THE ROSARY
Part Two:
THE MYSTERIES
OF THE ROSARY
Here are the sets of the Rosary Mysteries and the traditional days on which they are said. Work over time to memorize them, hopefully while praying the Rosary itself.
The Joyful Mysteries
(Mondays. Also said on Saturdays if the Loveful Mysteries are not used.)
The Annunciation; The Visitation; The Birth of Jesus (The Nativity); The Presentation; The Finding of Jesus in the Temple.
The Luminous Mysteries
(Thursdays.)
Jesus's Baptism in the Jordan; Jesus's Self-Manifestation at the Wedding of Cana; The Proclamation of the Kingdom of God (with Jesus's call to conversion); The Transfiguration; The Institution of the Eucharist.
[Note: These mysteries are from the ROSARIUM VIRGINIS MARIAE. Wordings of the mysteries are sometimes different.]
The Loveful Mysteries
(Saturdays. These combine with the Sorrowful Mysteries on Tuesdays.)
No Greater Love; Whatever You Do For One (You Do For Me); The Greatest Commandment; The Beatitudes; Pray Without Ceasing.
The Sorrowful Mysteries
(Fridays. Combined with the Loveful Mysteries on Tuesdays.)
The Agony in the Garden; The Scourging at the Pillar; The Crowning with Thorns; The Carrying of the Cross; The Crucifixion.
The Glorious Mysteries
(Sundays and Wednesdays.)
The Resurrection; The Ascension; The Descent of the Holy Spirit Upon the Apostles;
The Assumption; The Crowning of Our Lady, Queen of Heaven and Earth.
The Mysteries of the Rosary are not prayers within themselves. Instead, they provide us with important structure to guide our spiritual contemplation as we pray the Rosary.
It's surprising and disappointing how many Catholics not only don't know the Mysteries of the Rosary, but actively fight against learning them.
Be sure you're not one of them.
When a Catholic doesn't know the mysteries, we know that:
(1) They don't pray the Rosary often enough to have learned them by saying the Rosary regularly, and
(2) They don't want to join the countless number of Catholics who pray the Rosary and know the mysteries... from memory. So, here, you will have the opportunity to gradually work through the 25 mysteries and learn them all.
There are five sets of mysteries. Two are newer ones introduced in the current century. The Luminous Mysteries were introduced in 2002 in an excellent encyclical called:
ROSARIUM VIRGINIS MARIAE.
For those with an interest, I highly recommend reading that Apostolic Letter. It's importance goes well beyond the Luminous Mysteries alone. You can find it HERE.
Below is a small section from it.
The Rosary, a contemplative prayer:
(Paragraph 12.) The Rosary, precisely because it starts with Mary's own experience, is an exquisitely contemplative prayer. Without this contemplative dimension, it would lose its meaning, as Pope Paul VI clearly pointed out: “Without contemplation, the Rosary is a body without a soul, and its recitation runs the risk of becoming a mechanical repetition of formulas, in violation of the admonition of Christ: 'In praying do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think they will be heard for their many words' (Mt 6:7). By its nature the recitation of the Rosary calls for a quiet rhythm and a lingering pace, helping the individual to meditate on the mysteries of the Lord's life as seen through the eyes of her who was closest to the Lord. In this way the unfathomable riches of these mysteries are disclosed”. (Apostolic Exhortation Marialis Cultus (2 February 1974), 47: AAS (1974), 156.)
The Loveful Mysteries were introduced in 2022. Being recent, they are not yet an official and recognized set of mysteries. However, that is not required to pray with them. Remember we earlier heard that mysteries, by themselves, are not prayers. Nonetheless, they provide important spiritual structures for contemplation and meditation as we pray the Rosary or at other times. Because the Loveful Mysteries are still new and still little known, I will spend a moment to look at them with you.
When he introduced the Luminous Mysteries, St. John Paul II explained the reasoning behind them. He said that...
"...to bring out fully the Christological depth of the Rosary it would be suitable to make an addition to the traditional pattern which, while left to the freedom of individuals and communities, could broaden it to include the mysteries of Christ's public ministry between his Baptism and his Passion."
In the same way, the Loveful Mysteries fill an important and unfilled need which, while nonetheless partially present, is not clearly seen in the earlier Mysteries. The current 20 mysteries focus on events in the life of Jesus, primarily, but also Mary. In large part left out had been the actual teachings of Jesus — although much is nonetheless included in meditation on the current mysteries. But, if one looks carefully at Scripture, the most important teaching, by far, is that of Love. Jesus Himself tells us that here:
"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. Everything in the Law and the Prophets depends on these two commandments.” (Matthew, Chapter 22, verses 36–40: New Catholic Bible: NCB.)
We also clearly see love as the most important virtue in 1st Corinthians:
"Thus there are three things that endure: faith, hope, and love, and the greatest of these is love." [1 Corinthians 13:13]
Therefore, not just everything in the Law, but everything in Christ's teachings must be seen from the perspective and underlying foundation of love. Indeed, we are specifically told that God Himself is Love (see: 1 John 4:8 and 1 John 4:16).
Even in her recent apparitions, Our Lady herself tells us, "Without Love, there is no salvation."
Here, then, we see a foundation and theological origin of the Loveful Mysteries.
For a much fuller discussion of God as love, I also highly recommend the book:
Is God the Actual Entity of Love?
That book is in ebook, paperback, and audiobook formats. It's not long. It looks at God's nature in a completely different way. It is well worth your time.
Again, I recommend the book:
The Rosary: The New Loveful Mysteries, Meditation Beads, and More. ...by this author.
Below are the Loveful Mysteries. I recommend memorizing them along with the traditional 15 Mysteries and the Luminous Mysteries of 2002. Being new, some will want to delay learning and praying the Loveful Mysteries until they are more widely known. That would be a loss for your prayers. Instead, I would encourage you, on your own, to learn them and to also encourage others to pray these important Mysteries.
The Loveful Mysteries
The Loveful Mysteries
(Said on Saturdays. They are combined with the Sorrowful Mysteries on Tuesdays.)
(1) No Greater Love (John 15:9-14);
(2) Whatever You Do For One (You Do For Me) (Matthew 25:34-40);
(3) The Greatest Commandment (Matthew 22:36-40);
(4) The Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-12);
(5) Pray Without Ceasing (Thessalonians 5:16-18).
Note that these Mysteries are said on their own on Saturdays. Some consider Saturday as Our Lady's day. Mary's strong and continuing emphasis on love suggests that this is a good time to pray these mysteries.
The Loveful Mysteries perfectly dovetail with the Sorrowful Mysteries. When praying the Rosary on Tuesdays, first mention the Sorrowful Mystery, then the corresponding Loveful Mystery before starting each decade.
Click here for a walk-through of the combined Sorrowful and Loveful Mysteries onTuesdays.
©L. S. Scarpitta