The Holy Rosary

Sacred Heart of Mary

Pray the Rosary Every Day

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THE JOYFUL MYSTERIES



           The Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary are contemplated on Monday and Saturday. In order, the mysteries are the Annunciation, the Visitation, the Nativity, the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple, and the Finding in the Temple.

           Let us look at each mystery, it's origin, and what we can learn from it. In each case the mystery will be stated, the related Scripture quoted, and some suggestions made on what we can contemplate.



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The Annunciation


           In the "Hail Mary" we repeat the words, "Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with you." Mary was just a young woman when she heard these words from the Angel Gabriel before he told her what God was asking of her.



"Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end. But Mary said to the angel, 'How can this be, since I have no relations with a man?' And the angel said to her in reply, 'The holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God."

Luke 1:31-35 NAB


          Imagine being told such a thing by an angel! Contemplating this mystery we should try to imagine what Mary thought.

Faith

Do I believe that God actually did this? Do I have a committed faith or one that goes through motions?

Availability

Mary made herself available to God in a way that will never be asked of us. How willing are we to be available to if He calls us.

Obedience

Are we ready to do anything God requires of us, no matter how difficult?

Humility

Mary was told by an angel that she was highly favored, yet she showed humility. How humble are we?



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The Visitation


           Mary visited her relative, Elizabeth, who was also expecting a child under miraculous circumstances.



During those days Mary set out and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of Judah, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heart Mary's greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, "Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled."

Luke 1:39-45 NAB


           In these two women we see models of faith.

Faith

Elizabeth had not seen the angel Gabriel, but she believed his message. We have not seen the angel. Do we believe?

Hospitality

Elizabeth took Mary in when she came to stay with her. Do we take people in or worry about the dust?

Service

Mary served Elizabeth in her need as she herself was with child



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The Nativity


           Mary gave birth to her son, who was also the Son of the Most High God. In addition to Mary and the Child, Joseph was also at this miraculous birth.



In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that the whole world should be enrolled. This was the first enrollment, when Quirinius was governor of Syria. So all went to be enrolled, each to his own town. And Joseph too went up from Galilee from the town of Nazareth to Judea, to the city of David that is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, to be enrolled with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. While they were there, the time came for her to have her child, and she gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them at the inn.

Luke 2:1-7 NAB


           It is really too much for our minds to comprehend that our God would become one of us. He did this that day in Bethlehem. He came to teach us and to sacrifice Himself for us.

Faith

When we think of the Nativity do we really believe that baby was the awaited Messiah?

Humility

When pride overtakes us do we remember that God allowed Himself to be born in a lowly stable?

Trust

Mary and Joseph had to trust God in order to go to Bethlehem under dangerous circumstances. How much to we trust God?

Motherhood

When Mary gave birth to our redeemer she became our spiritual mother. Do we love her and ask her to intercede for us in prayer?

Balance

Many love Mary with a deep love and are devoted to her. But do you find yourself praying to Mary more often than to God? Do you find yourself asking her to do things she cannot do? While the Church says we are to be devoted to Mary we are to always keep in mind that Mary points us to her son. Do our non-Catholic friends accuse us of worshipping Mary? What can we do or say to let them know we do not?



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The Presentation


           The law of Moses stated that male babies were to be consecrated to the Lord. Mary and Joseph did not bypass that law because their child was the Son of God.



When the days were completed for their purification according to the law of Moses, they took him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord, just as it is written in the law of the Lord, "Every male that opens the womb shall be consecrated to the Lord," and to offer the sacrifice of a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons," in accordance with the dictate in the law of the Lord.

Luke 2:22-24 NAB


           Mary and Joseph were obedient to the Law of Moses and took Jesus to the temple.

Humility

Even though Mary and Joseph were parenting the Son of God they carried out the Law of Moses. Do we ever think we are too important to do what God asks?

Faith

When Mary and Joseph went into the temple there was a man named Simeon who had received a promise from the Holy Spirit that he would see the Messiah. Simeon trusted God that what He promised would come about. Do we trust God?



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The Finding in the Temple


           Mary and Joseph went to Jerusalem each year for the feast of the Passover. It was the custom that large groups, especially family groups, traveled together. While the Bible does not say it, we can draw a safe conclusion that Jesus was with the crowd before they departed. It is not at all logical to believe they packed up to leave, gathered with the travelers, began the journey, and suddenly remembered their only child was not with them. Scripture does tell us Mary and Joseph returned to Jerusalem to search for their missing twelve year old son.

           While we cannot know the reason Jesus was left in Jerusalem we can see a likely scenario. He may have been with the family as they gathered to leave and wandered off. We do not know if other young men his age were also missing. It is possible he was with others but was the only one who went to the Temple. If the family was gathering and all the young people were together it is easy to see how parents would believe their children were with them.



After three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions, and all who heard him were astounded at his understanding and his answers. When his parents saw him, they were astonished, and his mother said to him, "Son, why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been looking for you with great anxiety." And he said to them, "Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?"

Luke 2:44-49 NAB


           When Mary and Joseph arrived in Jerusalem they searched for Jesus and found him in the Temple. Asking him why he worried them he replied in a way that demonstrated he knew God was his Father.

Relationships

Jesus considered the temple His Father's house and wanted to be there. Do you see church as God's house and do you wish to be there?

Vocations

What Jesus did in leaving his parents and going to the temple reflects what many young people do today. Are you willing to accept a child's vocation and happily entrust him or her to the Lord's care?

Trust

Our lives are full of anxious times. Can we trust that God will always be there when we need Him and that we will still find Jesus in the temple? He is in the tabernacles of our churches right now.



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Mysteries of the Rosary

Glorious Mysteries

Luminous Mysteries

Sorrowful Mysteries



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That They May Be One

The Rosary

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last updated 1/15/08