The Rosary is a Scripture-based prayer. It begins with the Apostles’ Creed, which summarizes the great mysteries of the Catholic faith, and is based around praying the Our Father that Jesus taught us as we hear in the Gospel. We then pray the Hail Mary, echoing the the angel’s words announcing Christ’s birth and Elizabeth’s greeting to Mary. The Mysteries of the Rosary centre on the events of Christ’s life. There are four sets of Mysteries: Joyful, Sorrowful, Glorious and––added by Saint John Paul II in 2002––the Luminous.
The repetition in the Rosary is meant to lead one into restful and contemplative prayer related to each Mystery. The gentle repetition of the words helps us to enter into the silence of our hearts, where Christ’s spirit dwells. The Rosary can be said privately or with a group.
Our group pray the Rosary on Tuesday and Fridays after the 9.30am Mass at Our Lady Help of Christians, Rickmansworth. We also pray the rosary together every Wednesday at 9am at St John the Evangelist Church, Mill End, for the particular intention of the families of our parishes. All are welcome to come and join us.