How to Pray the Rosary
The rosary is a way of praying with Mary while thinking about the life of Jesus. It takes about twenty minutes. You do not need beads: the rosary on this site counts for you.
- On the crucifix, make the Sign of the Cross and pray the Apostles' Creed.
- On the first large bead, pray the Our Father.
- On the three small beads, pray three Hail Marys, for an increase of faith, hope and charity. Then pray the Glory Be.
- On the next large bead, announce the first mystery (for example, "The first Joyful Mystery, the Annunciation"). Take a moment to picture it, then pray the Our Father.
- On the ten small beads that follow, pray ten Hail Marys while thinking about the mystery. This is one decade.
- After the tenth bead, pray the Glory Be, and many people add the O my Jesus. On the next large bead, announce the next mystery and pray the Our Father. Repeat steps 5 and 6 for all five decades, going around the loop.
- At the medal, after the fifth decade, pray the Hail, Holy Queen and the closing prayer, and finish with the Sign of the Cross.
Which mysteries today?
Monday and Saturday: Joyful. Tuesday and Friday: Sorrowful. Wednesday and Sunday: Glorious. Thursday: Luminous. The home page always opens on today's mysteries.
Short on time?
A single decade is a lovely prayer on its own: an Our Father, ten Hail Marys and a Glory Be. On each set of mysteries here you can tap 1 decade beside any mystery to pray just that one.
Praying with others
In Ireland the rosary is often said together, at home, at a wake, or before Mass. One person leads the first half of each prayer and everyone answers with the second half. On this site the answering half is shown in gold, so the phone can be passed to whoever is leading.
A few tips
- Do not worry about distractions. Gently come back to the mystery and keep going.
- Before you start, you can offer the rosary for a particular intention, a person, or someone who has died.
- It is fine to pray slowly. The rosary is meant to be restful.