WDTPRS POLL: How do you pray the Rosary?

NB: Don’t forget the Spiritual Bouquet (you can participate daily) for Pope Benedict!

The Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary is prayed according to different methods in different parts of the world.  For example, in Italy it will usually include a litany at the end.  In Germany you will sometimes hear a line about the mystery being prayed interjected into the Hail Mary.

And… to my point… in the English speaking world you will not rarely hear after the Gloria following each decade the addition of a little prayer associated with Fatima:

“O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, lead all souls to Heaven, especially those in most need of Thy mercy. Amen.”

However, not everyone adds this.  I, for example, do not.

What I am curious about is… do you add the Fatima prayer when you say the Rosary?   This may be in individual or public recitation.

It may be that you do it own way when alone or with one group, and another in other instances.

Just pick then which you prefer.

Please make a choice and add your comment to the combox, below.

When I pray the Rosary, after each decade ...

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135 Comments

  1. archambt says:

    I voted no. I don’t mind that other folks say it, and in public recitation I might be moved to say it occasionally, but I don’t live or die by having it in my recitation. I learned the Rosary without the prayer, and I find (for myself) that it distracts from the mysteries I am contemplating.

    But then, I may be atypical, because I often don’t do litanies, chaplets, or (very rarely) novenas.

  2. moon1234 says:

    I could never figure out why people did NOT say this prayer. I have been saying it since I was a child. (I am now 33).

    Sort of like asking why the leonine prayers were not said at some places. Boggles the mind.

  3. eucharisted says:

    I don’t usually pray the Rosary, but when I do I pray the Fatima Decade Prayer.

    Rosary site I made: http://blessedrosary.webs.com/

  4. Kat says:

    I learned to pray the Rosary in college from a prayer group led by some Chileans with the Schoenstatt movement, and this prayer was always tacked on. At this point it’s like saying “Amen” at the end of grace: I could probably stop doing it if I concentrated, but I like it so why try?

    As an addendum, I have prayed with groups that either don’t use the Fatima prayer but instead recite other prayers at various points during the Rosary (I think I recall the litany at the end once). It is a bit confusing when it happens, but it’s never troubled me at all.

  5. K. Marie says:

    I add the Fatima prayer because that is how I learned it as a child. I often use the Rosary app on my android phone and it has it on there as well.

  6. Supertradmum says:

    I say all three traditional set of meditations, with the Fatima prayers, the Hail Holy Queen and O God, by Your Only Begotten Son prayer (does it have a name), plus of course, all the Glory Bes….Also, I learned from the nuns to offer the first Our Father and first three Hail Marys after the Creed for the intentions of the Holy Father.

  7. PghCath says:

    I learned the Rosary without the Fatima Prayer. Yet the prayer book I currently use (I keep forgetting those Luminous Mysteries!) contains the prayer, and I have come to like it. Now I generally add it.

  8. asophist says:

    I recite the Fatima prayer after every Gloria in the rosary automatically, because, when I was growing up and gathering with the rest of the family sometime after dinner every evening to pray the rosary, that is how we prayed it. My mother always started, but then we rotated around the table, each leading a mystery. There were, finally, seven of us (including Mom and Dad), so not everybody got to lead a mystery every night. Often enough, my father didn’t participate much because he fell asleep (or feigned sleep – not sure which), though, for the nights when we recited a litany instead of the rosary, he seemed to be able to say “pray for us” in his sleep. What memories you brought back with your query, Fr Z! They are fond ones. We were a loving family, and for those of us still remaining on this earth, are loving still. I am so blessed that we have never had a squabble of any major proportions. It is true: The family that prays together stays together!

  9. Charivari Rob says:

    Generally use the Fatima prayer.

    Our Knights Council works with a small booklet (sorry, don’t have it handy, can’t remember the publisher, I’m sure there are many fine booklets like this). We usually start a meeting with five Mysteries. The booklet includes the Fatima prayer and a short introduction to each Mystery.

  10. Fr Matthew says:

    I spent the past 19 years praying the Rosary according to the method of my Congregation, the Legionaries of Christ, who do not use the Fatima prayer. Hence, I stopped doing it. Now that I am leaving the Legion there is no particular reason that I leave it out, except force of habit… Maybe I will start, because I like the prayer.

    I continue to pray the Litany of Loretto after the Rosary most days, which became part of my Rosary method at Madgalen College (the place where I learned to pray the Rosary every day) and is also part of the Legion’s tradition, so it is well ingrained in my habits, and I like it.

  11. ghp95134 says:

    In Latin, of course!

    “O mi Jesu, remitte nobis peccata nostra, libera nos ab igne inferni, conduc in caelum omnes animas, praesertim illas quae maxime indigent misericordia tua. Amen.”

    –Guy Power

  12. Charles E Flynn says:

    Charivari Rob,

    Are you thinking of the booklets titled “Through the Rosary With Fra Angelico” and “Through the Mysteries of Light with Giotto and Fra Angelico”?

    http://www.albahouse.org/Angelico.htm

  13. Henry Edwards says:

    In Germany you will sometimes hear a line about the mystery being prayed interjected into the Hail Mary.

    I’ve done this in every Hail Mary of every daily Rosary since October 2002 when I read the following paragraph in John Paul’s Rosarium Virginis Maria:

    The center of gravity in the Hail Mary, the hinge as it were, that joins its two parts, is the name of Jesus. Sometimes, in hurried recitation, this center of gravity can be overlooked, and with it the connection to the mystery of Christ being contemplated. Yet it is precisely the emphasis given to the name of Jesus and to His mystery that is the sign of a meaningful and fruitful recitation of the Rosary. Pope Paul VI drew attention, in his Apostolic Exhortation Marialis Cultus, to the custom in certain regions of highlighting the name of Christ by the addition of a clause referring to the mystery being contemplated. This is a praiseworthy custom, especially during public recitation. It gives forceful expression to our faith in Christ, directed to the different moments of the Redeemer’s life. It is at once a profession of faith and an aid in concentrating our meditation, since it facilitates the process of assimilation to the mystery of Christ inherent in the repetition of the Hail Mary.

    For instance, for a Hail Mary in the first glorious mystery:

    Hail Mary, . . . . . Jesus, who arose from the dead on the third day, fulfilling the prophets as He’d promised He would. Holy Mary, . . . . .

    Selecting and phrasing these clauses provides a tangible and concrete way to actually meditate on each mystery as you pray its ten Hail Mary’s. In this way, the oft-mentioned goal of a truly Christ-centered scriptural rosary can actually become a practical reality.

  14. jorgepreble says:

    I like to end the Rosary with the Litany of Loretto. And when I recite the Rosary alone I add “Maria Madre de gracia, Madre de misericordia, en la vida y en la muerte amparanos gran Señora.”

    Trans. Mary Mother of grace, Mother of mercy, help us great Lady.

  15. tonyballioni says:

    The Fatima Prayer is actually one of my favourite prayers in general. I often find myself praying it at random points of the day. I like it in the rosary because it always seems to help me refocus if I have started to drift off during a decade of Hail Marys.

  16. APX says:

    I haven’t prayed the rosary in about 18 years (the Rosary seems to have become obsolete for my age group), but I do recall praying the Fatima Prayer when I used to pray it as a little girl.

  17. DB1995 says:

    I pray the Rosary both with and without the Fatima prayer. I’m curious though about what others do in re the Luminous Mysteries. For about 3 or 4 years I tried praying them on Thursday’s per the JPII suggestion. However, I came to find that for me they disrupted the Joyful-Sorrowful-Glorious flow. While ackowledging the value of them, I became distracted by the disjointed Luminous-Sorrowful-Joyful-Glorious flow on Th-F-S-S. Did anyone else run into the same difficulty (it could have just been me) or come up with a simple work-around?

