How To Pray the Rosary

Learn How to Pray the Rosary in this Step by Step Guide

​The rosary is prayed by reflecting on the life of Christ from His birth to His resurrection.

Four sets of Mysteries (Joyful, Luminous, Sorrowful and Glorious) are prayed on a specific day of the week. Each Mystery set contains five individual life events also referred to as individual mysteries, creating the rosary’s format.

This prayer map uses: 

The Joyful Mystery Set​

  • The Annunciation
  • The Visitation
  • The Birth of Our Lord
  • The Presentation
  • The Finding in the Temple​

When learning how to pray the rosary, you begin ​by stating your prayer intentions and state the specific Mystery set.

How To Pray The Rosary
First Rosary Step includes the Apostles' Creed
  • Hold the crucifix of the Rosary.
  • Make the sign of the Cross.
Listen to the words
  • Offer up your intention.
    • Ask the Lord for what you need or for the needs of others. Many people pray to find a job, to heal the sick, for peace, for love.
  • On the crucifix, pray the Apostles’ Creed.
Listen to the Apostles’ Creed
Holding the Crucifix on the Rosary, Say the Apostles' Creed

Click Here for the Apostles' Creed Prayer 


First Our Father Bead
  • The bead above the crucifix is called the Our Father bead.
  • Hold the bead and pray the Our Father Prayer.
Listen to the Our Father Prayer
2nd step in Praying the Rosary The First Our Father Bead

Click Here for the Our Father Prayer


Three Hail Marys
  • After the Our Father bead there are three beads, hold the first of these beads and say a Hail Mary.
  • Move up one more bead and say the second Hail Mary.
  • Move up one more bead and say a third Hail Mary.
Listen to the Hail Mary Prayer
Three Hail Marys

Click Here for Hail Mary Prayer


Glory Be
  • Hold the links after the Hail Mary bead and pray a Glory Be.
Listen to the Glory Be Prayer
Glory Be

Click Here for Glory Be Prayer


First Mystery and Our Father Bead
  • Hold the Our Father bead and announce the first mystery. Think about the first mystery, let it sink in and then pray an Our Father.
  • For Example: “The First Joyful Mystery, the Annunciation. Our Father, Who art....”
Listen to the Our Father Prayer
First mystery rosary

Click Here for the Our Father Prayer


Ten Hail Marys
  • Move to the first decade of beads found to the right of the centerpiece. On each of the ten beads that follow, pray a Hail Mary while reflecting upon the mystery assigned to this decade (for the Joyful Mysteries, the first decade is a reflection on the Annunciation).
Listen to the Hail Mary Prayer
Ten Hail Marys

Click Here for Hail Mary Prayer


Glory Be & Fatima
  • Hold the link after the Hail Mary bead and pray a Glory Be.
Listen to the Glory Be Prayer
  • Then say the Fatima Prayer.
Listen to the Fatima Prayer
  • For each of the remaining four decades you are going to repeat the steps for the Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be, and the Fatima prayers as you work your way to the end of the rosary.
Fatima Prayer

SEE STEPS

Repeat Rosary Steps 5 6 7

Click Here for Glory Be Prayer

Click Here for Fatima Prayer


Hail Holy Queen
  • Completing the 5th decade, hold the medal (or centerpiece) and pray the Hail, Holy Queen.
Listen to the Hail Holy Queen Prayer
Completing the 5th decade, hold the medal (or centerpiece) and pray the Hail, Holy Queen.

Click Here for Hail, Holy Queen (The Salve Regina) Prayer

Mysteries

The Joyful Mysteries

​(The events in the birth of Christ)

​Monday, Saturday and Sundays of Advent

1st Mystery - The Annunciation - (Luke 1:26-38)

2nd Mystery - The Visitation - (Luke 1:39-56)

3rd Mystery - The Birth of Our Lord - (Luke 2:1-21)

4th Mystery - The Presentation - (Luke 2:22-38)

5th Mystery - The Finding in the Temple - (Luke 2:41-52)

The Sorrowful Mysteries

(The events surrounding Christ’s Death)

Tuesday, Friday and Sundays of Lent

1st Mystery - The Agony in the Garden - (Matt. 26:36-56)

2nd Mystery - The Scourging at the Pillar - (Matt. 27:26)

3rd Mystery - The Crowning with Thorns - (Matt. 27:27-31)

4th Mystery - The Carrying of the Cross - (Matt. 27:32)

5th Mystery - The Crucifixion - (Matt. 27:33-56)

The Glorious Mysteries

(The events surrounding Christ’s resurrection)

Wednesday and Sunday outside of Advent & Lent

1st Mystery - The Resurrection - (John 20:1-29)

2nd Mystery - The Ascension - (Luke 24:36-53)

3rd Mystery - The Descent of the Holy Ghost - (Acts 2:1-41)

4th Mystery - The Assumption of Our Lady

5th Mystery - The Coronation of Our Lady

The Luminous Mysteries

(The major events in the life of Christ)

Thursday

1st Mystery - The Baptism in the river Jordan - (Matt. 3:17)

2nd Mystery - The Wedding at Cana - (John 2:1-12)

3rd Mystery - The Proclamation of the Kingdom of God - (Mark 1:15)

4th Mystery - The Transfiguration - (Luke 9:29)

5th Mystery - The Institution of the Eucharist - (John 13:1)

  • Victor says:

    Thanks for the rosary guide.

  • Robert Thaler says:

    Since Mary “invented” the rosary , she would have put in the luminus mysteries if required. Only an anti pope would infiltrate this holy and historic sacramental, called Rosary.

    The original Fatima prayer after each Our Father is, ” O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell , have pity on the souls in purgatory especially the most deserted.”

    There will continue to be attacks on our sacred true faith and doctrine. It all happened after the Third Secret warning of Fatima that was commanded to be revealed by 1960 and was shelved intead by Vatican???

    Today there is an attack on the centuries old “Our Father” prayer by the Vatican??

    What next

    The younger people can be somewhat excused but us older folks know and witnessed the great Catholic revolution after the ’60s that left the true Church devastated with new doctrine.

  • Michelle says:

    Thank you, you have made it so simple. I teach catechism and would really like to be able to download this for my class.

  • Humberto Bucheli says:

    The americans catholics don’t pray the Lethany?

  • Elizabeth says:

    Thank you ??

  • Mary says:

    Do you have this in Spanish?


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