friendofJPII Posted July 26, 2008 Share Posted July 26, 2008 (edited) If we are not all called to pray the Rosary, then why was it given to St. Dominiic as a tool to fight heresy? Why has Mary herself asked us to pray it repeadly during her Church approved apparitions? I have an issue with it being called "just another devotion." Of course, a person is not required to pray it every day and Mary would never want to be seen as a source of division(which is why I don't press the issue with Protestant converts). But I think it is safe to say that the Rosary in some form should be apart of every mature Catholic's life. St. Therese prayed the Rosary (she fell asleep while praying it once, but she had difficulty in prayer overall--she went through a horrible dark night of the soul), but the difficulty she experienced in prayer made it all the more pleasing to God. Edited July 26, 2008 by friendofJPII Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MissyP89 Posted July 26, 2008 Share Posted July 26, 2008 Some people might not be called to it; like some are called to the priesthood or consecrated life, it's not a call that all receive. I'm not particularly devoted to the rosary, though I do love our Mother. "My" devotion is to the Divine Mercy. It was something that Jesus used very early on to bring me closer to Him. YMMV. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Selah Posted July 26, 2008 Share Posted July 26, 2008 I love the Divine Mercy Chaplet, but my favorite of all is the prayer to the Infant of Prague. I would agree with Missy. Some people may have a stronger devotions to different prayers. They are all very powerful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmjtina Posted July 26, 2008 Share Posted July 26, 2008 It is one of my devotions and I encourage everyone to take up the Rosary. However, it is not mandated. I've experienced ladies who have prayed the rosary their whole lives and they are still the mean, gossiping ladies they are now. It doesn't have to do with the rosary, but your personal walk with Christ. I think the important thing is that the Rosary is definitely a great tool to fight satan. But we can't forget that there is[i] more than one [/i]tool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
friendofJPII Posted July 26, 2008 Author Share Posted July 26, 2008 [quote name='MissyP89' post='1609401' date='Jul 26 2008, 05:57 PM']Some people might not be called to it; like some are called to the priesthood or consecrated life, it's not a call that all receive. I'm not particularly devoted to the rosary, though I do love our Mother. "My" devotion is to the Divine Mercy. It was something that Jesus used very early on to bring me closer to Him. YMMV.[/quote] A call to a vocation and a call to a specific prayer are two different things. I have a devotion to the Divine Mercy also. It's [i]very[/i] powerful, I can tell you stories! There are lots of devotions out there, and we can't pray them all, we may be drawn to one or the other. But given the Rosary's strong history in our Church, considering that we come to Jeus through Mary, I think it should have some place in every mature Catholic's life. I don't pray it every day either. I try to pray it nightly with the nuns on EWTN when I remember. I'm not sure how we can honor Our Lady without having some level of devotion to the Rosary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
friendofJPII Posted July 26, 2008 Author Share Posted July 26, 2008 (edited) [i]It doesn't have to do with the rosary, but your personal walk with Christ.[/i] I think if the Rosary is prayed in the right spirit it will enhance your personal walk with Christ. It hate to "rank" prayers but I think it is defiantly one of the most powerful. Edited July 26, 2008 by friendofJPII Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmjtina Posted July 26, 2008 Share Posted July 26, 2008 (edited) [quote name='friendofJPII' post='1609413' date='Jul 26 2008, 05:06 PM'][i]It doesn't have to do with the rosary, but your personal walk with Christ.[/i] I think if the Rosary is prayed in the right spirit it will enhance your personal walk with Christ. It hate to "rank" prayers but I think it is defiantly one of the most powerful.[/quote] no argument here. It's not required by the Church, but highly encouraged. I think promoting a love of the Rosary will appeal to most people versus "Every mature Catholic must do it". I agree with you to a certain extent, just not with the delivery. God Bless. Edited July 26, 2008 by jmjtina Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
