Preparing For Lent: Praying The Holy Rosary

The season of Lent and the start of the preparation for Easter begins on Ash Wednesday which is March 6^th, and the call for increases in prayer, fasting, and almsgiving (charity) will be central to Catholics around the world.

The season of Lent is a time for developing new prayer patterns or spiritual growth patterns that can become a habit, because as scientists have proven the human brain needs to repeat an activity for 30 days in order for it to become a habit.

I got to thinking that in the thirty days leading up to the start of Lent, we could all dedicate ourselves to forming a new prayer habit ahead of time by praying the Holy Rosary daily. I know that some Catholics may already dedicate time in prayer of the Rosary in this way in a daily fashion, but others have not.

The biggest obstacle to praying this important ritual of the Catholic faith is the same reason why we do not generally get to do most things in life: time. The frequent expression, “I don’t have time” or “how can I find the time” to pray the Rosary are common reasons why many people struggle with this prayer devotion.

The days from now until Ash Wednesday present an opportunity to find the time to begin this devotion to the Holy Rosary, because prayer, especially of the Rosary, is sorely needed with the utter despair and darkness in our world. The Holy Rosary has been credited with healing broken people, suspending natural law, and finding peaceful solutions to conflicts throughout our history.

The devotion to the Rosary takes anywhere from fifteen minutes to twenty-five minutes depending on your individual pace and level of reflection on the Mysteries of the Holy Rosary, the events in the life of Jesus Christ which serve as the “road map” for each respective day of this ritual prayer. It is to be prayed reverently and the repetition of the devotion has been known to bring comfort to those who pray it daily.

The time can be found either early in the morning before your day begins, in the evening when your day has finally calmed down, or in the spaces between depending on your lifestyle, vocation, or obligations. The timing might have to be different for part of the week versus the weekend, or vice versa. It might require you to find different time intervals based on the day of the week. It is important that you stick with whatever routine time you select.

In my own faith journey, my dedication to prayer of the Holy Rosary has shifted. I had some jobs that required driving for long periods of time in the car where I would pray the Rosary in the car. I have held other jobs where I would pray the Rosary on my lunch hour, or while commuting on a train where some days that would be the morning focus, and other days it was part of my evening commute prayer routine.

I have had other points in my life where the mornings were too busy, so I would dedicate time in the late afternoon to the Rosary. It has to be what works for you based upon your unique situation, but the calm and the serenity that it brings to me is irreplaceable.

I know those who have a daily devotion to the Rosary as I do will read this and think that they already have a routine down that works. I would challenge those people to think about how they can utilize their time praying the Rosary and “level up”. That can be by dedicating the Rosary to a different intention daily. It could be by a deeper meditation on the Mysteries, or by utilizing scripture and executing a Scriptural Rosary. It can also be that you expand that time to an hour of prayer or 90 minutes of prayer and include the Stations of The Cross or a Novena to one of the saints during that time of ritual prayer.

The Holy Rosary is a powerful prayer devotion which will connect you to the Gospel messages in a profound way. It will enlighten you to know the love that the Virgin Mother Mary has for you and your family. The daily devotion to the Holy Rosary will help you to remain at peace amidst the chaos of our daily lives. The devotion will bring you closer to Jesus through Our Blessed Mother.

The dedication to daily prayer of the Rosary now in the days leading up to Lent will provide you with a much more profoundly enriching preparation for the Resurrection of Our Lord on Easter Sunday. It will help you to prepare for the days of fasting, the ordering of your time for additional prayer, and to fill your heart with a dedication to charity for others.

It is my sincere hope that you will make the commitment to daily prayer of the Holy Rosary for the Church, your parish, your community, your family, and the whole world. Our fallen world needs your prayers now more than ever.

I pray that Our Blessed Mother brings you the maternal love you need to make this dedication to the Holy Rosary. I pray that Our Lady Queen of the Rosary blesses you and your families and brings you closer to Jesus, Our Savior and Redeemer. May God bless you.