  18. Thomas S says:

    When I pray the Rosary, which is not regularly enough, I always use the “O My Jesus.” I frequently use the prayer more generally, too. I even pray a modified version of it when passing a cemetery, or Church when a hearse is out front.

    That being said, I never knew it had its origins in Fatima. Thanks for the new information!

  19. Lirioroja says:

    Unfortunately I rarely pray the rosary. When I do pray it I usually add the Fatima prayer because that’s how I learned it when I learned to pray it in English. I learned to pray the rosary first in Spanish from my mother during a time when she had a religious revival. (Alas, that was short-lived.) IIRC, she did not say the Fatima prayer so I was confused when I finally learned to say it in English. I lived in Canada briefly and belonged to the Charismatic Renewal at the time. When we would pray the rosary instead of the Fatima prayer we’d say a brief prayer to the Holy Sprit. I don’t remember it now. I also don’t know if that was peculiar to our community or if that is a more wide-spread practice.

    Also, depending on the group you’re praying with, there is a different way of ending the rosary. Many add the prayer to St. Michael the Archangel after the prayer that starts, “O God, Whose only begotten Son,…” Others will add an Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be for the intentions of the Holy Father. Some don’t pray that prayer that I quoted above. No one that I’ve recited the rosary with ends with this short little prayer that I end the rosary with:

    V. May the divine assistance remain always with us.
    R. And may the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.
    Amen.

  20. ray from mn says:

    I voted yes to the Fatima prayer, mostly because everybody around here seems to use it. And when I pray the Rosary alone, I make some other modifications to help keep my mind from wandering, a major problem I have had in the past.

    I pray the Rosary as a “scriptural rosary.” I use the traditional mysteries (and the new luminous mysteries). And I have assigned a detail of a mystery to each bead of the decade to keep me concentrating. These often change from time to time and I haven’t yet settled on 40 details from the Life of Jesus (and Mary). To me that doesn’t matter as long as I am meditating on their lives.

    After each decade, I pray a little prayer that I have made up and I couldn’t tell you why I did that. But I kind of like it: ” Jesus Christ died for me and for all so that our sins could be forgiven, so that we could access to Him in our lives on this earth and share with Him His everlasting life in Heaven.”

    And then, after I say the next mystery, I say the prayer from the Stations of the Cross: “We adore Thee O Christ and we praise Thee because by Thy Holy Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.”

    I most often change the “pray for us sinners”of the Hail Mary to “pray for me” when I pray by and for myself.

    It’s not perfect, but I like it. It takes a bit over 20 minutes, but my mind generally can stay concentrated on it. And to me that is critical.

  21. Dr. Sebastianna says:

    Every day I pray the rosary with a recording of St. Padre Pio saying it in Italian with other Capuchin friars. They pray the Fatima prayer, “O Gesu mio pardone le nostre colpe, preservaci… etc.” after each decade… At the end of the Rosary, after they say the Salve Regina, they pray 1 Our Father, 1 Hail Mary, and 1 Glory Be for the “intentions of the Holy Father for the Holy indulgence…” Then they pray the Divine Praises in Italian. There is something wonderful about praying the Rosary in this way and with Saint Padre Pio. (I ask him to pray it with me every time). It is the best part of my day.

    Blessings : )

  22. digdigby says:

    Is it not the most recent thing Our Lady taught us. How can I not?

  23. I pray the rosary with my husband every night. We include the Fatima prayer and also add a prayer for the holy souls in purgatory.
    And console the souls in purgatory, particularly those most abandoned. Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May the souls of the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace.

  24. Joe in Canada says:

    I voted yes. I learned it as “O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, lead all souls to Heaven, AND HELP especially those in most need of Thy mercy. Amen.” Most people whom I have heard pray it, though, pray it as you have printed, Father.
    Another interesting poll might be whether people say 15 decades or 20 (I don’t mean at once, I mean have they incorporated John Paul II’s Luminous mysteries. Another one might be which Stations of the Cross parishes use.

  25. gloriainexcelsis says:

    The prayer was given to the children of Fatima to be said after each decade. There is a reason for it, therefore I say it with my rosary every day and have for many years. At the traditional Latin rite churches I have attended, it is always added, whether by the lay person leading the rosary before Mass or other devotions, or the priest. I say at the end, whether alone, or with the groups, the Hail Holy Queen, the “O God, Whose only begotten Son, by His life, death and resurrection, has purchased for us the rewards of eternal salvation, grant, we beseech Thee, that by meditating on the mysteries of the most holy rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we may imitate what they contain and obtain what they promise, through the same Christ our Lord, Amen,” then the Memorare, an Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be for the intentions of the Holy Father, St. Michael’s prayer, “Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on us,” 3 times, and “O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.”

  26. Sliwka says:

    Always say it. When learning the Rosary, the sheet I printed off had it on. I figured it was always a part of the prayer.

  27. JARay says:

    My daily prayer starts with the the prayers of The Legion of Mary and that includes the Rosary. I do put in the Fatima prayer at the end of each decade. I may well try the sort of interpolation which Henry Edwards mentions above because I have the greatest difficulty of keeping my mind on what mystery of the rosary I am praying. My mind wanders so easily into events which are to come or events which are past and tasks which I need to do. I do not find praying the rosary an easy task and I often get cross with myself when I find how my mind has wandered.
    In contrast, when I move on to the Divine Office and I have a book in front of me with the antiphons and the psalms laid out before me, I find it much easier to keep my mind on the job of prayer.

  28. Stvsmith2009 says:

    I voted I usually or I prefer to add the Fatima Prayer. That is the way I as a convert learned to pray the Rosary. I might have been influenced to pray it that way, as I used a little free program t0 learn how to pray the Rosary called “Virtual Rosary”. I still have the program on my computer today and probably always will. It can be set to remind you to pray the Rosary at your computer startup each day, which is a big help for someone just coming into the Church. It can be download (free) at : http://www.virtualrosary.org/

    I almost forgot to mention that there are also different modules for the program that can be downloaded and used to change the language from the default English (or Latin, your choice) to Spanish, French, German, Hungarian, Polish, Italian, and Chinese. There are also different modules that enable you to use Saint Louis de Montfort Meditations, Carmelite Scriptural Mediatations, and more.

    They also have associated with the program something called “Prayer Cast” where you can add your prayer requests that will show on all the Virtual Rosary programs in use around the world. If you want to add a prayer request without download the program you can add it here: http://www.virtualrosary.org/postprayer.php

    As I said, it’s all free, and I try to alert people to it brcause it is a valuable aid, and one I still use, and probably always will.

  29. I also add the prayer, “Come Holy Spirit, come by means of the powerful intercession of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Your well beloved Spouse.”

    Sometimes I intentionally don’t add either of the prayers, when I just want to focus on the Rosary as meditation, but ordinarily I do.

  30. Philangelus says:

    At the end of each decade, I do the Fatima prayer and the St. Michael prayer. After the Hail Holy Queen, I add the Memorare.

    My rosary group for moms adds this prayer I don’t like but which I can’t remember in full right now and am unable to find with Google. They do the St. Michael prayer only once, at the end, and then do the Divine Praises as well.

  31. threej says:

    Wow. I’m kinda shocked.

    My rosary and I have gotten around– praying with different families, different parish groups, different rosary groups, etc. I mean, we’re talking thousands of different people I’ve prayed the rosary with. I have never, not once, heard an English rosary that did not use the Fatima prayer. I’m at a loss that this many people actually don’t use it. Not that there’s anything wrong with it, its just completely contrary to my experience.

