Rosaries come in many shapes, designs, colours and sizes – but what are they all about?
Well, they are Catholics devotions used to help prayer and meditation although they are also used in similar forms in other religions including Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam. Each bead in the rosary is used to count prayers in sequence, allowing you to keep tracks of how many times you have said a particular prayer. This is argued to help you focus on the prayer itself and allow you to meditate more effectively. Counting prayers can be traced back to the 11th and 12th century in Western cultures, when people would carry pebbles and stones in their pockets to count with. It should also be noted the making of prayer beads can traced even earlier in Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam.
Why ‘Rosary’? Some trace the word ‘rosary’ back to the Romans and their travels to India from the Latin word rosarium meaning rose garden or galand of roses, and the term bead appears to come from the Saxon ‘bede’, which means prayer.
For Roman Catholics, the rosary refers both to the string of beads said as well as the prayers said using them. Particular beads correspond to a particular prayer and therefore the string of beads are put together is in a very specific and considered order.
Typically, there will be a crucifix, one larger bead, three smaller beads (faith, hope and charity), another larger and then a medal. After the medal will be one larger bead again followed by 10 smaller beads. Around the chain, there are 5 sets of 10 small beads and 1 larger bead.
One large bead followed by a set of 10 small beads is called a decade, and each decade represents one particular prayer set. The Apostle’s Creed followed by Our Father and Hail Mary is recited whilst holding the crucifix. A more complex Hail Mary is recited whilst holding the medal.
Black Rosary Bead
The rosary is part of the Catholic veneration of Mary, heavily promoted by many popes and most notably ‘The Rosary Pope’ – Leo XIII. Devotion to the Rosary is a very notable feature of Catholic spirituality, and it was named ‘the finest and most praiseworthy traditions of Christian contemplation’ by Pope John Paul II. In 2008, Pope Benedict XVI declared a new ‘springtime’ for the Rosary – and the resurgence of their popularity is evident in their adoption by the high street and celebrity culture.
