Edward Sri - The New Rosary in Scripture: Biblical Insights for Praying the 20 Mysteries

THE NEW ROSARY IN SCRIPTURE

Biblical Insights for Praying the 20 Mysteries

Edward Sri

Scripture verses are from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible , copyrighted 1946, 1952, 1957, 1965, 1966 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. Excerpts from the English translation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church for use in the United States of America Copyright 1994, United States Catholic Conference, Inc.-Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Used with Permission.

Cover design: Candle Light Studios

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Sri, Edward P.

The new Rosary in Scripture : biblical insights for praying the 20 mysteries / Edward Sri.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 1-56955-384-X (alk. paper)

1. Rosary. I. Title. BX2163.S65 2003 242'.74--dc21 2003013161

ISBN 1-56955-384-X

Copyright 2003 by Edward Sri. All rights reserved.

E-BOOK ISBN 978-1-61636-216-4

Published by Servant Books,

an imprint of St. Anthony Messenger Press,

28 W. Liberty St., Cincinnati, OH 45202

www.AmericanCatholic.org

www.ServantBooks.org

To My Wife, Elizabeth

CONTENTS

Acknowledgments

I would like to thank the many people who offered their prayers and encouragement for this project, especially my colleagues and students at Benedictine College. I am also particularly grateful to Bert Ghezzi at Servant Publications who first suggested that I write a book on the rosary in Scripture and to Curtis Mitch for his friendship and for his valuable feedback on this work.

INTRODUCTION

The New Mysteries: Why Now?

You know you are living in an historic moment when USA Today is teaching people how to pray the rosary.

Its October 17, 2002, edition featured an article that included a typical USA Today visual aid graphic but with very atypical content: a diagram of the rosary. The graphic offered clear instructions on how to pray the rosary, explaining which prayerOur Father, Hail Mary, or Glory Beshould be recited with which bead. While one might expect to find such a picture and explanation in pamphlets in the back of a church, it was surprising to find it in the pages of the secular press, and no less, in one of our nations most widely read newspapers.

What was the impulse for such catechetical instruction in this most unusual of settings?

Mysteries of Light

The day before the articles publication, Pope John Paul II began the twenty-fifth year of his papacy by dedicating the months from October 2002 to October 2003 as a Year of the Rosary. In his apostolic letter The Rosary of the Virgin Mary ( Rosarium Virginis Mariae ), released that day, John Paul II called on Catholics in this period to renew their devotion to this traditional prayer. However, what grabbed the attention of USA Today and media throughout the world was the Popes extraordinary proposal to introduce a whole new set of mysteries for contemplation in the rosary: the Mysteries of Light.

It is not every day that new mysteries are added to the rosary. In fact, the prayers basic format had been in place since the sixteenth century. This structure included a series of prayers with reflections on the saving events surrounding the Joyful Mysteries of Christs birth, the Sorrowful Mysteries of his passion and death, and the Glorious Mysteries of his resurrection.

In order to enter more fully into the life of Jesus through the rosary, the Pope suggested that Catholics also reflect on the mysteries of Christs public ministry. He thus proposed the following five scenes to be contemplated: (1) Christs baptism; (2) the wedding feast at Cana;

(3) the proclamation of the kingdom; (4) the Transfiguration; and (5) the institution of the Eucharist. By focusing our attention on his public ministry, these new Mysteries of Light make a stronger connection between Christs childhood in the Joyful Mysteries and the culmination of his messianic mission in the Sorrowful Mysteries.

In the months following the release of this letter on the rosary, one question many Catholics asked was simply why? Why did John Paul II dedicate the twenty-fifth year of his pontificate as a Year of the Rosary? Why is he so concerned that Catholics deepen their commitment to this devotion? And most of all, why did he add these new Mysteries of Light?

The Pope gave at least three reasons for the timeliness of his proposal. These correspond to three crises he sees today: (1) a crisis of the rosary within the Catholic Church, (2) a crisis of peace in the world, and (3) a crisis of the family in the home.

A Crisis of the Rosary

In his apostolic letter John Paul II speaks of a certain crisis of the rosary. He points out that this important devotion from our tradition has been misunderstood, pushed to the side, or even forgotten in our present era. He says the rosary today can risk being wrongly devalued, and therefore no longer taught to the younger generation.1

A number of years ago I stopped at a church in Michigan during my lunch hour to pray the rosary. As I was praying, an older woman walked in and saw me kneeling with my rosary beads in hand. She looked confused, concerned, and very curious about what I was doing. After a few Hail Marys I began to feel uncomfortable when I noticed she was still staring at me. She finally walked up to me and asked, Are you praying the rosary? I told her that I was, and in response, she said to me, Wow, you must be uneducated!

I was not sure what she intended by that statement, but I felt somewhat insulted. I asked her, What do you mean by that?

She then hesitatingly began to tell me her story: Well, I have always prayed the rosary. And I was here in this same church yesterday praying the rosary just like you are, and a priest walked in and asked me why I was doing that. He told me that the rosary is only for the uneducated people and that educated Catholics dont need it anymore.

She then looked down at the ground and sincerely, but somewhat embarrassedly, said, I guess ... I guess since I dont have as much education as other people ... I guess thats why I still pray the rosary. Then, looking back at me, she said, But you ... you look like youd be educated, so I was surprised to see you praying it!

I sympathized with this good, pious woman who had been humiliated for praying the rosary. But perhaps even more, I felt for the poor, misguided priest who had made these unfortunate comments. I share this story because it exemplifies, at least to some degree, the way the rosary is misunderstood and devalued by many Catholics todayby laity and even some priests and religious. And this lack of appreciation for the rosary has had its effects. According to a 2001 poll by the Center for Applied Research for the Apostolate at Georgetown University, the majority of Catholics in the United States do not pray the rosary on a regular basis. Only 27 percent said they pray the rosary several times a month. That is in contrast to 33 percent who said they pray it only a few times a year, and 39 percent who said they never pray it at all.2

Admittedly, most Catholics in the United States do not have much excitement about the rosary, understanding about its meaning, or even familiarity with how to pray it. In the subsequent chapters of this book we will explore many of the good questions people have about the rosary and shed light on some common misconceptions about this devotion. At this point, however, I simply wish to highlight that John Paul II seems right to be concerned that this important part of our tradition is not being passed on effectively to the next generation. While it is true that some younger Catholics have grown up with the rosary in their homes or in their Catholic schools and parishes, this does not seem to be the case for many others.