  32. JKnott says:

    I pray the Fatima prayer .
    I also begin the first part of the Rosary; the Creed and three Aves with a conscience renewal of my baptismal vows and my OCDS promises while thanking God for the great grace of placing me in the Caholic Church; and it follows that the first three Aves traditonally ask for an increase of Faith, Hope, and Charity for myself and others.,which we all received at Baptism.
    Eucharisted: I like your Rosary website and the prayers that you have in Latin. Very nice

  33. Stephen says:

    I usually do not. Lately, however, I have been. Also, this is a very telling result when I saw it, 85% do.

  34. kallman says:

    In English I say it but not in Latin because I have not memorised the Fatima prayer in Latin. After the Salve Regina I finish with the Memorare, Sub Tuum, Oremus Pro Pontifice Nostro and Divinum auxilium maneat.

    No Luminous mysteria.

  35. Rob in Maine says:

    I pray my Rosary via an audio file / podcast. It includes the Fatima prayer.

  36. historyb says:

    Before I became Catholic I learned the Rosary without the Fatima prayer, I found out about it afterwords and now end the Rosary with that.

  37. Fr Martin Fox says:

    I always add the Fatima prayer; not only that, I still offer my Rosary for the conversion of Russia! Can’t hurt…

  38. profcarlos says:

    Although I pray the Rosary in Latin, I always pray the Fatima jaculatory in Portuguese, because that is how Our Lady gave it: “Ó meu Jesus, perdoai-nos, livrai-nos do fogo do Inferno, levai as almas todas para o Céu, principalmente as que mais precisarem”.

    Now for a WDTPRS moment: a slavishly literal translation of the jaculatory would go “O my Jesus, forgive us, deliver us from the fire of Hell, carry all the souls [in Purgatory] to Heaven, especially those who need more”. “As almas”, “the souls”, usualy refer to the souls in Purgatory, unless specified otherwise, and “levai” is the imperative form of the verb “levar”, “to bring, to carry with oneself”. It is rather stronger than “lead”. There is no mention of the Divine Mercy in the original form of the prayer, and the context implies that we are asking on behalf of the souls in Purgatory who need *more help*, *more prayers*, etc., i.e., the souls of the deceased who do not have people who will pray for them.

    Oh, BTW, another interesting tidbit English speakers may not know: Our Lady said “rezai diariamente o terço!”, “pray the terço every day”. “Terço” means “third”, as in 1/3: each set of 5 decades is a “third”. “Terço” is how regular (5-decades) rosary beads are called in Portuguese; only the big 15-decades ones are called “rosários”. She could have said “rezai o rosário” (15 decades), but she only asked for the 5-decades “terço”.

    One of the reasons I could never bring myself to pray the Luminous mysteries is that including another set of 5 decades would make mathematical fun of Our Lady: she did not say “pray the fourth every day”. :)

  39. biberin says:

    I pray the Franciscan Crown rosary, which does not use the Fatima prayer.

  40. thickmick says:

    I rock that prayer when I say the Rosary because it specifically mentions saving us from the fires of hell. I always envision it as kind of a “Bruce Lee Round House kick” to finish off Satan at the end of each decade. I wish I could say the Rosary every second of the day. I really feel close to the Blessed Mother when I say it. Hail Mary, etc…

  41. Legisperitus says:

    Is there an “officially” promulgated Latin version of the prayer? The only one I ever found was “Domine Jesu, dimitte nobis debita nostra, salva nos ab igne inferiori, perduc in caelum omnes animas, praesertim eas quae misericordia tua maxime indigent.”

  42. AnAmericanMother says:

    Added the Fatima Prayer after we converted to Catholicism (yes, many High Church Anglicans pray the Rosary. A few supposedly pray something odd called the “Anglican Rosary”, but I’ve never seen it actually used, only offered for sale in the (Episcopal) cathedral bookstore. Everyone I knew used the traditional Rosary.)

    Henry Edwards,
    Interesting that you should mention that. I first learned to pray the Rosary long ago in Germany (back in the 60s), and interjecting a phrase describing the Mystery was referred to by my friends as the “Bavarian Rosary”. Long before there was any thought of a Bavarian Pope, of course . . . .

    For example, I learned the Joyful Mysteries as follows:
    ” . . . whom the Angel Gabriel announced to thee, O Virgin . . . ”
    ” . . . whom thou, O Virgin, brought with thee to Elizabeth . . . ”
    ” . . . whom thou, O Virgin, brought forth in Bethlehem, under the protection of St. Joseph . . . ”
    ” . . . whom thou, O Virgin, and St. Joseph presented in the Temple . . . ”
    ” . . . whom thou, O Virgin, and St. Joseph found teaching in the Temple . . . ”

    I do find it helpful to repeat the Mystery, to keep in on my mind so to speak.

  43. albinus1 says:

    Thr “Oh God, whose only-begotten Son” prayer said after the Hail, Holy Queen is also the Collect for the Feast of the Holy Rosary.

  44. julie f says:

    My mother says the rosary is like Monopoly: everyone’s got a different set of house rules about how it should end.

  45. pbewig says:

    I pray the Fatima prayer.

    I also pray the Prayer to St Michael in place of the Salve Regina at the end, because my confirmation saint is St Michael.

    Phil

  46. I pray the Rosary with the Fatima prayer. I pray it Dominican-style: instead of starting with the Creed, the Our Father and the three Hail Marys, we open thus:

    V. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.
    R. Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

    V. Lord, open my lips.
    R. And my mouth shall proclaim thy praise.
    V. Incline unto my aid, O God.
    R. Lord, make haste to help me.
    V. Glory be, &c.

    I don’t usually do the Luminous Mysteries, because the traditional 15-decade Rosary is based on the Psalms — 150 Hail Marys for 150 Psalms. This was the lay adaptation of the ancient monastic practice of reciting all 150 Psalms daily. That is why the Rosary is also called Our Lady’s Psalter. Plus, the fact that the number of Hail Marys is biblical knocks the Jimmy Swaggert theorem of the Rosary out of the ballpark (i.e., 10 Hail Marys to 1 Our Father proves Catholics prefer Mary over Jesus ten to one).

  47. PatrickV says:

    For years I prayed the Rosary the way I learnt it as a boy, Apostles Creed, Paters, Aves, and Glorias, with the Hail Holy Queen at the end.

    When I moved to North Carolina, they all ended each decade after the Gloria with the Fatima Prayer, and I fell into that usage. The parish has also added this prayer after each decade, since the year of the Priest
    Almight God the Father, please send us holy priests, all for the Sacred and Eucharistic Heart of Jesus, all for the Immaculate and Sorrowful Heart of Mary, in union with Saint Joseph. I will recite that with the congregation when we pray the Rosary before Holy Mass, but when I am alone I revert to the way I learnt it as a boy.

  48. bookworm says:

    I learned the Rosary with the Fatima Prayer and about 99 percent of the time I have ever heard it prayed with a group, the Fatima Prayer is included. Even though I know it’s not a “required” part of the rosary I would feel like something was missing if I didn’t say it.
    My daughter learned to say the rosary from watching tapes of the old Daily Rosary on EWTN, and to this day she likes to finish with its prayer (this may not be an exact transcript; if it isn’t feel free to correct it):
    “Merciful Father, we are together on earth and alone in the universe. Look on us, and help us to love one another. Make our hearts as fresh as the morning and make our souls as innocent as the lamb. May we forgive each other, and forget the past, and may we have peace inside, and in our world, today and forever. Amen.”

