In the early centuries of the Catholic Church, the 150 Psalms - frequently separated into groups of 50 and recited at different times of each day - were often prayed with pebbles or beads as counting devices to keep track of the number. The new Catechism says (2597): “Prayed and fulfilled in Christ, the Psalms are an essential and permanent element of the prayer of the Church. They are suitable for men of every condition and time.”

In medieval times, few people were educated enough to read the Latin of the Psalms, and copies were not readily available until after the invention of the printing press. To increase lay participation in the prayer life of the Church, there was a need for popular prayers which everyone knew by heart.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church also comments on this (2678): “Medieval piety in the West developed the prayer of the rosary as a popular substitute for ‘The Liturgy of the Hours.”’

The Dominican Order continues to be identified with promotion of the rosary devotion, which it traces to its founder, St. Dominic, who is said to have used it to preach against the Albigensian heresy around 1200 A.D. St. Louis de Monfort wrote “The Secret of the Rosary” about 1700 A.D. and described the rosary much as we know it today. He also stressed that the rosary is made up of two essential elements, meditation or mental prayer, and simultaneous saying of the Our Father’s, Hail Mary’s, and the other specified prayers. The Catechism, under the heading “Meditation,” adds this (2708): “Christian prayer tries above all to meditate on the mysteries of Christ, as in ‘Lectio Divina’ or the rosary.”

Virtually all of the Popes of the last hundred years or so have promoted the rosary. Pope Leo XIII issued 12 encyclicals on it. Pope Pius XII recommended the daily rosary, especially prayed in the family. Pope John XXIII and Pope Paul VI inspired and led the Second Vatican Council, and both strongly encouraged the praying of the rosary. And Pope John Paul II, whose motto, “Totus Tuus,” reflects his total confidence in Mary, calls the rosary his favorite prayer. This motto is transposed from a Latin prayer composed by St. Louis de Montfort: “I belong to you entirely, and all that I possess is yours, Virgin blessed above all.”

The rosary, although just a few hundred years old, uses prayers which go back to the beginnings of the Church founded by Jesus Christ. The Apostles Creed and the Our Father are two of the four pillars of the new Catechism. The first two sentences of the Hail Mary are scriptural, and the third dates from the Council of Ephesus in 431. Likewise, the “Glory be to the Father, to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit” is from the New Testament. The crucifix is a silent but compelling reminder of the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus recorded in the New Testament and preached long ago by the Apostles and down through the centuries by the saints.

When the Blessed Mother appeared to the children at Fatima in 1917, she acknowledged herself to be “The Lady of the Rosary,” and urged every one to pray the rosary daily in reparation for the sins of the world. According to the reference on the chart, “Marian Apparitions of the Twentieth Century,” there have been more than 300 appearances of Mary recorded in the 20th Century. On the chart, ten of them are marked beginning with Fatima and continuing to the present day. Her messages consistently seek to bring us closer to her Son by the fervent praying of the rosary.

Since the mysteries of the rosary cover the key events in the life of Jesus Christ, the rosary is “christocentric,” as is the new Catechism. That is why Mary always urges us to pray the daily rosary because she always wants to bring us to Her Son for our eventual sanctification.

Praying the rosary daily, in these times, has come to mean praying five of the twenty mysteries each day, usually the Joyful Mysteries on Monday and Saturday; the Sorrowful Mysteries on Tuesday and Friday; the Glorious Mysteries on Wednesday and Sunday; and the Luminous Mysteries on Thursday;

Far from simply a mechanical repetition of the words of its prayers, meditation on the mysteries of the rosary teaches the truths of religion - that God has made us for happiness, as we obey His will; that sin is the path to sorrow, pain, and unhappiness; that our lives have a purpose, to reach the glories of heaven; that holiness leading to sanctification is for everyone, and is within the reach of all of us.

The rosary seems especially well adapted to modern life. It is, of course, best said before the tabernacle in a church, or in a quiet, private place at home, but it actually can be said virtually any place - such as on a commuter train, relaxing after lunch, in an automobile while waiting for someone, etc. It's harder to meditate in busy, noisy surroundings, yet Mother Teresa (who obviously had the rosary habit) always seemed to have a rosary in her hands even in these circumstances.

The common excuse - "I don't have time" - really won't stand the test of common sense. The 24 hr/day Catholic broadcasting station, EWTN, has a program every day where 5 decades of the rosary are said, with a video shown of the locale in the Holy Land where the events of each mystery occurred.

It's a great aid for a meditated daily rosary - and it takes just 15 minutes! About 1 percent of a 24 hour day!

The symbol of the fish was the sign of a Christian during the first centuries of persecution of the Church, and it is still seen displayed as a proud identification of a modern follower of Christ. The rosary today is the sign of a Catholic - a prayer designed by the Holy Trinity, one God, and centered on Christ our Saviour in prayerful reflection with His Holy Mother. Whenever Catholics are seen praying the rosary, there is no mistaking who and what they are.

The rosary beads lends itself well to promotion of the praying of the rosary in these times. The volunteers working with Our Lady's Rosary Crusade often find themselves putting extra rosaries into pockets or purses, to be always readily available. Because they are inexpensive and thus more likely to be accessible around the home or other living quarters, or when "on the go" - they tend to be more of a reminder to pray than is the single personal rosary most Catholics have. However, some of us have the means to purchase more beautiful rosary beads, from the large selections available in many stores featuring religious goods, and choose to buy them as a special sign of our veneration of Mary as the Queen of Heaven.