The Rosary consists of the Apostle's Creed, which is a statement of Christian belief, the Lord's prayer, which was uttered by Jesus in Luke 11:2-4, the Glory Be, which is a prayer that glorifies the Trinity, the Hail Mary, and the Mysteries.

The Hail Mary and the Mysteries are probably the two parts that are the most misunderstood by non-Catholics. However, they are both very scriptural. In Psalm 143:5 we read, "I remember the days of old, I meditate on all that thou hast done, I muse on what thy hands have wrought." Eighteen of the twenty Mysteries are meditations on the life, passion and death of Jesus Christ.

As for the Hail Mary, we begin by recognizing the uniqueness of Mary: "Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee." In doing this we are not exaggerating, as we use the words of God as spoken by the angel Gabriel in Luke 1:28. Next we utter the first recorded words of praise for Jesus in the New Testament. They come from Luke 1:42. Mary has gone to visit her cousin Elizabeth. Upon her arrival, Elizabeth proclaims, "Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb" (Jesus). Finally we ask Mary's intercession. In short, we address Mary as God does, we praise Jesus, and we ask Mary to pray for and with us.

That those in heaven are connected to us is illustrated in 1 Corinthians 12:26: "If one member suffers, all suffer together; If one member is honored, all rejoice together." And in Romans 12:5: "So we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another." Does Jesus have one body in heaven and one body on earth? Of course not, and that is why 1 Timothy 2:1 applies to all members of the body, "That supplications, prayers, intercessions and thanksgivings be made for all men."

Consider Revelation 5:8 where heavenly intercession is spoken of: "The four living creatures and the twenty four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and with golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints." The word "saints" refers to believers. In Revelation 8:3-4 we see the same thing, "Another angel came and stood at the altar with a golden censer, and he was given much incense to mingle with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar before the throne. And the smoke of the incense rose with the prayers of the saints from the hand of the angel before God." So the prayers of the saints are identified as incense, and an angel is adding incense (his prayers) to that which the saints have offered and then he offers it all up to God.

In 2 Maccabees 4:34 Onias the High Priest is murdered. Later, in 15:11-16, we are told that he appeared in a vision to Judas Maccabeus along with the prophet Jeremiah, who had died centuries earlier. In verse 14 we learn that the saints in heaven can and do pray for those of us still on earth. "And Onias spoke, saying, 'This is a man who loves the brethren and prays much for the people and the holy city, Jeremiah the prophet of God.'"

Because the Rosary is repetitious, Matthew 6:7 is often used in an attempt to refute it. The KJV words it this way: "But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do, for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking." Jesus did not condemn repetition – He condemned vain repetition. "Praise God" or "Amen" can be vain repetition if not said from the heart. Was Paul wrong in telling the Ephesians to "Address one another [in] psalms and hymns and spiritual songs" (5:19)? Are we to believe that psalms can only be recited once and that songs can only be sung once? Did God violate his own principals in Psalm 150, when in a short span of six verses we read "praise the Lord," "praise God" or "praise him" thirteen times (150:1-6)? Of course not! Look at verses 5-6 of Matthew 6. Here Jesus seems to be condemning praying aloud in public. However, a close examination reveals that He is not condemning public prayer but hypocritical public prayer. Likewise, in verse 7, He does not condemn repetitious prayer but hypocritical repetitious prayer.

Copyright © 2001 StayCatholic.com

For Further Study

Books - Introduction to Mary by Mark Miravalle and The Riches of the Rosary by Fr. Gabriel Harty.
Audio Cassette - A Biblical Understanding of Mary by Scott Hahn

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