  49. papaefidelis says:

    Fatima prayer…yes. Luminous mysteries…no. I find them odd and it breaks up the cycle (Monday + Thursday; Tues. + Fri.; Wed. + Sat.). Sunday in Advent and Christmas is the Joyous mysteries for me, the Sorrowful in Lent, and the Glorious the rest of the year. Like removing the obligation for Holy Days that fall on Saturday and Monday when the month has three or more letters in weeks ending on a day ending in “-day” for those one’s ocular organs are two or less, complicating the customary cheapens the whole thing and leads to abandonment. Remember when there was a move to “modernize the words of the “Our Father”? Or that one never knows whether to say “as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be (or ‘ever shabby’), world without end. Amen,” or the version used in the LH in English “will be (‘wibby’) forever. Amen.” In saecula saeculorum for me, pals!

  50. My wife and I solved the problem of the “herky jerky” insertion of the Luminous mysteries on Thursdays by moving them to Sunday! The Joyful-Sorrowful-Glorious triad is thus able to be maintained, with the Luminous filling in the “awkward” Sunday that used to vary according to the liturgical season.

    As for the Fatima Prayer, it seems that for many here the reason is “this is how I learned the Rosary.” For those of us whose faith was formed “pre-Vatican II,” we never heard of this prayer until LONG after Vatican II. I went to a Marianist high school and belonged to a Marian sodality in college, and I never heard of the Fatima Prayer until years later. It’s kind of amusing that so many who embrace “tradition” say the Fatima Prayer as if it were part of “tradition.” It’s not.

    We don’t say the Fatima Prayer as part of the Rosary because, with the exception of the Sorrowful mysteries, the content of the prayer seems “disruptive” of the meditation on the mysteries. I accept that I may be in need of enlightenment by those more mature in the spiritual life than I, but the Fatima Prayer was not part of the Rosary as I learned it, and it feels awkward and artificial. So, we say the prayer independent of the Rosary (except during public recitations, when it’s usually unavoidable.)

  51. MikeM says:

    I usually say the rosary with other people, and the groups I pray with usually say the Fatima prayer, so I do as well.

    On the infrequent occasions when I pray the Rosary alone, I leave it in… I think because I’d feel lazy if I opted not to say it.

  52. MarieSiobhanGallagher says:

    I personally always use it but if with people who don’t I leave it out. I am always confused as to whether or not it is said after the Glory Be which follows the first three Hail Mary’s for Faith, Hope and Charity….I think because of habit people pray it there, but I usually don’t….I don’t think it matters all that much, though. Praying the Rosary is what is important!!! My husband and I do at night before retiring.

  53. MissOH says:

    I also pray the Fatima prayer as that I how this convert was taught to pray the rosary in public recitations and I retained that prayer for private use. I do like the virtual rosary previously mentioned, but usually I end up praying my rosary in the car. It really helps keep me…. calmer in some of the crazy traffic around here and I prefer the Pro Multis Media cd’s of the traditional (no luminous mysteries) rosary in English or Latin. They do include the Fatima prayer though the Latin version of the prayer differs from what I have seen in other sources.

  54. salve95 says:

    Lately I’ve been praying mainly the Rule of the Theotokos, which is a Russian Orthodox rosary-like prayer. (I’m not Orthodox, for the record, I’m just giving my other “lung” a very heavy work out lately) It is 15 decades of Rejoice, Virgin Theotokos… prayers. It’s easier for me to pray because the Hails are said in honor of a mystery without meditation being used. Call me lazy but I’ve always had a horribly difficult time focusing on meditation, and it’s easier for me. I have a little iconostasis (for lack of a better word) in my room that I can use to keep my attention on prayer and heavenly things.

    When I pray the Dominican Rosary, I start it off with the prayers that open the divine office (which is how Dominicans do it) instead of the more common opening, and I use the Fatíma prayer, and I don’t do the luminous mysteries.

    Praying the rosary is often a complete chore for me but I do it because I know it is right.

    On a related note, I learned the Hail Mary in French, and it ends in “Priez pour nous pauvres pécheurs”, which means “pray for us poor sinners”, the addition of the word poor struck me as interesting.

  55. I have much, very much, devotion to Our Lady of Fatima, but it is not our Dominican practice (at least in Houses of Study) to add the prayer, we are rather conservative about the devotion which has been our special responsibility. As the 150 Hail Marys signify the 150 Psalms of the “Lay Psalter,” I don’t use the extra mysteries either, although some of younger friars do.

    I do wish that, instead of inventing new mysteries, our sainted pope John Paul II had allowed us to replace the last two Glorious Mysteries with the original ones (suppressed by a Franciscan pope). They were “the Bodily Return of Our Lord on the Last Day” and “The General Judgment of the Living and the Dead.” Lovely and very Christological. And I think the Assumption and the Coronation could be considered part of each.

  56. PioJose says:

    I usually pray the rosary each morning after mass on my way to work. I always learned the rosary with the Fatima prayer so I almost always use it. On my way to work I pray using a Rosary CD. I have two. One is in Latin and uses the Fatima prayer and the other is in English and does not use it. I mostly use the one in Latin because the English one is longer due to scriptural readings so if I use the English I’ll usually get to work and still have two decades to go. I actually learned the Rosary in my native Spanish and it was a bit different. Instead of the Credo an Act of Contrition is said and then you announce the first mystery. Also the sign of the cross is different. In Spanish we also say “By the sign of the holy cross, from all our enemies deliver us Lord, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen” while we say this we cross our foreheads,our lips and our hearts (as when the Gospel is read) and then do a full sign of the cross when we get to ..in the name of the Father, etc..The last three beads are addressed to Mary as daughter of God the Father, Mary as mother of God the Son and Mary as Spouse of the Holy Spirit and finally as Temple and tabernacle (sagrario) of the Holy Trinity. The Rosary is amazing in Spanish.

  57. Catholictothecore says:

    I pray the Rosary with the Fatima prayer at the end of each decade. That’s how we were taught by the nuns. So it’s well ingrained in my head.

  58. benedetta says:

    I have been in groups or gatherings on different occasions when a short, “Ave, ave, ave Maria…” is sung after each mystery of the rosary. I don’t know the origin of this custom. I can’t recall either way whether the Fatima prayer was included also.

  59. catholicmidwest says:

    Thank you, Fr Z, for this topic. I’m a convert and this answers a lot of questions for me. I have not prayed the rosary with very many groups. It’s hard to find a group that meets at a time when working people can go.

  60. BenedictXVIFan says:

    One of the best features of the Fatima Prayer, in english at least, is its unique cadence. It really does assist one from zoning out, as it is a regularly scheduled interruption in the very familiar cadences of the Our Father and Hail Mary.

  61. Danny says:

    Legisperitus,
    There is not an official Latin translation. Someone told me that it is because Latin had fallen out of favor by the time this prayer became widespread. However, I have a DVD of the Rosary in Latin put out by Fr. Perez ( I believe from the FSSP), and that version is this:
    “O mi Iesu, indulge peccata nostra. Conserva nos ab igne inferni. Duc omnes ad caeli gloriam, praecipue tua misericordia indigentes.” My brother has another version memorized. “Domine Iesu, dimitte nobis debita nostra, salva nos ab igne inferiori, perduc in caelum omnes animas, praesertim eas, quae misericordiae tuae maxime indigent. “

  62. TheRani says:

    I always include the Fatima prayer, and I also pray the Luminous mysteries on Thursdays.

