAIL HOLY QUEEN

Hail, holy Queen, Mother of mercy, our life, our sweetness and our hope. To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve: to thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears. Turn then, most gracious Advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us, and after this our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus. O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary!

Leader: Pray for us O Holy Mother of God,

All: That we may be worthy of the promises of Christ.

Your rosary is complete. This basic structure is for all the sets of Mysteries. The only changes will be the mysteries themselves.

I will be doing other sessions saying a full rosary with you, focusing on the mysteries for each day. Even without knowing the specific Mysteries, you can pray your rosary.

Until next time, this is Dellani Oakes. Goodbye and have a blessed tomorrow.

Mysteries of the Rosary:

Each day of the week has a different sequence of mysteries, taken from the life of Jesus:

These are the Joyful – said on Monday and Saturday

1. The Annunciation
2. The Visitation
3. The Nativity
4. The Presentation
5. Finding Jesus Teaching in the Temple

The Sorrowful – said on Tuesday and Friday

1. The Agony in the Garden
2. The Scourging at the Pillar
3. The Crowing with Thorns
4. The Carrying of the Cross
5. The Crucifixion

The Glorious – said on Wednesday and Sunday

1. The Resurrection of Our Lord
2. The Ascension of Jesus
3. The Descent of the Holy Spirit
4. The Assumption of Mary
5. Mary is Crowned Queen of Heaven and Earth

The Luminous – said on Thursday.

1. The Baptism in the Jordan
2. The Wedding at Cana
3. The Proclamation of the Kingdom
4. The Transfiguration
5. The Institution of the Eucharist

For these prayers and many others, as well as information on Saints, Holy Days and events in the Catholic Church, please go to Catholic Online