Some years ago, a priest came to our parish, St. John of the Cross. We were having some prayer service, and we were saying the rosary. He would say a brief meditation before each Hail Mary bead and then he would say the Hail Mary. This lasted a few decades and was the seed that the Lord planted in my mind. Little did I know it would come to fruition in this book of meditation on the holy rosary the Holy Spirit was inspiring me to write. Unlike the other meditations that were placed before each decade and by the time one has said half of the decade, the idea of the meditation was forgotten. This, on the other hand, was constantly being read to keep focused on that particular decade being prayed.
So how is the story of the rosary being recalled? By the keeping in mind each division as it in turn presents itself. These divisions being: Joyful, Illuminous, Sorrowful, and Glorious. By keeping all these in mind, we are bringing to mind how all of this happened for our salvation.
By having the meditation before each Hail Mary, the whole picture of that decade is being constantly built up until the decade is completed. This tends to keep one's mind on his prayers and not to wander aimlessly.
Thus, the whole story of our redemption is set before the one praying the rosary. This all started with the Redeemer, promised in the garden of Eden, and whose coming was kept alive all through the Old Testament, finally came to our world in the womb of the Virgin; thus, the Joyful Mysteries. It describes his living among us in the little house of Nazareth. It does not give all the details of his early life in helping his foster father, Joseph, in the carpenter shop. We wonder if he performed any acts of wonder when he played with his little playmates.
He comes to focus again when he starts his ministry of our salvation: the Illuminous Mysteries. He goes to where John is baptizing at the River Jordan. Here the blessed Trinity is first exposed to the world and the story goes all through the Mysteries of Light which culminates at the last supper where he offers his life in the form of bread and wine for his people and then lays it down on the cross for all the world to see.
In the Sorrowful Mysteries, we see this was the second chance for the sons of Adam to partake of the fruit from the tree of life, and a reminder that Adam and Eve neglected this fruit in the garden of Eden and chose instead to eat the fruit from the tree of evil or death. Thus, did Jesus go through all the torments of his passion culminating in his death on the tree of the cross for the life of us all.
Next, the Glorious Mysteries tell of our Redeemer's victory over death and to lead his people, the Church which is his bride, to be with him forever. He and his mother, Mary, preceded us into the kingdom of Heaven to live the life he earned for his body the Church forever.
This is the story of our salvation. It started back in the Old Testament, kept alive all through those times until he came "to do the will of him who sent him." This is the glorious story of our redemption. It is placed before us every time we "tell" our beads. That's what telling our beads really means. Remember this the next time you pray your rosary. Heaven is watching you.