friendofJPII Posted July 26, 2008 Author Share Posted July 26, 2008 [quote name='jmjtina' post='1609440' date='Jul 26 2008, 06:26 PM']no argument here. It's not required by the Church, but highly encouraged. I think promoting a love of the Rosary will appeal to most people versus "Every mature Catholic must do it". I agree with you to a certain extent, just not with the delivery. God Bless.[/quote] True, but do we pray because "we love to pray" or do we pray to grow closer to God? Many of the Saints experienced a horrid darkness when they felt an utter distate for prayer, even a hatred for holy things (read St Faustina's diary) but continued to pray with a sincere act of the will. It bothers me when people say they don't "like" the Rosary, because it is long. (we can always start with a decade)...or because they obsess about the meditation part and/or praying it perfectly...we can offer our distractions to God! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lil Red Posted July 26, 2008 Share Posted July 26, 2008 +J.M.J.+ the rosary, is it for everyone? yes, in that anyone can pick up the rosary and pray it (being very simple to pick up and yet full of depth). it took me a long time to like praying the rosary. (and just because someone doesn't like it doesn't mean that it is because it is long.) same with LOTH. but now i love and do both. but some people don't 'feel' it like others do. like i don't 'feel' really any of the Carmelite devotions because i 'feel' called to Dominican stuff () i guess it all depends on where the person is in their faith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lil Red Posted July 26, 2008 Share Posted July 26, 2008 [quote name='friendofJPII' post='1609413' date='Jul 26 2008, 05:06 PM'][i]It doesn't have to do with the rosary, but your personal walk with Christ.[/i] I think if the Rosary is prayed in the right spirit it will enhance your personal walk with Christ. It hate to "rank" prayers but I think it is defiantly one of the most powerful.[/quote] +J.M.J.+ like st colette said, i think it's at least third (after the Mass and the Liturgy of the Hours) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lilac_angel Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 (edited) The Promises of the Rosary given to St. Dominic along with it make it absolutely an irresistable prayer to me. I mean, wow. After knowing of the promises and believing they're true, I don't see how anyone would not want to pray the Rosary. But yes, it still may not be for everyone, and maybe every person does not spiritually "need" the Promises as much as others do. Edited July 27, 2008 by lilac_angel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lilac_angel Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 [quote name='Lil Red' post='1609472' date='Jul 26 2008, 06:58 PM']+J.M.J.+ the rosary, is it for everyone? yes, in that anyone can pick up the rosary and pray it (being very simple to pick up and yet full of depth). it took me a long time to like praying the rosary. (and just because someone doesn't like it doesn't mean that it is because it is long.) same with LOTH. but now i love and do both. but some people don't 'feel' it like others do. like i don't 'feel' really any of the Carmelite devotions because i 'feel' called to Dominican stuff () i guess it all depends on where the person is in their faith.[/quote] I do think that the more we devote ourselves to it, the more our heart becomes inclined to it. Even if we start out with no fervor at all, it increases as long as we perservere. What are the differences between Carmelite and Dominican devotions? Not sure what you mean here, as both Carmelites and Dominicans pray the Rosary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lil Red Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 [quote name='lilac_angel' post='1609488' date='Jul 26 2008, 06:18 PM']I do think that the more we devote ourselves to it, the more our heart becomes inclined to it. Even if we start out with no fervor at all, it increases as long as we perservere. What are the differences between Carmelite and Dominican devotions? Not sure what you mean here, as both Carmelites and Dominicans pray the Rosary.[/quote] +J.M.J.+ agreed with the perserverance thing. i didn't mean that the Carmelites and Dominicans don't pray the rosary, sorry for the confusion. it's funny though because every time i pick up a book on spirituality or praying or something, it's always by a Dominican but books with a Carmelite "flavor" i don't really feel attracted to. make more sense? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatherineM Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 There are times I just have to say the rosary to stay sane, and other times, that I become complacent, and it is better to not say it for a time rather than say it poorly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lilac_angel Posted July 27, 2008 Share Posted July 27, 2008 [quote name='Lil Red' post='1609502' date='Jul 26 2008, 07:27 PM']+J.M.J.+ agreed with the perserverance thing. i didn't mean that the Carmelites and Dominicans don't pray the rosary, sorry for the confusion. it's funny though because every time i pick up a book on spirituality or praying or something, it's always by a Dominican but books with a Carmelite "flavor" i don't really feel attracted to. make more sense?[/quote] Yup...I just need to look into the spiritual differences; I'm curious. I wonder which one I'm more drawn to. I wear a Scapular that includes the Carmelite Scapular, so I'd be interested in seeing if I'm actually drawn to Carmelite spirituality more or not Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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