The Rosary is, after the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, the most powerful prayer there is. It is composed of several well known prayers: the Our Father, the Hail Mary, and the Glory Be. It is said this way: First, make the Sign of the Cross with the crucifix. Then, while hold- ing the crucifix, recite the Apostle's Creed. On the bead after that, say the Our Father, then 3 Hail Mary's, then a Glory Be. Announce the 1st Mystery, then say the Our Father, and 10 Hail Mary's, followed by a Glory Be. Generally, after each decade is said the "O my Jesus" prayer. At the end of the Rosary, it usual to say the "Hail Holy Queen", followed by another prayer. The essence of the Rosary is meditation on the Mystery, along with the recitation of the Our Father and Hail Mary's. We think about the Mystery, and its meaning, and how it applies to us and our lives. Here are the prayers of the Rosary: THE APOSTLE'S CREED I believe in God the Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ His only Son, Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descened into hell, the third day the rose from the dead. He ascended into heaven, sitteth at the right hand of God, the Father almighty, and from thence, He shall come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins. the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen. THE OUR FATHER Our Father, Who art in heaven, hallowed by 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. THE HAIL MARY Hail, Mary, full of grace; the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen. THE GLORY BE Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. O MY JESUS O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell; lead all souls to heaven, especially those most in need of Thy Mercy. HAIL HOLY QUEEN Hail Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, hail, our life, our sweetness, and our hope. To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve, to thee do we sigh, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears. Turn then, most gracious Advocate, thine eyes of mercy towards us, and after this our exile, show unto us the fruit of Thy womb, Jesus. O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary! Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ. PRAYER O God, Whose only begotten Son, by His life, death and resurrection has purchased for us the rewards of eternal life, grat we beseech Thee, that by meditating on these mysteries of the most Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary, that we may imitate what they contain, and obtain what they promise, through the same Christ our Lord. Amen. The Mysteries of the Rosary Joyful: The Annunciation The Visitation The Nativity The Presentation The Finding in the Temple Sorrowful: The Agony in the Garden The Scourging The Crowning with Thorns The Carrying of the Cross The Crucifixion Glorious: The Resurrection The Ascension The Descent of the Holy Ghost The Assumption The Coronation THE 15 PROMISES OF OUR LADY TO CHRISTIANS WHO RECITE THE ROSARY 1. Whoever shall faithfully serve me by the recitation of the Rosary, shall receive signal graces. 2. I promise My special protection and the greatest graces to all who shall recite the Rosary. 3. The Rosary shall be a powerful armor against hell, it will destroy vice, decrease sin, and defeat heresies. 4. It will cause virtue and good works to flourish; it will obtain for souls the abundant mercy of God; it will withdraw the hearts of men from the love of the world and its vanities, and will lift them to the desire of eternal things. Oh, that souls would sanctify themselves by this means. The soul which recommends itself to Me by the recitation of the Rosary, shall not perish. Whoever shall recite the Rosary devoutly, applying himself to the consideration of its sacred mysteries shall never be conquered by misfortune. God will not chastise him in His justice, he shall not perish by an unprovided death; if he be just he shall remain in the grace of God, and become worthy of eternal life. Whoever shall have a true devotion for the Rosary shall not die without the Sacraments of the Church. Those who are faithful in reciting the Rosary shall have during their life and at their death the light of God and the plenitude of His graces; at the moment of death they shall participate in the merits of the saints in paradise. I shall deliver from purgatory, those who have been devoted to the Rosary. The faithful children of the Rosary shall merit a high degree of glory in Heaven. You shall obtain all you ask of Me by the recitation of the Rosary. All those who propagate the holy Rosary shall be aided by Me in their necessities. I have obtained from My Divine Son, that all the advocates of the Rosary shall have for intercessors, the entire celestial court during their life and at the hour of death. All who recite the Rosary are My sons, and brothers of My only son Jesus Christ. Devotion to My Rosary is a great sign of pre-destination.
The Rosary is, essentially, a meditation on the lives of Jesus and Mary. Thirteen of the Mysteries are explicitly mentioned in the Bible, as well as 2 of the prayers (the Our Father and part of the Hail Mary) being straight out of the Bible as well. Some Protestants object to the Rosary. They say it is "vain repitit- ion" whic Jesus condemned. They claim that we pray to Mary more than Jesus because we say the Hail Mary more, they claim it's not biblical because it's not mentioned in the Bible. There is an article which explains the general common objections to the Rosary and refutes them, but I am going to address some that are not so common, but which I have run into: Objection 1: "It's not mentioned in the Bible." True, at least not by name. But then again, where do you find the term "Bible" in the Bible? Where do you find the term "Protestant" in the Bible? Where do you find a direct command of God to worship Him on Sunday? These are nowhere found in the Bible. So, according this ob- jection, we must also reject the Bible, the term 'Protestant', and we must also stop observing Sunday as the Lord's day. But how many Protestants do you see attending Saturday services? Objection 2: "Catholics pray to Mary more than Jesus, after all, there are 10 'Hail Mary's' for every Our Father." This is an example of looking at the surface of something, and then condemning it on the basis of a superficial point. Read the Hail Mary prayer at the point: "and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus." If you pay attention, this prayer is calling Jesus blessed. Now, how can a Protestant object to that? Objection 3: "The Rosary is Mary-worship." First of all, NO Catholic worships Mary. If a person claiming to be Catholic sayd he 'worships' Mary, and he means it in the same sense as worship of God, he is no Catholic. In past centuries, 'worship' was used in the context of prayer to Mary, but it was never meant in the literal sense that it means when referring to God. Most Protestants object to prayer to mary because they claim that we see Mary as a mediator with God, and they love to point out the verse in the Bible which says Jesus is the one mediator between God and man. But where does the Bible say that it is impossible to have a mediator between us and Jesus? You will search in vain for such a condemnation. But that isn't the point. If Jesus is our only mediator, then St. Paul was guilty of hypocrisy. He proclaimed that there is only one mediator between God and man, then he also asked people to pray for him, and said it was good to pray for others. If Jesus is literally the only mediator between God and man, then St. Paul was anti-Christ, and so is every single Protestant. Why? Because if Jesus is literally the only mediator, then why do Protestants ask other Protestants to pray for them? If Jesus is literally the only mediator, then YOU ARE GUILTY OF THE SAME THING YOU ACCUSE CATHOLICS OF BEING. YOU ARE SAYING THAT JESUS IS NOT THE ONLY MEDIATOR, YOU ARE GOING AGAINST THE VERY BIBLE YOU SO LOVE TO PROCLAIM YOU BELIEVE IN. Now, what is needed is a correct understanding of this mediation.
http://www.ewtn.com/library/ANSWERS/ROSARYDI.HTM http://www.religion-cults.com/rosary/ https://members.tripod.com/~LaPieta/scap_lar.html http://www.evangelicaloutreach.org/scapular.htm http://www.sxws.com/charis/talisman.htm