  63. TNCath says:

    I have said this prayer since I was a child. I can remember the ladies saying it before Mass and picked it up from them. I find myself saying it separate from the Rosary itself, especially during and after a long, hard day. Sometimes I find myself specifically naming “those most in need of Thy mercy.” And often I add, “especially myself.”

  64. anniemw says:

    I have enjoyed this thread. Thank you, Father!
    As a child I said the rosary when I was quite young; but my parents must have let it drop off, because I did not regularly say it again until I started to home school my children and hang out with women who were/are way more prayerful than I.
    I love the Fatima prayer; for me it is a reminder of the power of the Rosary – we ask Our Lady to pray for us and souls are literally snatched from those eternal flames by her Son, through her and our intercession.
    My family and I have just begun a 54 Day rosary novena – I love John Kippley’s [founder of the Couple to Couple League] Seven Day Bible Rosary; there is a mystery for every day of the week, some of them are “non-traditional” but beautiful.
    I think there is no better way to teach children [and grown-ups, for that matter] meditative prayer than through the Rosary, and the habit of a daily Rosary truly is part of our Catholic identity.
    May Our Lady of the Rosary bring all of us closer to her Son!

  65. SK Bill says:

    I learned to say the Rosary without the Fatima prayer. However, once I learned that Our Lady specifically directed that the Fatima prayer be added, I started saying it. It is now part of my daily Rosary for peace and for the conversion of sinners. And like others in this comment string, I raise my mind to God in humble confidence from time to time during the day and say the Fatima prayer. It seems to me to be a good thing to do. I also say the Luminous Mysteries, and find them excellent for meditation.

  66. Daniel Latinus says:

    When I taught myself, my sister, and my brother to say the Rosary as kids, I didn’t even know there was a Fatima Prayer. When I began associating with traditionalist groups in the late 1970s, the Rosary was usually recited before Mass, and they always used the Fatima Prayer, so it became part of how I say the Rosary. I have never attended a publicly recited Rosary in which the Fatima Prayer is not used.

    I do not use the Luminous Mysteries mostly because of my traditionalist tendencies, and also for the same reasons given by Miss Anita Moore, OP. If the Holy Father was going to add mysteries to the Rosary, why not create a set for each day of the week?

    When reciting the Rosary by myself, I usually read a meditation from Fr. Peyton’s Rosary Prayerbook, or occasionally some other book. I follow the Salve Regina with the collect from the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary in the traditional Missal, (another thing I picked up from associating with traditionalists), but I will sometimes add other collects for special intentions. I also use the Prayer to St. Joseph (“To thee O Blessed Joseph…”).

    Obviously, if I am saying the Rosary with a group, I follow the leader.

    @ Terry Carroll: I’m somewhat intrigued by your use of the Luminous Mysteries on Sunday.

  67. servusmariaen says:

    I usually pray the rosary in either Latin or German (even though English is my native language). I do when I pray in any language (English, Latin or German) add the portion after the holy name of JESUS pertaining to that mystery. I also add the fatima prayer in between decades. Sometimes I also add in between decades, “O Mary conceived without sin pray for us who have recourse to Thee”.

  68. jj_nycguy says:

    I pray the Rosary, daily, in Latin and include the Fatima prayer.

  69. THREEHEARTS says:

    the Fatima prayer in the original says “draw” not lead, in the original and in Lucia’s memoirs and the great book by William Thomas Walsh. Jesus cannot lead us to heaven a second time He has done it once. Leading us a second time means He got it wrong the first time. It is like re incarnation it too says God got us wrong the first time

  70. Geoffrey says:

    I was taught in Catholic school to pray the “Fatima Prayer” after each decade (1980s), and so always have. Considering the popularity of the apparitions at Fatima, I am surprised it is not more widespread.

    I pray the Luminous Mysteries every Thursday, and pray the Litany of Loreto in place of the Salve Regina when I am able to use a prayerbook. And of course, all this is prayed in Latin: http://www.dominanostrapublishing.com/id9.html :-)

  71. Tony Layne says:

    I include the Fatima prayer. I also try to pray the luminous mysteries, because I see what the Pope was trying to do; I honestly don’t believe for a second that they water down the Rosary’s spiritual power.

  72. michelelyl says:

    I know the Fatima Prayer, but I don’t pray it when I pray the Rosary alone. if in a group, I go along with it.

  73. NobisQuoQue says:

    I do pray the Fatima prayer at the end of each decade; I didn’t even realize there were so many Catholics who deliberately leave this prayer out. Perhaps your next poll should be to ask how many people pray the Luminous Mysteries vs. those who don’t. It would be interesting.

  74. kolbe1019 says:

    I forgot to mention… #1 reason to pray the rosary daily…

    Dominic Savio appeared to St. John Bosco after he died… Dominc told Don Bosco that had it not been for his recitation of the rosary everyday he would have given into despair at the hour of his death. Why?!?

    Imagine you say your rosary daily for just one year… You ask our Lady to pray for you now and at the hour of our death… So at the hour of your death you get an ocean of graces as if you prayed more than 15,000 hail Marys in that one hour… Pray for us now… And at the hour of our death. There are so many benefits… The greatest is a greater love for Jesus, but our Lady makes so many promises that are so generous just to convince us.

    Pray the Fatima prayer. Your mother asked you to pray the rosary everyday… Hobor your mother.

  75. Mariana says:

    “” . . . whom thou, O Virgin, and St. Joseph presented in the Temple . . . ”
    ” . . . whom thou, O Virgin, and St. Joseph found teaching in the Temple . . . ””

    That’s the way I’ve learned it. I didn’t realise that wasn’t the ususal way.

  76. Liz says:

    I said a Hail Mary for you, APX. I can’t imagine that the rosary would be obsolete for any age group. Years ago I went to a garage sale and bought pictures of the Sacred and Immaculate Hearts. The one sister burst into tears and the other assured me they didn’t want them anymore even though I kept asking her if they were sure. (I did give them my phone number in case they changed their minds. Now I just pray for them sometimes.) Anyway, the one sister told me how people “used to” to put them in a place of honor in the house. I kept trying to tell her that I knew lots of people who still did. I think maybe you should try saying the rosary again. It’s wonderful. It’s such a gift. Do you really want to miss out on it’s benefits?

  77. Pretty much all the ways used to say the Rosary are usual ways. :) It’s perfectly fine to pray the Rosary the way you were taught, and it’s perfectly okay to adapt it to your use. It’s a private devotion.

  78. Jana says:

    In Czech the rosary is prayed in the same way as you describe the German way, Father. (Perhaps the whole Central Europe?) Not sometimes, but always. The Fatima prayer is also there – I have never heard it without.

  79. FXR2 says:

    I’m in my mid forties and when I was a child only recited the Fatima Prayer at the end of the Rosary with the St. Michael Prayer and the Salve Regina. Now I seem to recite it at the completion of each decade for some reason. I am not quite sure where I picked up the habit. Since becoming a Knight of Columbus, # 12833 at Mater Ecclesiae, I sometimes use the Scriptural Rosary which can be found at the link below. We use this method of reciting the Rosary prior to all of our meetings. In it we recite a line of scripture pertaining to the mystery prior to each Hail Mary which helps focus my short attention span on the meditation at hand. I believe this might be similar to the ejaculations mentioned above, if a bit more formal.
    The most rewarding part of the Knights of Columbus at least at #12833 is going into the chapel and reciting the Rosary with a group of men. I have recited the Rosary with my family since I was a child and now as a father, but I can never remember a group of men reciting the Rosary together prior to this. A group of men praying together is extremely rewarding. Sometimes I envy monks!

