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Apr 24 2023

The Sorrowful Mysteries

The Gospels give great prominence to the sorrowful mysteries of Christ. From the beginning Christian piety, especially during the Lenten devotion of the Way of the Cross, has focused on the individual moments of the Passion, realizing that here is found the culmination of the revelation of God’s love and the source of our salvation. The Rosary selects certain moments from the Passion, inviting the faithful to contemplate them in their hearts and to relive them. The sequence of meditations begins with Gethsemane, where Christ experiences a moment of great anguish before the will of the Father, against which the weakness of the flesh would be tempted to rebel. There Jesus encounters all the temptations and confronts all the sins of humanity, in order to say to the Father: “Not my will but yours be done” (Lk 22:42 and parallels). This “Yes” of Christ reverses the “No” of our first parents in the Garden of Eden. And the cost of this faithfulness to the Father’s will is made clear in the following mysteries; by his scourging, his crowning with thorns, his carrying the Cross and his death on the Cross, the Lord is cast into the most abject suffering: Ecce homo!

This abject suffering reveals not only the love of God but also the meaning of man himself.

Ecce homo: the meaning, origin and fulfilment of man is to be found in Christ, the God who humbles himself out of love “even unto death, death on a cross” (Phil 2:8). The sorrowful mysteries help the believer to relive the death of Jesus, to stand at the foot of the Cross beside Mary, to enter with her into the depths of God’s love for man and to experience all its life-giving power.

The above excerpt is from the Apostolic Letter of St. Pope John Paul II entitled Rosarium Virginis Mariae.

The Sorrowful Mysteries

First Sorrow Mystery: The Agony in the Garden
“Then going out Jesus went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed him.” Luke 22:39

Second Sorrowful Mystery: The Scourging at the Pillar
Pilate addressed them a third time, “What evil has this man done? I found him guilty of no capital crime.” Luke 23:22a

Third Sorrowful Mystery: The Crowning with Thorns
“Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus inside the praetorium and gathered the whole cohort around him.” Matthew 27:27

Fourth Sorrowful Mystery: The Carrying of the Cross
“As they led Jesus away they took hold of a certain Simon, a Cyrenian, who was coming in from the country; and after laying the cross on him, they made him carry it behind Jesus.” Luke 23:26

Fifth Sorrowful Mystery: The Crucifixion
“When they came to the place called the skull, they crucified him and the criminals there, one on his right, the other on his left. “ Luke 23:33

We Invite You to Pray the Sorrowful Mysteries with Us

Apr 12 2023

Pray the Dominican Rosary

The Dominican Friars are the foremost promoters of the Rosary worldwide. Our founder, St. Dominic de Guzman, received the mission of spreading the Rosary from Our Lady herself. Since then, the Order of Preachers has taken it upon itself to teach the entire world to pray the Rosary, which leads us to Jesus through Mary.

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How to pray the Rosary according to the tradition of the Dominican Friars.
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Why the Rosary is a powerful tool for praying with Scripture.
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Since the Rosary has been prayed by millions of faithful over the course of many centuries, some differences have naturally arisen in the way the Rosary is recited here and there. There are at least two distinct, but equally valid, ways of praying the Rosary. One is the traditional manner used by the Dominican Friars, the original promoters of the Rosary. The other is the more popular, common way.

The Dominican Way of Praying the Rosary

The Dominican Friars have traditionally prayed the Rosary in a way that is slightly different and also slightly shorter from the (now) more common way. The Dominican way begins with a series of verses and responses that recall the opening of the Liturgy of the Hours and also the Angelic Salutation that forms the first part of the Hail Mary.

First, one makes the Sign of the Cross.

Then, one says the following short verses and responses:

V. Hail, Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with Thee;
R. Blessed art Thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of Thy womb, Jesus.
V. O Lord, open my lips;
R. And my mouth will proclaim Your praise.
V. O God, come to my assistance.
R. O Lord, make haste to help me.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen. Alleluia. (Alleluia is omitted during Lent)

Announce the first mystery and continue as below.

The Common Way of Praying the Rosary

The most common manner of praying the Rosary in the United States is given below, although variations exist in different parishes, etc.:

First, one makes the Sign of the Cross.

Then one recites the Apostles’ Creed.

On the first large bead connected to the Cross, the Our Father is prayed.

For each of the three small beads that follow, the Hail Mary is prayed.

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.

Then, the first Mystery of the set is announced, e.g., “The First Joyful Mystery, the Annunciation.” After the Mystery is announced, one begins to meditate on that portion of Christ’s life.

The Our Father is prayed on the first large bead.

On each of the next ten (smaller) beads, a Hail Mary is prayed. While pronouncing these prayers, one continues to meditate on the Mystery of Christ’s life.

