To recite the rosary well is above all to recite it with your heart! Saint Louis Marie Grignion de Montfort and Saint John Paul II give us three tips to fully experience this time of prayer. (If you are new to the prayer of the rosary, find other tips for regular practice of this beautiful Marian prayer!)
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The author of the book “The Admirable Secret of the Most Holy Rosary” left us 2 tips about the prayer of the rosary. The first is to associate this prayer with an intention.
"The first common mistake is to have no intention of saying the Rosary, so that if you asked them why they say the Rosary, they would not be able to answer you. Therefore, always have in mind, while reciting your Rosary, a few graces to ask for, a virtue to imitate, or a sin to destroy." (Saint Louis Marie Grignion de Montfort)
This intention can be personal, but it can also simply be associated with the fruit of the mystery meditated on. We can then formulate this intention just before we begin the decade with these words: “We offer you, Lord Jesus, this decade, in honor of (quote the mystery), and we ask you, through this mystery and through the intercession of your most holy mother, the grace of (quote the fruit of the mystery)”.
The second piece of advice that this great saint, devoted to Mary, gives us is to take your time during this recitation. Like any prayer recited, the temptation may be to rehash the words without being fully present at the prayer. Since a complete rosary takes a little time (about twenty minutes for a rosary), we may also be tempted to say it quickly when we think we are short of time. To avoid the pitfall of haste that hinders meditation, Saint Louis Marie suggests a rhythm to be respected in the prayers of the Rosary.
“Cease, dear Rosary colleague, your natural haste, while reciting your Rosary, and take a few pauses in the middle of the Our Father and the Hail Mary, and a smaller one after the words of the Our Father and the Hail Mary” (marked here with an asterisk):
Our Father
Our Father who art in heaven, *
hallowed be thy name,*
thy kingdom come,*
thy will be done *
on earth as it is in heaven.* Give us this day*
our daily bread.*
Forgive us our trespasses,*
as we forgive those who trespass against us.*
And lead us not into temptation,*
but deliver us from evil. Amen. *
Hail Mary, full of grace,*
The Lord is with you,*
Blessed are you among women,*
And blessed is Jesus, the fruit of your womb.*
Holy Mary, Mother of God,*
Pray for us, poor sinners, now,*
and at the hour of our death. Amen.*
And let us not forget that if time is short, it is better to recite a decade fervently than to hastily say a rosary.
“At first, you will struggle to say these meditations, due to the bad habit of praying in a hurry; but also, a dozen said calmly will be more meritorious than thousands of Rosaries recited hastily, without reflecting or stopping. “(Saint Louis Marie Grignion de Montfort)
In his apostolic letter “Rosarium Virginis Mariae”, Pope John Paul II gives us a piece of advice that complements that of Saint Louis-Marie: take your time in prayer, in recitation but also between prayers by integrating times of silence.
This silence is an invitation to listen. Indeed, prayer is a place of exchange and meeting between God and the praying person. The prayer of the rosary is a meditative prayer. Silence has its place.
“Listening and meditation are nourished by silence. After the enunciation of the mystery and the proclamation of the Word, it is appropriate to pause for a significant time to contemplate the mystery meditated upon before beginning vocal prayer. Rediscovering the value of silence is one of the secrets of the practice of contemplation and meditation. In a society heavily marked by technology and media, it remains that silence is becoming increasingly difficult. Just as moments of silence are recommended in liturgy, so too, after listening to the Word of God, a brief pause is appropriate in the recitation of the Rosary, while the mind focuses on the content of a specific mystery.” (Saint John Paul II)
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