Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Mysteries

Up to now, I have focused on the words of the rosary prayers and on my belief that the words cross artificial boundaries, drawing us to each other and to God. But praying the rosary involves more than merely reciting the powerful words of ancient prayers. The Mysteries--distinct, important events from Jesus' life, death, and resurrection--form the core of this ritual prayer.

There are four sets of Mysteries:

- Joyful Mysteries (Monday, Saturday)
- Sorrowful Mysteries (Tuesday, Friday)
- Glorious Mysteries (Wednesday)
- Luminous Mysteries (Thursday)

Each set contains five discrete experiences pertaining to Jesus' life, death, and resurrection. In praying the rosary, you enfold those events in the rhythm of the Lord's Prayer, Hail Mary, Gloria Patri, and Fatima Prayer (see structure in earlier post).

So just what are these capital-M-Mysteries?

Joyful Mysteries:
  1. Angel's announcement to Mary that she would bear a son (Luke 1:26-38)
  2. Mary's visit to Elizabeth (Luke 1:39-56)
  3. Jesus' birth (Luke 2:1-20)
  4. Dedication of Jesus (Luke 2:21-40)
  5. Finding 12 year old Jesus in temple (Luke 2:41-51)

Sorrowful Mysteries:
  1. Lonely night at Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-56; Mark 14:32-50; Luke 22:39-53; John 18:1-14)
  2. Flogging (Matthew 27: 15-26; Mark 15:6-15; Luke 23:13-25; John 18:38-19:1)
  3. Public humiliation (Matthew 27:27-31; Mark 15:16-20; John 19:2-7)
  4. Walk to Golgotha (Matthew 27:32-44; Mark 15:21-32; Luke 23:26-43; John 19:16-27)
  5. Jesus' death (Matthew 27:45-55; Mark 15:33-41; Luke 23:44-49; John 19:28-37)
Glorious Mysteries:
  1. Resurrection (Matthew 28:1-10; Mark 16:1-8; Luke 24:1-12; John 20:1-18)
  2. Jesus' ascension to Heaven (Mark 16:19-20; Luke 24:50-53)
  3. Pentecost (Acts 2:1-13)
  4. Mary's trip to Heaven (no biblical reference)
  5. Mary's coronation as queen of heaven (Revelation 12:1-6?)
Luminous Mysteries:
  1. Jesus' baptism by John (Matthew 3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11; Luke 3:21-22; John 1:29-34)
  2. Wedding at Cana (John 2:1-11)
  3. Jesus' teaching (any and all of it seems fair game to me)
  4. Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-13; Mark 9:2-13; Luke 9:28-36)
  5. Eucharist (Matthew 26:26-29; Mark 14:22-25; Luke 22:14-20; John 13:12-38) [John actually begins with Jesus washing his disciples' feet (13:1) and continues through the end of chapter 17. In John's version, Jesus seems to have a lot to talk about during dinner.]

Joy, sorrow, glory, light. Traditionally, Friday commemorates the sorrow of Jesus' death on that day, and Sunday emphasizes the liturgical season (i.e., Joyful during Advent, Sorrowful during Lent). I tend to ignore the Joyful-for-Monday tradition, and instead simply meditate on whichever set appeals to me on any given day. If I need light, it makes sense to contemplate the Luminous Mysteries. If I feel dejected, I find solace in considering Jesus' hellish last days. Sometimes I want to affirm the glory of the risen Savior, or the joy surrounding his unusual birth. And sometimes I want to ponder the church year, choosing the set of Mysteries that best fits the liturgical season.

Praying the rosary improves with practice, but even when muddling through in the right order took most of my available brain space, this process brought me peace. The rosary continues to soothe my troubled soul.

Next we'll tackle the Mysteries one set at a time.
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2 comments:

  1. AnonymousFebruary 12, 2010 at 4:12 AM

    Thanks for this post. I don't think I have ever told you, but when I was younger I wanted to be a nun. It doesn't go very well when a little Methodist girl tells her Sunday School teacher she wants to be a nun when she grows up, and I decided that I couldn't be a nun because in the days before Internet, I couldn't find a book that would tell me what the Holy Mysteries were. I was too embarassed to ask a real live Catholic, even though many of my friends were Catholic (my elementary school even served fish sandwiches every Friday). I think it's interesting that as I have gotten older, I have incorporated elements into my contemplative thought that mirror praying the rosary or the the Orthodox prayer rope without really knowing what I was doing. Maybe this goes back to your idea about the communality of God. Maybe I could sense God in the fringes of my thought. Sometimes I think the cloud of witnesses/saints is so energetic we can feel their devotion and incorporate it into our own prayer lives in ways we aren't aware of. Anyway, thanks. Now maybe I can still be a nun since I know what the Holy Mysteries are.

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  2. MarshaFebruary 16, 2010 at 6:42 PM

    Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Lauren. 'Peace for a troubled soul' is always the goal...praying the Psalms helps me...also, though, I love to consider Isaiah 66:2
    ...there's SO much power & peace in the Word!

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