    Sorry for my rambling,
    FXR2

    http://www.kofc12833.org/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/scriptural_rosary.pdf

  80. vincent apisa says:

    Nice post, Father. I really do wish some bishop(?) somewhere would standarize this. What I would really like to see is an approved Short Version, which is Hail Marys and Our Fathers and those Glory Bees, ending with the Hail Holy Queen. Mysteries need not be said, nor the Oh, My Jesus, forgive me, etc. I know the rosary. At least I think I do. Prayed it for 50 years. Or at least I think I have. I do not know the Mysteries nor the Fatima prayer nor any other accretion. Just the Our Fathers and the Hail Marys. I pray the rosary after mass in our parish, but pass on leading a decade because I don’t know the Mysteries and refuse to read from the script. Let’s see, if it’s Tuesday it must be Joyful, right? Like, what’s the point to that? I smile and pass the rosary lead to someone else. Cannot Catholics get an approved Short Version? Why do I have a feeling that if there was a Short Version, praying the rosary would increase. Lunchtime rosaries, anone? And at my parish, one of the worshippers at the end of the rosary invariably say, Now let’s pray one Hail Mary and one Our Father and one Glory Be for the intentions of our Holy Father. Huh? Whaddya think I’ve been doing for the five decades of prayer? I dwell on a lot of intentions when I pray the rosary, even partial rosaries, a decade or two, because they count, too. If you’re meditating on the Mysteries, then you need to carve out dedicated prayer space for the Holy Father at the end, which is the place for other intentions, too. Sort of like an addendum. Is there any place for Catholics for Simplicity in the rosary debates? Best regards.

  81. Precentrix says:

    @DB1995 –

    Some of the more traditional Catholics I know, who like myself regard the luminous mysteries as a perfectly fine devotion but not part of the Rosary, work around it by adding one extra decade each day, after the regular chaplet. Mon-Fri gives each of the luminous mysteries an airing and on Sat and Sun the children, in turn, get to choose which one to pray and the intention for which it is offered. I like this because it means they are including those meditations without having to pose the question of ‘did I actually pray my five decades of the Rosary today?’ Of course, it adds an extra few minutes ;-).

  82. servulus says:

    I pray the Fatima prayer because that’s how I learned in RCIA. I like that prayer. I don’t pray the luminous mysteries though. They seem added on.

  83. Precentrix says:

    One thing worth mentioning would be the Dominican tradition of putting the Salve Regina (Hail, holy Queen) and the prayer ‘Deus cujus Unigenitus’ (O God, Whose only begotten Son…) at the *start* rather than at the end of the Rosary; finishing with the same ‘Agimus tibi gratias’ (We give Thee thanks) that is used by many people at mealtimes, followed (optionally) by the Litanies of Loreto and the Sub Tuum (Unto thy merciful care). And, of course, the odd prayer to St. Dominic and the Confraternity Prayer. Of course, this all seems backwards these days!

    Just out of interest… does anyone actually remember to pray the Confraternity prayer?

  84. pelerin says:

    Salve95 comments on the addition of the word ‘pauvres’ in the Hail Mary in French as compared to the English. I learnt the Hail Mary in French before discovering it in English although I am not French, and am equally at ease praying it in either language. I wonder whether the addition of the word ‘pauvres’ was to improve the rhythm of the words? ‘Priez pour nous’ and’ pauvres pecheurs’ have the same number of syllables and the words flow whereas ‘Priez pour nous pecheurs’ just sounds odd and a little abrupt.

  85. Tradster says:

    I also did not know about the Fatima prayer until just a few years ago. Actually, the pre-VCII St. Joseph nuns I grew up with never taught us the Salve Regina, either. So I was unaware of either prayer in the Rosary.

    That said, I do include it now mostly for two reasons. First, because I listen to the Fr Perez Latin CD which has it, and second, because my parish prays the Rosary before Mass and includes it. In fact, they also say the Miraculous Medal prayer (“O Mary, conceived without sin, etc.”) after each decade, so I am in the habit of that one, too. All of these extras, including the Fatima prayer, assumes I will have sufficient time to complete the Rosary. If pressed for time I forego them and stick with the plain vanilla version.

    Speaking of Latin and English Rosary CDs and/or MP3s, it would be great to supplement the Father Perez ones with ones from Father Z. Any chance of putting together an entire set and making them available for us fans?

  86. dcs says:

    I add it when praying the Rosary privately; moreover I don’t think I’ve ever heard it NOT added in public recitations of the Rosary. The main divide in my neck of the woods is whether one adds the Fatima Prayer after the Gloria immediately before the first decade (some don’t; I do).

  87. Jenny bag of donuts says:

    We pray the Fatima prayer after each decade bc Our Lady asked us to at Fatima. I personally don’t like to pray it after the first Gloria bc that isn’t exactly what Our Lady requested, she said after each decade, but I know other very good Catholics who do pray it after the first Gloria, so I suppose that can be categorized under personal preference.
    I know it must be difficult for some older Catholics to work the Luminous Mysteries in bc they haven’t been used to them, but since they came from such a holy pope, I wouldn’t hesitate to consider them God inspired. They were meant to enrich the Rosary experience. Adjusting to change well helps us become holy.

  88. I say the Fatima prayer because that’s how I learned it. The Luminous mysteries are my favorite ones :)

  89. Jenny bag of donuts says:

    asophist, very cute tee hee! My hubby falls asleep too.

    Oh, I forgot to mention that we repeat the mystery we’re on after the fifth Hail Mary.

    For those posters who don’t pray the Rosary, please do! Our Lady has asked us to. Much of the time I have to force myself to pray it, but let’s do as Our Lady asked. She deserves our love and obedience.

  90. Jenny bag of donuts says:

    Oh, we use the intro to the Rosary from the Legion of Mary tessera. It’s a beautiful beginning, invoking the Holy Spirit. Does anyone know what religious order this originated from? Dominican?

  91. I always use it…it’s very rare that I ever say/hear the Rosary said without it. I also add the closing prayer “O God, whose only begotten Son…”

    Even if I say the Rosary in Latin, which I often do on my own, I still add the prayer in English since I don’t know the Latin (yet)

  92. JPManning says:

    I am a rare one who doesn’t use the Fatima prayer. I taught myself the rosary from a book by Fr. Peyton and it didn’t have it in so I don’t use it.

    First time I heard it was when I joined a pro-life vigil and it was used, I just joined in with it. I was recently at a Trappist abbey and a monk in his nineties led the rosary for us and he used the Fatima prayer.

  93. Gail F says:

    I rarely pray the rosary, because I was not brought up praying it. But in the past year or so I have started praying it several times a week, although I usually only do a decade or two. I do only the Our Father, the Hail Mary, and the Glory Be — I like to keep things short and simple! But I often pray each Hail Mary for a different person or group. Recently I went to a prayer vigil at Planned Parenthood and we did all four mysteries so that was my first time all the way through with the new set of mysteries. It was led by a priest. He included the Fatima prayer, and we ended with the St. Michale prayer (which I live very much but do not have memorized). As a younger, poorly catechized person approaching the rosary from the “other direction” as it were, I like the rosary precisely because it is so flexible. It has been done many different ways over the centuries, but the main idea is always the same. I find it funny that some responders say things like “why would you not?” pray this or that, or “of course I do it this way.” The very topic of the post shows that there are many “right” ways to do it, and there will no doubt be new ways to do it in the future.

  94. JaneC says:

    When I first learned to say the Rosary as a small child, I did not learn the Fatima prayer. This is perhaps because I learned to say it from a prayer book that had been my grandmother’s First Communion prayer book, circa 1931. The Fatima prayer had probably not caught on in English-speaking places yet. Later I attended a school where we regularly recited the Rosary in Latin, with the Fatima prayer in English after each decade. I’m not sure why we didn’t do the whole thing in Latin.