At the end of the “decade” of 10 Hail Marys, one prays the Glory Be. Then, one announces the next mystery (e.g., “The Visitation”) and recites the Our Father on the large bead. After the Our Father is finished, one moves to the first small bead of the next decade and begin the Hail Marys again.

This process continues through each of the five decades until you return to the beginning, where the Glory Be is prayed. Most ordinary Rosaries have beads for five decades, although a “full” Dominican rosary has fifteen decades.

Then, the first Mystery of the set is announced, e.g., “The First Joyful Mystery, the Annunciation.” After the Mystery is announced, one begins to meditate on that portion of Christ’s life.

The Our Father is prayed on the first large bead.

On each of the next ten (smaller) beads, a Hail Mary is prayed. While pronouncing these prayers, one continues to meditate on the Mystery of Christ’s life.

At the end of the “decade” of 10 Hail Marys, one prays the Glory Be. This is typically followed by the Fatima Prayer. Then, one announces the next mystery (e.g., “The Visitation”) and recites the Our Father on the large bead. After the Our Father is finished, one moves to the first small bead of the next decade and begin the Hail Marys again.

This process continues through each of the five decades until you return to the medallion, where the Glory Be is prayed. Most ordinary Rosaries have beads for five decades.

The Dominican Rosary then concludes with the following prayers:

First, the Hail, Holy Queen is prayed.

Then one says the following verses and responses:

V. Queen of the Most Holy Rosary, pray for us.
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Let us Pray: O God, whose Only-Begotten Son, by His life, death and resurrection, has purchased for us the rewards of eternal life, grant, we beseech Thee, that by meditating upon these mysteries of the most holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we may imitate what they contain and obtain what they promise, through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.

V. May the Divine Assistance remain always with us.
R. And may the souls of the faithful departed rest in peace.

[If a Priest is present:] And may the peace and blessing of Almighty God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit descend upon you and remain with you forever.

[Otherwise:] And may Almighty God bless us, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The Rosary then concludes with the following prayers:

First, the Hail, Holy Queen is prayed.

Then one says the following verse and response:

V. Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God.
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Apr 12 2023

The Glorious Mysteries

The Glorious Mysteries announce the power of God as these take shape in the life of Christ and of the blessed Virgin Mary, who is the first participant in the fruits of her Son’s resurrection. Similarly, St. Dominic consigned a twofold way of life to his followers. the Friar Preacher is committed to ponder prayerfully “the glory of Christ,’ and then to share the fruits of this contemplation with others. By observing these exercises, St. Dominic wanted to prepare his friars to spread confidence in the power if the Word of God and to cultivate reverence fir the divine majesty. In other words, St. Dominic wanted to kindle the light of Christ’s glory in his preachers, and so ensure a continuous announcement of the resurrection miracle: “If any one is in christ, he is a new creation; the old has passes away, behold, the new has come” (2 Cor 5:17).

The mysteries of the glorious Christ give us a foreknowledge of the Church as it will be; we see the triumph of “the Lamb who was slain” (Rv 5:12). But this vision comes with faith. “We don’t have faith,” lamented St. John Marie Vianney, “if we had faith, then we would see what the saints see: heaven everywhere, the angels, the good God.” Our meditation on the glorious mysteries helps us see what the saints see. Because St. Dominic always saw the glory of the risen Christ in the world, he abominated every form of sin, even though he labored unselfishly for the conversion of sinners. Indeed, he frequently was heard to exclaim, “Lord, what will become of sinners!” Fra Angelico, it is true, painted St. Dominic as a witness to the mysteries of Christ’s infancy and passion, but there is every reason to prefer seeing him in front of the empty tomb. 0 lumen Ecclesiae! As a light for the Church, St. Dominic serves also as a father in faith. Since the glorious mysteries enact our own transformation, only faith allows us to enter into these mysteries of the glorious Christ. With St. Dominic to guide us, the glorious mysteries progressively reveal “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ” (2 Cor 4:6).

The above is an excerpt from Perpetual Angelus: As the Saints Pray the Rosary by Fr. Romanus Cessario, O.P.

The Glorious Mysteries

First Glorious Mystery: The Resurrection
“After the Sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, approached, rolled back the stone, and sat upon it.” Matthew 28:1

Second Glorious Mystery: The Ascension
“I dealt with all that Jesus did and taught until the day he was taken up, after giving instructions through the holy spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. He presented himself alive to them by many proofs after he had suffered, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.” Acts 1:1-3

Third Glorious Mystery: The Descent of the Holy Spirit
“While meeting with them, he enjoined them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for ‘the promise of the Father about which you have heard me speak; for John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ ” Acts 1:4-5

Fourth Glorious Mystery: Assumption of Mary into Heaven
“Who is this that comes forth like the dawn, beautiful as the white moon, pure as the blazing sun, fearsome as celestial visions?” Song of Solomon 6:10

Fifth Glorious Mystery: Coronation of Mary
“A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.” Revelation 12:1

