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There is a deep and lengthy history
related to the Rosary and if you have not had a
chance to hear it, please allow us to provide
some links and information on the subject.
A Brief History of the Rosary
It is usually suggested that the rosary began as
a practice by the laity to imitate the monastic
Office (Breviary or Liturgy of the Hours), by
which monks prayed the 150 Psalms. The laity,
many of whom could not read, substituted 50 or
150 Ave Marias for the Psalms. Sometimes a cord
with counters on it was used to keep an accurate
count.
The first clear historical reference to the
rosary, however, is from the life of St. Dominic
(+1221), the founder of the Order of Preachers
or Dominicans. He preached a form of the rosary
in France at the time that the Albigensian
heresy was devastating the faith there.
Tradition has it that the Blessed Mother herself
asked for the practice as an antidote for heresy
and sin.
One of Dominic's future disciples, Alain de
Roche, began to establish Rosary Confraternities
to promote the praying of the rosary. The form
of the rosary we have today is believed to date
from his time. Over the centuries the saints and
popes have highly recommended the rosary, the
greatest prayer in the Church after the Mass and
Liturgy of the Hours. Not surprisingly, it's
most active promoters have been Dominicans.
Rosary means a crown of roses, a spiritual
bouquet given to the Blessed Mother. It is
sometimes called the Dominican Rosary, to
distinguish it from other rosary-like prayers
(e.g. Franciscan Rosary of the Seven Joys,
Servite Rosary of the Seven Sorrows). It is
also, in a general sense, a form of chaplet or
corona (also referring to a crown), of which
there are many varieties in the Church. Finally,
in English it has been called "Our Lady's
Psalter" or "the beads." This last derives from
an Old English word for prayers (bede) and to
request (biddan or bid). OTHER RESOURCES
History of the Rosary
http://www.theotokos.org.uk/pages/fatima/rosary.html
Catholic Encyclopedia - The Rosary
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/13184b.htm |
