Protestants and the Rosary

(Sharing at the Novena to Our Mother of Perpetual Help on 18 December 2010)

If you were to do a Google search on the Protestants and the Rosary, you would find that for many Protestants, the Rosary captures everything that is wrong with Roman Catholicism – an excessive (and perhaps idolatrous) focus on Mary’s role and mechanical prayers. But is this a fair characterisation? And might it be that the Rosary has something to offer Protestants?

The “Praying to Mary” Objection: Since the Rosary consists largely of “Hail Mary”s, many Protestants see this as one more instance of Catholic Mariology. But Catholics will tell you that these are not prayers to Mary in the sense that one would pray to God the Father or to Jesus, but are requests asking for Mary’s intercession. There seems to be no good argument that it is wrong in principle to ask for the prayers of the Mother of God, if we allow, as we surely must, that it is alright to ask for the prayers of other living Christians and that death does not severe us from the Communion of the Saints.

The “Vain Repetition” Objection: Do the Hail Mary’s and Our Father’s of the Rosary constitute “vain repetition” as condemned in the Bible? Well, most Protestants pray the Our Father (the Lord’s Prayer) as well as other pre-written prayers (the Psalms, etc.) so the objection cannot be to written prayers per se. Moreover, it seems that what Jesus is condemning in, e.g. Matthew 6:7 is a kind of prayer that seeks to cajole the deity into doing what you want by means of repetition. By contrast, the Rosary is intended to be a prayer wherein one meditates on the Mysteries of Christ’s life. The movement of the fingers and the lips are supposed to help avoid distractions and allow the mind and spirit to enter into a deeper contemplative state. This is not to say that the Rosary cannot become a mechanical or self-centered prayer, but so can any other prayer, including the ones we come up with ourselves.

In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the Rosary among the Anglicans, the Episcolians, Methodists and the Lutherans. Known as the Christian Prayer Beads, it is not used as a form of intercession but as an aid to prayer.

An Anglican theologian and preacher, Austin Farrer, describe his own change of heart about the Rosary. He says that “If I had been asked two dozen years ago for an example of what Christ forbade when he said ’Use not vain repetitions,’ I should very likely have referred to the fingering of beads. But now if I wished to name a special sort of private devotion most likely to be of general profit, prayer on the beads is what I should name. Since my previous opinion was based on ignorance and my present opinion is based on experience, I am not ashamed of changing my mind.”

When all has been said about it, what the Rosary prayer does is to draw us to Jesus, and to help answer our prayer that we may see him more clearly, love him more dearly, and follow him more nearly, every day that we are given of this life on earth.

The Rosary as a Path to Holiness

(Sharing during Novena to Our Mother of Perpetual Help on 4 December 2010)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Recently, I was advised against promoting the Rosary as a path to holiness, as it may put off the young. Holiness, it seems, is no longer an ideal. However, in this penultimate sharing in our Rosary series, there is no escape, for it is the title itself. Indeed, as Christians, holiness is certainly our “business”. Mother Teresa once told a journalist that holiness is not a choice, but a necessity.

In the Bible, God often commanded the Israelites to be holy, for He, their God, is holy. Jesus also taught, “Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Mt 5:48) The Catechism of the Catholic Church says that all are called to holiness. Impossible for us weak human beings? But as a priest said, if we cannot be holy, then Jesus’ coming and dying on the Cross would have been in vain. We can be trained to be holy.

Genuine training in holiness, said Pope John Paul II, involves contemplating the Christian mystery (Novo Millennio Ineunte, 2001) and the Rosary is a most effective way towards it. (Rosarium Virginis Mariae, 2002, 5). Throughout the centuries, countless Popes and Saints had strongly encouraged the Rosary devotion. They themselves being its ardent devotees, became the proof of its efficacy in leading one to holiness.

How does the Rosary effect this? Blessed Bartolo Longo equated it with two friends frequently in each other's company tending to develop similar habits (RVM, 2002, 15). So from frequent meditation on the Mysteries, as Pope Pius XII wrote, the soul gradually and unnoticeably absorbs the virtues they contain, and is wondrously inspired with a longing for things immortal. It becomes strongly and easily moved to follow the way which Christ and His Mother have followed. (Ingruentium Malorum, 1951, 9) Thus the Rosary helps us in answering our Christian calling to be conformed to Christ. Many people have testified being healed of addictions, or inexplicably filled with a thirst for the knowledge of God after praying the Rosary.

But the best tool is useless unless correctly used. So how to pray the Rosary correctly and effectively? You have heard them in our previous sharings.

Foremost, the secret is in the contemplation, without which the Rosary would be like a body without a soul. We should not recite the Rosary prayers unthinkingly and mechanically, but we must contemplate and meditate on the mysteries of the life of our Lord with His Mother. To counter distractions, we can use pictures and images from leaflets, booklets, the Internet, and even statues. Looking at the scenes of the mysteries meditated on helps a lot. Remember our sharing on the Ignatian way of praying the Rosary? For our sights, God will give us insight. We can take a step further and imagine that we are in the scenes. Picture Jesus and Mary looking at us and talking to us. Rosary leaflets and books are sold at bookstands outside the church. On the Internet, meditations and images to help in praying the Rosary abound. Just google “Praying the Rosary”. To ensure more trustworthy content, you may use the Catholic search engine, Cathoogle. Other means to consider are using beads to pray, praying before our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, and joining in public Rosary prayers in the church. At our parish, we pray the Rosary every Saturday at 5.20 p.m. Since it is only once a week, we pray the mysteries in a monthly cycle following Jesus’ life cycle, i.e. His birth, public ministry, passion and death, and Resurrection.

Lack of time? Well, we can pray the Rosary anywhere, anytime. If really hard-pressed, we can pray while waiting, walking, driving (as long as we can remain careful), washing, etc. Ultimately, it is making a point to pray. Mother Teresa said, “God doesn’t require us to succeed; he only requires that you try.” The Devil increases attacks on those who start praying, but perseverance is the key. Our Lady’s 15 promises may encourage us.

At our recent Parish Assembly, our Parish Pastor, Fr. Simon, has outlined the way for us in entering our Jubilee Year, i.e. towards a renewal of holiness. The Rosary is simple and efficacious towards this end, so why not put to use this precious tool given to us? Trustingly with our Mother, let us “learn” Christ and conform to Him more and more.