(background chatter)
(metal detector beeping)
SECURITY LIBBY: Sir, I'm gonna need to search you.
You have something with a suspicious shape in your pocket.
PASSENGER KAI: Oh, you mean my weapon.
SECURITY LIBBY: Whoa! slowly sir!
KAI: No, no, no it's a spiritual weapon.
(upbeat guitar and piano music)
LIBBY: Hi! I'm Libby.
KAI: And I'm Kai.
Welcome to Catholic Central
LIBBY: Today we're talking about the Rosary.
It's good for more than just adding some flair
to your rear view mirror.
KAI: It's a Christian tradition of meditating
on the life of Christ,
by repeating specific prayers in a specific order.
Now before you think, "Boring and irrelevant!"
and go straight to another cat video, hear us out.
LIBBY: It is repetitive, but you might be surprised about what
the Rosary can do for your spiritual life.
KAI: Today we'll cover a quick history of the Rosary,
how to pray it,
LIBBY: And how to make it personal so that the though of it
won't put you to sleep.
KAI: The Rosary was created in the 9th century by Irish monks
who chanted the Bible's 150 Psalms
for part their daily worship.
LIBBY: Most Christians couldn't read so they repeated
150 prayers instead.
They had pouches of teenie pebbles
to keep track of those prayers.
KAI: Eventually, prayer bead makers created knotted ropes,
and beads were carved from stone, wood, and bone.
LIBBY: Then in the 13th century the Virgin Mary appeared
to St. Dominic in Spain.
MARY LIBBY: Your mission, Dominic should you choose to accept it,
is to preach the Rosary.
(angelic choir)
KAI: Less than 100 years after that appearance, or apparition,
the modern practice of meditating on Christ's life
became widespread throughout Europe and later the world.
LIBBY: But we don't mean meditation in like a new-agey,
I have a new personal mantra because it's Tuesday,
kind of way.
KAI: As we talked about in our other episodes
on Ignatian meditation and Lectico Divinia,
meditating is a form of prayer to lift up the mind,
heart and soul to God.
LIBBY: In this case, with the goal to better know Jesus Christ
through the eyes and heart of His mother, Mary.
KAI: Just like my mom knows everything about me,
from how I like my eggs to which episode of Reading Rainbow
always makes me cry, Mary knew Jesus more fully than
any other human alive.
The mysteries of the Rosary are like her memories of Him.
LIBBY: The ones that made her happy, the ones that were amazing,
and the ones that enlightened her, and even the ones
that caused her sadness.
KAI: As we pray the Rosary, our words and thoughts unite
with hers, and she invites us to understand Christ
a little better each time.
LIBBY: She was a mother, companion, daughter, friend,
and by seeing Christ's life through Mary's perspective,
we learn to imitate her faith in God's plan.
KAI: We call each of her memories a mystery, not because
they would each make a great page turner,
but because there are so many layers to these events
of someone's life.
What they mean for that person, for the wider community,
and for history.
LIBBY: There are four sets of mysteries;
the Joyful, the Luminous, the Sorrowful, and the Glorious.
Each set of four mysteries contains five specific moments
of Christ's life and mission.
Here's a brief overview.
KAI: The Joyful Mysteries mark the Incarnation.
When the Son of God became man.
LIBBY: The Luminous Mysteries tell when Jesus'
private life moves to a public ministry and
Jesus brought light to the world.
KAI: The Sorrowful Mysteries focus on the hardest
moments of Jesus' life.
His persecution, suffering, crucifixion, and death.
LIBBY: And the Glorious Mysteries remind us that God
redeems His people.
With God's love, death is not the end of the story!
KAI: Let's go through how to pray the Rosary together.
LIBBY: Apply light pressure to each bead taking care
not to squeeze too hard so as to avoid hand cramps.
Let the beads glide gently through your fingers.
KAI: Uh Libby, it might be more helpful to tell people
how to say it, as in which prayers to say.
LIBBY: Oh for that, they can go to our website.
KAI: Learning the prayers in order of the Rosary may seem
complex, but the repetition helps, and allows our minds
to better rest in the mediations.
LIBBY: Scientists have found that this kind of repetitive prayer
even has benefits for our mental and physical health.
KAI: So if you don't trust us, trust science.
But it's not just that,
there are concrete spiritual benefits.
The Rosary is one of the many ways to defeat temptations
in your life.
The closeness to Mary keeps us disciplined, hopeful,
and able to bear burdens.
LIBBY: For example, meditating on the agony in the Garden,
helps us unite our loneliness to Christ.
KAI: Or the finding of Jesus in the temple helps us
to not feel quite so bad about losing our keys
for the fourth time this week.
LIBBY: You might have prayed the Rosary
with your youth group or family.
Father Patrick Peyton, known as the Rosary Priest,
coined the phrase, "The family that prays together
stays together."
Praying with others can be unifying,
and is the easiest way to learn it.
KAI: Reciting the one set of Mysteries typically takes about
15 minutes if you're alone, or 30 minutes
if you're with Grandma's prayer group.
LIBBY: There are ways to personalize the Rosary too.
You can use each Mystery to include an intention.
KAI: For the invention of jet packs.
LIBBY: Or remember a loved one.
KAI: Or Cocker spaniel Daisy.
Hail Mary, full of grace.
LIBBY: You can say a whole Rosary in one sitting,
or if you're a busy, on-the-go person,
a Mystery at a time throughout the day.
KAI: Once again, if you want help learning to pray the Rosary,
use the audio file on our website.
LIBBY: Or download the Family Rosary app, which lets you pray it
with other people's voices guiding you.
Check out our website for those links.
KAI: Even if you're praying the Rosary by yourself,
you're still actually sharing it with others.
LIBBY: Youth minister Justin Fatica says,
"Why do we need the Rosary?
It's a prayer linked throughout all the world where there's
many people praying, so you're not only getting the strength
of your prayer; you're getting the strength
of the Church as well."
KAI: All that said, Catholics don't have to pray the Rosary
and there are endless ways to lift
one's mind and heart to God.
Remember, prayer is like a menu, not a prescription.
PASSENGER KAI: So then you do a Hail Holy Queen, sometimes a Memorare,
and then you do a St. Michael the Archangel prayer.
Anyway so, that's why I call it my favorite weapon.
LIBBY: There you have it, straight from Catholic Central,
the history and order of this powerful prayer,
tailor-made to fit your spiritual battles.
I'm Libby.
KAI: And I'm Kai.
Until next time, keep those weapons at the ready.
(karate sound)
(upbeat drum and piano music)