Let’s learn something first about the history of the rosary, and then I will answer your questions.History
According to tradition, the devotion of the Rosary was spread by St. Dominic in the thirteenth century. In the Roman Catholic Church, the feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary of the Rosary is observed on October 7.
Historians have traced the origin of the Rosary back to the 9th century, and to a form of prayer that evolved in the early monasteries of the church. One of the most important forms of monastic prayer was the daily chanting of the 150 psalms of David. Lay people around the monastery would hear the psalms every day as they were sung or recited, and the beauty of this prayer intrigued them. They yearned to join in, but the psalms were too long to memorize, copies could not be found since printing was rare, and few knew how to read Latin anyway. The lay people were however, determined to adapt this prayer form for their own use.
Sometime around 800 AD, the people's desire to participate led to their reciting the “Our Father” in response to every psalm recited by the monks. As this form of devotion became popular, people began to carry leather pouches of 150 pebbles, in order that they might keep count of their daily prayers when they were not in hearing distance of the monastery. A thin rope with 150 knots became less of a burden and soon replaced the bag of stones.
When the missionary monks began to travel and evangelize Europe, this form of devotion was brought with them. In some areas, priests and lay people began to recite the Angelic Salutation, or “Hail Mary, full of grace…” in response to the psalms, instead of the “Our Father.”
During the 13th century, the recitation evolved into yet another form. Medieval theologians began to interpret the 150 psalms as hidden prophesies about the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, and they composed a series of psalters, or praises, based on each interpretation. These thoughts took the form of narratives. The fifteen narratives were divided into five Joyful, five Sorrowful, and five Glorious mysteries in the lives of Jesus and Mary, and the Rosary itself became a string of 50 beads to be prayed.
In order to fit the existing prayer string, the psalters were divided into three "rosariums" or bouquets of 50 each. This was the form that St. Dominic promoted.
Now, let’s answer your questions.
The rosary began as the layperson’s attempt to pray regularly to God. People wanted to pray and when they could not pray the “official prayers” of the monks, then this yearning eventually led to the rosary as a prayer. Eventually, the lives of Jesus and Mary were incorporated to the rosary.
There are several approaches that you can use when praying the rosary:
- One approach is to focus on the fact that you are praying, and prayer is essentially being aware of God’s presence in our midst. The Rosary helps you to focus your mind in God’s loving presence for you. In this approach, the constant repetition of the “Hail Mary and Holy Mary” helps prevent your mind from being diverted into thoughts other than God’s presence.
- Another approach is focus on the mysteries of the lives of Jesus and Mary which corresponds to the Mystery of the Rosary that you are praying. So, if you are in decade of the mystery of the “birth of our Lord,” focus on the scene to keep your mind from being distracted, as well as help edify your thoughts on God’s love for us in becoming one of us.
- The third approach, which I often use, is to have a special prayer intention for each decade which you can declare to those praying with you, and then focus on praying to God for that intention. For example, you may declare that the first Joyful Mystery is for the intention of your “movie premier fundraising activity,” and then pray for that as you recite the decade.
Finally, do we pray to Jesus or Mary?
Well, “technically,” all prayers are to God, but we keep in mind that Mary and the saints (as well as our apostolate brothers and sisters, family, and friends) are one with us in praying because we are all part of God’s family. This is referred to as the communion of saints and is discussed in another AskTM question. Click here if you want to read more about that.
Sources:
Catholic Encyclopedia, Our Sunday Visitor, 1994
http://www.aoh.com/history/archive/rosary.htm