    I have continued to use the Fatima prayer, more out of the habits formed by public recitation than any particular devotion to it, although I rarely say my Rosary in Latin anymore.

  95. Jenny bag of donuts says:

    How cool to pray the Rosary in Latin!

  96. Jenny bag of donuts says:

    It’s interesting to see in this thread how long the Fatima apparition took to become common knowledge. Our Lady of Guadalupe took even longer and I can’t help think that that may have been due to some racism.

  97. mysticalrose says:

    I always say the Fatima prayer and end with the Salve Regina. I thought that you were supposed to end with the Salve until I lived in the Midwest for a time, where they either don’t say an ending prayer or they use the Memorare. I also say the Lourdes prayer at the end of the Salve (O Mary conceived without sin . . . ).

  98. mysticalrose says:

    I’d be interested in seeing a poll about who recites the Luminous Mysteries. I’ve not been able to integrate them into my own rosary because I’m so used to the 15 mysteries.

  99. andycoan says:

    “In Germany you will sometimes hear a line about the mystery being prayed interjected into the Hail Mary.”

    I thought this had its origin in St. Louis Marie de Monfort’s “Secret of the Rosary.” That’s where I learned about it, anyway.

  100. DeaconDean says:

    I grew up a Protestant in the North East and converted to Catholicism in New England. I learned to pray the Rosary without the Fatima prayer. When I and my family moved to New Orleans 27 years ago and joined the KofC here, I was introduced to the Rosary WITH the Fatima prayer, and ending with the Hail, Holy Queen and the Memorare. After 27 years, it has become my habitual way to pray the Rosary.

  101. Rob Cartusciello says:

    I spent a summer at Notre Dame in 1996. At the Grotto, they would sing “Ave, ave Maria. Ave, ave ave Maria” at the end of each Decade. It’s the only place I’ve even seen it done.

  102. lsoliman says:

    I pray the Fatima prayer simply because Our Lady asked us to.

  103. ctek says:

    I try to only say it after the “Glory Be” within the decades. Otherwise it starts to seem like it is automatically an extension or part of the “Glory Be”.

  104. Varda says:

    I didn’t learn the Rosary with the Fatima prayer when I was little, but I learned about it more recently and I always say it now. I pray the Rosary 3-4 times per week. I try and do so after daily Mass, it helps me so much more to keep my mind focused. Try as I may, my mind wanders much more at home.

  105. irishgirl says:

    I’ve always used the Fatima prayer at the end of each Rosary decade, ever since I first learned about Fatima (from 1967 on). I use the version which I found in William Thomas Walsh’s book, “Our Lady of Fatima”: ‘O my Jesus, pardon us and save us from the fire of hell. Draw all souls to heaven, especially those in most need.’
    I use this version when I pray the Rosary alone. When I pray it with a group, the wording is a little different.
    I can’t imagine praying the Rosary without that prayer
    Rob-which ‘Ave, ave, ave Maria’ did you use at Notre Dame? Was it the refrain of the ‘Lourdes Ave’? I’ve done the refrain of the ‘Fatima Ave’ sometimes in group recitations of the Rosary.

  106. AnAmericanMother says:

    jenny,
    We use a different introduction, where the intentions/requests are stated.
    It begins, “Holy Virgin Mary, mother of God and our mother, accept this holy Rosary which we offer to God through thee in full confidence in thy powerful intercession. . . .”
    Any ideas where that may have come from?

  107. wfredrickson says:

    I pray the rosary in conjunction with the Liturgy of the Hours, like the Carthusians who recite the Little Office of the BVM corresponding to the hours, sic, two decades after the Vigils and Lauds, third after Afternoon hour, one after vespers, one after compline. After each decade I recite the 2 Divine Mercy prayers: Heavenly Father I offer you… and the Because of his sorrowful….I see the rosary as concretizing myself into the particularity of the Mystery of Christ among us as event in history.

  108. Centristian says:

    I don’t pray the Rosary each time according to a set form. Since it isn’t necessary to say it at all, it can’t be necessary to say it a certain way. I recite the Pater Noster, Aves, and Gloria Patris in Latin (that’s the one thing about my Rosary that never changes). I might open with the Nicene Creed, perhaps with the Gloria of the Mass, perhaps with the Collect of the Mass of the day, a Psalm…or any other text (or idea) that seems to lead me.

    My meditations will typically revolve around scripture and the liturgy. I often like to turn the Rosary into a short recap of the Mass of the day: the first meditation will be on the Old Testament reading, the second meditation on the New Testament reading, and the others will focus on the propers of the Mass.

    I have not meditated using the “traditional” mysteries as such in many years. One thing that nearly turned me off to the Rosary was the endless repetition of only 15 ideas. At one point I abandoned it outright until I re-imagined the Rosary in a way that I could derive fruit from it, even adventure. Today, no two Rosaries I pray are the same; each one takes me in a new direction, to a new place. I don’t feel compelled to say five decades at once if I only have steam for, say, three. I end it where it ends itself.

    I don’t, personally, imagine Fatima or anything associated with Fatima when praying the Rosary. I used to, because it was originally presented to me that way, until I began to rethink the Rosary and private apparitions and the Virgin, generally. Fatima and other private revelations leave me cold, I’ll readily confess; there’s something nebulous and unsubstantiated about them. Something saccharin, too, and overly-sentimental, from my perspective, about a spirituality rooted in a private revelation.

    I look upon the Rosary as a way to symbolically join hands with Mary, so to speak, while spiritually nourishing myself through meditation and prayer. That’s all. The Rosary is not to me some inconceivably “powerful weapon against the Hosts of Hell” or a sentimental “garland of roses to crown Our Lady”, it’s just a short walk to God with His Mother.

  109. Supertradmum says:

    Dear Censtritian,

    As to the same fifteen ideas, sometimes I get so stuck on one, such as the Visitation, I cannot help but think of that one for a long time. I think there are almost too many, which is one reason I skip the Luminous.

    Also, I would like you to know that many priests, including exorcists, have shared the powerful graces that the Rosary bestows. Father Corapi for one extols the power of the Rosary over and over, and he has seen some pretty difficult spiritual warfare. What is unseen in more powerful than what is seen. It is wonderful that you pray the rosary and I like to think of all of us on this blog joining in during the day, like a continuous prayer to God through Mary.

  110. Elizabeth D says:

    When possible I remain silent for the Fatima prayer, even when praying with others (who usually include this). I never use the Fatima prayer when praying the rosary by myself. I am also disturbed by those who promote the daily rosary in such a way as to make it seem that private revelations can create a kind of moral obligation for everyone to do certain devotional practices, not of themselves obligatory for our salvation, even ones as excellent as the rosary. These rosary promoters are often unhappy or accusatory when they find some devout person who doesn’t feel obliged to the daily rosary. Often, it seems their practice of the rosary is an expression of their filial devotion to Our Lady via private revelations at Fatima or elsewhere (sometimes doubtful or discredited private revelations), but does not proceed much beyond that toward contemplative intimacy with Christ. This is a shame, because it is as a contemplative practice that the rosary has its most profound value.

  111. Banjo pickin girl says:

    Elizabeth D, I guess the daily rosary is more appropriate for people who have made the total consecration to Jesus through Mary.