We Invite You to Pray the Glorious Mysteries with Us

Apr 03 2023

Living the Triduum at Home

On the evening of Holy Thursday, the whole Church moves from Lent to the Sacred Paschal Triduum–the days from Holy Thursday until Easter Sunday. These are the most important days of the year for through them we enter into the saving mysteries of the Lord Jesus Christ. Thus, we should try to enter into them with a particular attentiveness and devotion so that the graces the Lord merited for us through the mysteries that make up this time may bear abundant fruit in our lives. These days are not only concerned with the major liturgies in our churches though. They should also lead to a conversion of our lives, and as such they can impact every aspect of this time. From the way that we approach work to the practices we take up at home, these days can bear great fruit if we do our best to enter into them in everything that we do. To help draw this out, here are some practical recommendations on how the mysteries that make up the Triduum can guide us both in our churches and in our homes. Feel free to choose whichever ones you would like or other cultural customs that you or your family have found helpful. The whole goal is to enter more deeply into this sacred time. From our devotional practices to our culinary customs and to everything in between, these days can be rich with grace and lead to a flowering of holiness in our hearts and in our homes. May the Lord bring that about for you and your loved ones.

Download the guide

Download Living the Triduum at Home: A Practical Guide to Christian Living During the Sacred Paschal Triduum by Fr. Peter Martyr Yungwirth, O.P.

Apr 03 2023

Holy Week and the Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary

In the upcoming liturgies of Holy Week, the Church recalls the final events of Jesus’s earthly life day by day, and, once the Triduum begins, even hour by hour. The Church makes this yearly commemoration of the Passion and Resurrection of Jesus in order to give us the time to reflect more deeply on the meaning of these mysteries. One way of doing so is to meditate on these events with Mary, to look at them with her and from her perspective. The Sorrowful and Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary give us one good way of following the events of Holy Week with Mary. In the Middle Ages, however, another Marian devotion sprang up that became much more closely associated with Holy Week. This was the devotion to our Lady of Sorrows, and in particular to the Seven Sorrows, or Seven Dolors, of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

We can see why this devotion became associated with Holy Week by looking at the Seven Sorrows themselves:

The prophecy of Simeon foretelling the Passion and Death of Jesus
The flight from Herod into Egypt
The loss of Jesus for three days
Meeting Jesus as he carried his cross to Calvary
Standing at the foot of the cross and witnessing the death of Jesus
Watching as the soldier pierced Jesus’s side with a lance and receiving his body from the cross
Seeing the body of Jesus buried in the tomb

Beginning with the very first sorrow, each of these is connected in some way, either directly or indirectly, to the Passion of Jesus. They also provide us with a unique Marian perspective on some part of this great mystery.

For example, consider the third sorrow. We typically think of this event from the perspective of the fifth Joyful Mystery, the finding of the child Jesus in the Temple. The third sorrow, however, focuses on the loss Mary experienced during the three days Jesus was separated from her and Joseph. These three days prefigure the three days Mary would be separated from Jesus while his body lay in the tomb.

Because of this intimate connection with the Passion, devotion to the Seven Sorrows became a common way for people to reflect on the mysteries of Holy Week. In fact, the devotion became so popular that, in 1727, Pope Benedict XIII instituted a universal feast commemorating the Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary on the Friday before Palm Sunday. With this, the Church officially recommended devotion to the Seven Sorrows as a privileged means of preparing for and entering into the commemoration of Jesus’s Passion and Resurrection during Holy Week.

Today, the Church no longer celebrates the feast of the Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Following the revision of the liturgical calendar, it was combined with Our Lady of Sorrows on September 15th in order to keep the focus of the final weeks of Lent directly on the events of the Passion. But the revision kept the connection between the Seven Sorrows and the Passion because the new feast directly follows that of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross on September 14th. Thus, reflecting on the events of Holy Week by meditating on the Seven Sorrows remains a great way to delve deeper into the meaning of Jesus’s Passion.

Lastly, the most common way of meditating on Mary’s sorrows is by reciting the Chaplet of the Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which is similar in form to the standard Rosary.

Here’s how to pray the chaplet:

Begin by making the Sign of the Cross
Recite the Act of Contrition and say the optional Opening Prayer
Announce the First Sorrow
Say one Our Father and seven Hail Marys
Repeat (3) and (4) for each of the Sorrows
Say three Hail Marys in honor of the tears which Mary shed in her sorrows
Say the optional Closing Prayer and finish by making the Sign of the Cross

(The optional prayers, as well as short passages that can be used to announce the sorrows, are found on page 107 of the 1910 Raccolta.)

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Photo by Fr. Lawrence Lew, O.P. (used with permission)

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This article was originally published in the dominicanajournal.org and was written by Brother Gregory Santy. Brother Gregory entered the Order of Preachers in 2018. He received a Licentiate in Philosophy from The Catholic University of America.