how to pray the rosary

How To Pray The Holy Rosary

The Apostles’ Creed

I believe in God, the Father almighty,

creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.

He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit

and born of the Virgin Mary.

He suffered under Pontius Pilate,

was crucified, died, and was buried.

He descended to the dead.

On the third day he rose again.

He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He will come again to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,

the holy catholic Church,

the communion of saints,

the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body,

and the life everlasting.

Amen.

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 on 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.

The Lord’s Prayer (Our Father)

Our Father, who art in heaven,

hallowed be 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.

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 (The Doxology)

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.

Fatima Invocation

O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, and lead all

souls to heaven, especially those most in need of thy mercy.

Hail, Holy Queen

(Salve Regina)

Hail, holy Queen, Mother of Mercy. Hail, our life, our sweetness, and our

hope. To you do we cry, poor banished children of Eve. To you do we send up

our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears. Turn, then most

gracious advocate, your eyes of mercy toward us and after this, our exile,

show unto us the blessed fruit of your womb, Jesus. O clement, O loving, O

sweet Virgin Mary.

The Joyful Mysteries

(Mondays and Saturdays)

1. The Annunciation of the birth of the Lord to Mary by the archangel

Gabriel (Lk 1:26-38).

2. The Visitation of Our Lady with St. Elizabeth, the mother of St. John the

Baptist (Lk 1:39-56).

3. The Nativity of Our Lord (Mt 1:18-25; Lk 2:1-20).

4. The Presentation of the Christ Child in the Temple (Lk 2:22-32).

5. The Finding of the Child Jesus in the Temple (Lk 2:41-52).

The Sorrowful Mysteries

(Tuesdays and Fridays)

1. The Agony in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mk 14:32-42).

2. The Scourging of Jesus (Jn 19:1).

3. The Crowning with Thorns (Mk 15:16-20).

4. The Carrying of the Cross (Jn 19:12-17).

5. The Crucifixion (Mt 27:33-56; Mk 15:22-41; Lk 23:26-49; Jn 19:16-30).

The Luminous Mysteries

(Thursdays)

1. The Baptism of Our Lord in the River Jordan (Mt 3:13-16).

2. The Self-Manifestation of Our Lord at the Wedding at Cana (Jn 2:1-11).

3. The Proclamation of the Kingdom of God (Mk 1:14-15).

4. The Transfiguration of Our Lord (Mt 17:1-8; Lk 9:28-29).

5. The Last Supper, when the Eucharist was Instituted (Mt 26).

The Glorious Mysteries

(Wednesdays and Sundays)

1. The Resurrection (Lk 24:1-12; Jn 20).

2. The Ascension (Lk 24:50-53; Acts 1:1-12).

3. The Descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4).

4. The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Song 2:8-14).

5. The Coronation of the Blessed Mother (Rev 12:1-4

1. While holding the crucifix, make the Sign of the Cross and say the Apostles’ Creed.

2. On the first bead and all the single beads, say an Our Father.

3. Pray one Hail Mary on each of the next three beads for an increase in faith, hope, and charity.

4. On the next single bead, pray the Glory Be.

5. Before praying the next set of ten beads (called a decade), first meditate on the first mystery.

Announce the mystery, imagine the event, and begin to meditate on it by itself or in association

with whatever matter the mystery brings to your heart.

6. Pray an Our Father.

7. Pray a Hail Mary on the first bead of the decade, and on each following bead.

8. After praying the decade, pray the Glory Be. You may also want to add the Fatima invocation.

9. Reflect on the second mystery, then pray an Our Father on the next single bead.

10. Pray the Hail Mary on the next ten beads. Repeat the sequence around the rosary.

11. At the end of the last decade, pray the Hail Holy Queen.
The Sign of the Cross

Sometimes additional prayers are said. At the end

of each decade, you may say the O my Jesus

prayer, and at the end of each chaplet, you may

say the Hail Holy Queen, and the O God Whose

prayers.

At the end of each prayer, say: Amen.

The Rosary helps us reflect on the lives of Jesus 

and Mary, in order to move closer to God and

further from sin. Each mystery is called a decade

and each set of 5 mysteries is called a chaplet.

Each mystery is an event in salvation history. For

each mystery, pray 1 Our Father, 10 Hail

Marys, and 1 Glory Be. Meditate on the mystery

while reciting the prayers.

15 Promises of the Virgin Mary

to Christians Who Recite the Rosary

1. To all those who shall recite my Rosary devoutly, I promise my special protection and

very great graces.

2. Those who shall persevere in the recitation of my Rosary will receive some signal grace.

3. The Rosary will be a very powerful armor against Hell; it will destroy vice, deliver from

sin, and dispel heresy.

4. The Rosary will make virtue and good works flourish, and will obtain for souls the most

abundant divine mercies; it will substitute in hearts love of God for love of the world, and

elevate them to desire heavenly and eternal good. Oh, that souls would sanctify themselves

by this means!

5. Those who trust themselves to me through the Rosary will not perish.

6. Those who shall recite my Rosary piously, considering its mysteries, will not be

overwhelmed by misfortune, nor die a bad death. The sinner will be converted; the just will

grow in grace and become worthy of eternal life.

7. Those truly devoted to my Rosary will not die without the consolations of the Church, or

without grace.

8. Those who shall recite my Rosary will find during their life and at their death the light of

God, the fullness of His grace, and will share in the merits of the blessed.

9. I will deliver very promptly from Purgatory the souls devoted to my Rosary.

10. The true children of my Rosary will enjoy great glory in Heaven.

11. What you shall ask through my Rosary you shall obtain.

12. Those who propagate my Rosary will obtain through me aid in all their necessities.

13. I have obtained from my Son that all confreres of the Rosary shall have for their

brethren in life and death the saints of Heaven.

14. Those who recite my Rosary faithfully are all my beloved children, the brothers and

sisters of Jesus Christ.

15. Devotion to my Rosary is a great sign of predestination.

In the name of the Father,

And of the Son,

And of the Holy Spirit.

Amen.