    It’s the contemplative part that is hard. One priest I know explained the beads are just a timing device so we don’t get carried away. He related the story of a man he knows who gets so wrapped up in the meditation he takes 45 minutes to do one decade. He really places himself in the scene of the mystery. I wish I could do that. If you look up “distracted” in the dictionary there is a picture of me.

  112. DominiSumus says:

    I was taught as a child to say that Fatima prayer, but I only have the prayer memorized in Portuguese. “O meu Jesus, perdoai-nos e livrai-nos do fogo do inferno, levai as alminhas
    todas para o Ceu, principalmente aquelas que mais precisarem”.

  113. quality says:

    My wife and I say novena rosary every day ( for 12 years ) The Fatima Prayer is part of the novena which takes 52 days.

  114. Jenny bag of donuts says:

    American Mother, hi don’t know the origin, but it’s a very pretty prayer.

    Supertradmom, I recall hearing a priest explain that one could simply focus on one mystery for the five decades if that’s where they felt led during prayer.

  115. Jenny bag of donuts says:

    Vardi, don’t we all get distracted! With little ones jumping all over the place, it’s a rare Rosary that I can actually concentrate on. A priest explained to me that it’s not always the meditation that is so important, though that is an awesome aspect of the Rosary. What’s important is that we are setting aside the time to give this gift of a Rosary to Our Mother.

  116. Jenny bag of donuts says:

    Excuse me
    “supertradmum”
    and
    “Varda”

  117. Jenny bag of donuts says:

    I guess it can be slightly annoying when one comes across a parishioner who prays the Rosary constantly and seems to look down on others who don’t. Plus, I’m not one to go after every private revelation. Still, Our Lady of Fatima is a huge apparition. I think it would be less than generous to ignore it. There’s no reason why the average person can’t pray a daily Rosary. And so many modern saints have. All the good priests I know recommend a daily Rosary. I understand the temptation to regard it as just another private devotion. Still, I think it takes some humility to follow the advice of others who know better than I.

  118. Tradster says:

    My wife and I belong to the Confraternity of the Most Holy Rosary (http://www.rosary-center.org/nroscon.htm), which I highly recommend. It is blessed with several pelnary indulgences throughout the year and members benefit from the graces of the entire Archconfraternity’s Rosaries.

  119. green fiddler says:

    We did not know the Fatima prayer as children, but having learned its meaning later in life, I always include it now when praying a Rosary on my own. I’m very grateful for those who intercede for the ones most in need of God’s mercy, because I’ve received much-needed graces through your prayers.

    The “Ave Maria of Fatima” refrain that others have mentioned is one I like to sing (internally) at the end of every decade. It was so beautiful to hear Holy Father JPII singing this with pilgrims during a procession at Fatima (in an EWTN documentary). As he was dying, it touched my heart to hear the crowd gathered beneath his open window singing “his Ave” as they prayed Rosary with him.

    The Rosary is so powerful. I try to pray five decades every day, but often fail. Concentration is difficult; praying with a recording helps me to stay more focused. There are some very nice versions; some but not all of the ones I have include the Fatima prayer. My favorite Rosary CD is one in Latin with Pope JPII. At the end Holy Father leads the singing of “Salve Regina” chant. It is one of my favorite prayers.

    Thank you again, Fr. Z. I am happy to pray with your streaming-radio Rosary in Latin, followed by the Litany of Loreto. (I’m the old dog without “Tweet” who never seemed to arrive there at the right time before.)

  120. cl00bie says:

    At our weekly rosary we pray the Fatima prayer, and the prayer at the end: “Oh God, whose only begotten Son through his life, death and resurrection…” We also pray a Hail Mary, Our Father and Glory Be together for the Pope’s intention, the prayer to St. Michael for protection from the Evil One, and a special Diocesan prayer for vocations. We finish up with a Divine Mercy chaplet.

  121. I pray the Fatima prayer because I want to skate as close as I can to the view that all souls are (eventually) led to Heaven as I can without stepping into heresy.
    cricket

  122. pnhndlgrl says:

    Yes! I say the Fatima prayer after the Glory Be. Dad did it this way, and that’s good enough for me.

    I now add a prayer for priestly vocations after the Fatima prayer, in imitation of the parishioners of Little Flower Church at home: “God our Father, please send us holy priests! All for the Sacred and Eucharistic Heart of Jesus; all for the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary; in union with St. Joseph. Amen.”

  123. wendyquade says:

    We say the Rosary as a family in the evening, we do say the Fatima Prayer, and end it with our own version of the litany of the saints – invoking the patron saints of everyone in the family and also some of the kids favorites.

  124. cxi503 says:

    My reaction to this question is that, if Our Lady specifically asked us to include it, why should we omit it? As for myself, I was always taught that the Fatima prayer is an integral part of the rosary.
    In Malta, after praying the Salve Regina we recite an Our Father, a Hail Mary and a Glory Be for the intentions and needs of the pope, then we pray for the souls in purgatory following which we pray the litany.
    Some time ago I came across a small applet that can help anyone in reciting either the Rosary or the Devine Mercy Chaplet. This can be downloaded from http://www.virtualrosary.org.

  125. Jesson says:

    I say the Fatima prayer alright. However, since this prayer is fairly recent compared to what my forbears learned from Spanish missionaries, I also add the older post-decade prayer I have been taught. That makes them two post-decade Rosary prayers. And this excludes all other preparatory and closing prayers.

  126. James Joseph says:

    Oddly enough…

    I add the ‘Fatima Prayer’ when I recite the Mysteries in Spanish, but not Italian, Latin, or English.

    It sounds funny to me in English. I have found a couple Spanish translations from the ‘original’ Portuguese. (I like the sound of that) I tend toward ‘ o jesus mio, perdona nuestras culpas, perservanos del fuego del infierno, lleva todas las almas al cielo y socorre especialmente las mas necitadas de tu misericordia.’

    +++

  127. murrayjr03 says:

    Thank you for this post…It is clarrifying in the sense that my wife was recently fired for teaching her class to say this prayer during the Rosary as well as the St. Michael Prayer and also for her teaching on the Real Presence to middle school aged students at a Catholic school, who neither knew how to say the rosary, nor had the slightest clue what took place at Mass.

  128. I voted that I rarely pray the Rosary, but when I do, I always add the Fatima prayer. I’m Byzantine Catholic, so I usually pray the Jesus prayer on a prayer rope instead of the Rosary.

  129. Varda says:

    Jenny bag of donuts, that is so true. I try and remember that God will accept the efforts even if the actual product is not so perfect. If we offer everything including prayers through Mary she will put the less than good parts right anyway. I am just not a good pray-er at home, I am much better when I am actually physically in Church.

  130. digdigby says:

    As for quantity? St. Francis of Assisi walked ten miles praying aloud the whole time and his companion states that in that entire time he recited ONE Pater Noster. I’m struggling with the question of praying a lot vs. praying well lately. Anyone else having such doubts?

  131. alpinejunkie says:

    After every decade I have always prayed the prayer to St. Michael the Archangel by pope Leo the XIII.
    http://www.ourladyswarriors.org/prayer/michael.htm

  132. St. Francis of Assisi walked ten miles praying aloud the whole time and his companion states that in that entire time he recited ONE Pater Noster.

    Funny, I heard that one about Chuck Norris. And he was walking to where a guy he had punched had landed.

  133. Jenny bag of donuts says:

    What? LOL!

  134. 1987 says:

    In Lithuania, we sometimes add the Fatima prayer, but the more usual prayer to be said after each decade is the prayer of the Miraculous Medal (English text would go: O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee).

    There was once (and, I think, most people who pray the Rosary, still do it like this) a custom to pray the Credo for the Pope after the Rosary (not in the beginning).

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