Mysteries of the Rosary

Mysteries of the Rosary

The Rosary is a marvellous prayer. Marvellous in its simplicity and its depth. It can be said that the Rosary is a prayer commentary on the presence of the Mother of God in the mystery of Christ and the Church. The principal events of the life of Jesus and Mary take shape in a complete series of Joyful, Sorrowful and Glorious and Luminous Mysteries.

The Rosary has grown in the life of the Church in the second millennium under the guidance of the Spirit of God. It is a prayer loved by countless saints, encouraged by the Magisterium, and at the dawn of this third millennium is a prayer of great significance destined to bring forth a harvest of holiness.

On 16th October 2002, Pope John Paul II wrote a letter to the whole Church about the value of the Rosary in which he unfolded the new Mysteries of Light, wanting to place the 25th year of His pontificate and this specific year in the life of the Church under the protection of Mary, the Mother of God. In the year following, Pope John Paul II proclaimed the year 2003 as the "Year of the Rosary".

The Rosary is of great importance to many of those who visit Ta Pinu Marian Centre. Visitors already have the opportunity to pray the Holy Rosary, as its recited in an array of languages, at all events held at Ta Pinu Marian Centre. However, in recognising the significance and the value of the Holy Rosary, it was decided that a Way of the Rosary will be constructed at Ta Pinu Marian Centre, depicting the Mysteries of the Rosary.

The Way of the Rosary consists of five monuments. Each monument houses four plaques. Each plaque illustrates a Mystery of the Rosary. The first monument houses the first of the four different Mysteries of the Rosary, the Second monument houses the second of the four different Mysteries, and so on. These Mysteries are explained and illustrated below.

On 26th October 2003, the Most Reverend Denis Hart, Archbishop of Melbourne, officially opened the Way of the Rosary and blessed the twenty plaques, representing the twenty Mysteries of the Holy Rosary. The plaques were commissioned and created in Gozo, Malta, by Frank Cassar, a local artist.

The five monuments and the twenty Mysteries of the Rosary

First Monument

1st Joyful Mystery	*1st Luminous Mystery*	*1st Sorrowful Mystery*	*1st Glorious Mystery*

*The Annunciation*	*The Baptism of Our Lord*	*The Agony in the Garden*	*The Resurrection of Our Lord*

Second Monument

*2nd* Joyful Mystery	*2nd Luminous Mystery*	*2nd Sorrowful Mystery*	*2nd Glorious Mystery*

*The Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth*	*The Wedding at Cana*	*The Scourging at the Pillar*	*The Ascension of Our Lord*

Third Monument

*3rd* Joyful Mystery	*3rd Luminous Mystery*	*3rd Sorrowful Mystery*	*3rd Glorious Mystery*

*The Birth of Our Lord*	*The Proclamation of the Kingdom*	*The Crowning with Thorns*	*The Descent of the Holy Spirit*

Fourth Monument

*4th* Joyful Mystery	*4th Luminous Mystery*	*4th Sorrowful Mystery*	*4th Glorious Mystery*

*The Presentation of Our Lord*	*The Transfiguration of Our Lord*	*The Carrying of the Cross*	*The Assumption of Mary into Heaven*

Fifth Monument

*5th* Joyful Mystery	*5th Luminous Mystery*	*5th Sorrowful Mystery*	*5th Glorious Mystery*

*The Finding of the Child Jesus in the Temple*	*The Last Supper*	*The Crucifixion of Our Lord*	*The Crowning of Mary as Queen of Heaven*

How to recite the Holy Rosary

The Apostles' Creed is said on the Crucifix; the Our Father is said on each of the Large Beads; the Hail Mary on each of the Small Beads; the Glory be to the Father after the three Hail Marys at the beginning of the Rosary, and after each group of Small Beads.

The Family Rosary

"The family that prays together . . . stays together"

The Family Rosary is the Rosary recited aloud together, by as many of the family and their friends as can be present, or even by only two. Any family may say the Family Rosary in any suitable place and at any time. A leader says aloud the first part of each prayer; a second person or group of persons answers aloud the second part of the prayer. To begin the Family Rosary, all hold the Crucifix of their Rosary in the right hand and make the Sign of the Cross. The leader begins the Apostles' Creed and proceeds to say the Our Father on the large beads and the Hail Mary on the small beads. The leader announces the Mystery before each decade. Five decades should be recited each day.

This page was last updated in January 2008