Questions about the Rosary?

We have answers! Scroll down for answers to common questions and a selection of episodes from our archive.

Why don’t you include the introductory prayers, like the Apostles’ Creed?

In July 2018, Dr. Mike Scherschligt encouraged a group of business men to a daily challenge: Examine their conscience, meditate, and pray the Rosary. But that’s a big commitment, and prayer takes time. The group asked Dr. Mike Scherschligt to record a daily Rosary for them that included all of these components - and to keep it to 25 minutes.

So it began.

Part of the reason that the introductory prayers (like the Apostles’ Creed) and the prayers that typically conclude the Rosary (the Hail Holy Queen) aren’t included is for the sake of time. We wanted to provide a resource for those strapped on time to still be able to pray the Rosary.

Another reason that we don’t include those prayers in the Rosary is because they aren’t required. The Rosary is a way to go from vocal prayer (saying the traditional prayers out loud), to meditative prayer (thinking about the life of Christ and the teachings of the Church) to contemplative prayer (simply existing with God). When it comes to liturgical prayer, especially the Mass, there is a set form (we call it the “rite”) that should be followed by the priest and all the other ministers. When it comes to private devotions like the Rosary, however, all that really matters is drawing closer to Our Lord and growing in holiness and virtue. To the extent private devotions do that, they are serving their purpose.

Now, more than 17,000 people gather with us here at Holy Family School of Faith every day to meditate and pray the Rosary. Will you join us?

Why don’t you pray the regular mysteries (Joyful, Sorrowful, Luminous, and Glorious)?

The Rosary does have its own form that has developed through the centuries, and ordinarily one does “announce” the mystery before beginning the decade. However, the overarching essence of the Rosary is that it is an exquisitely contemplative prayer, even though it is accompanied by repetitive vocal prayer. The idea is that as we say the Hail Mary we place ourselves in the company of our Mother and with her we contemplate the face of her Son in the context of the various Christian mysteries.

From the earliest days of the Church, the faithful had the habit of praying a series of Our Fathers and Hail Marys. But under the inspiration of Our Lady, Saint Dominic was unique in the way he used the Rosary as a powerful tool of evangelization in the 12th century.

Dominic went into villages, gathered people, and shared with them the life of Christ. After a short instruction on the faith, he would recite ten Hail Marys with those gathered. As Mary promised, it proved to be a most fruitful form of preaching. Furthermore, Mary said this method would be one of the most powerful weapons against future errors and in future difficulties.

Our Lady is calling us here at Holy Family School of Faith to use the same method.

We invite family and friends to join us in our homes, offer hospitality, a meal, drinks, coffee, dessert, we engage in good conversation, and then we invite them to pray the Rosary with us.

We pray the Rosary in a new way that is actually a really old way introduced by Dominic. We share a short teaching from the Word of God, the teaching of Jesus, and then we pray one decade of the Rosary – and we do this five times. Then, the conversation can continue by asking one another what struck us during the meditations.

It worked for St. Dominic and Our Lady promised it would work in the future. Want to learn more? Discover the history of Saint Dominic and the Rosary in this meditation from Holy Family School of Faith:

Why should I invite people to pray the Rosary with me?

At the end of every Rosary meditation, we encourage you to be an apostle of friendship, good conversation, and the Rosary and to share this with others. This, too, is not something new to the Catholic Church.

We love the story of Pauline Jaricot, a French laywoman who founded the Society of the Propagation of the Faith and the Living Rosary Association. Born in 1799, she was a lay Dominican who received spiritual direction from St. Jean Vianney.

During her lifetime, she united poor factory workers in prayer. She also collected a modest, monthly donation to support the work of Catholic missionaries throughout the world.

Discover more about Pauline’s amazing work and why (and how!) to invite people into your homes with this Rosary meditation from Holy Family School of Faith: