Hello Rosary Lovers! I’ve done a lot of posts about the Rosary, but I thought this time I would do one on the actual Catholic Rosary prayers. That is, all of the prayers of the Rosary all in one place.
Enjoy!
Main Prayers
The main prayers uttered/recited in the Catholic Rosary are the Our Father, the Hail Mary and the Glory Be. So long as you know these prayers, and the 15/20 mysteries of the Rosary, by heart, you can pray the Rosary.
Really, yes really. That’s all you need to know.
So straightforward, right?
You don’t even need to know any introductory prayers or concluding prayers to pray the Rosary (see number 48 in this article), but I will add these below.
So, in essence, praying the Rosary can be extremely simple. It’s best not to complicate it.
Just memorise the Our Father, the Hail Mary, the Glory Be and the 15 mysteries of the Rosary, and you’re away.
The Our Father
Our Father, who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name.
Thy Kingdom come;
Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
And forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
(Optional: Amen).
The Hail Mary
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee;
Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb Jesus.
Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
The Glory Be
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
15 Mysteries of the Rosary
- The Annunciation
- The Visitation
- The Nativity of Jesus
- The Presentation of Jesus in the Temple
- The Finding of Jesus in the Temple
- The Agony in the Garden
- The Scouring at the Pillar
- The Crowning with Thorns
- The Carrying of the Cross
- The Crucifixion
- The Resurrection
- The Ascension
- The Descent of the Holy Spirit
- The Assumption of Mary
- The Coronation of Mary
There are, in addition, 5 more mysteries which are optional. You don’t have to know these to pray a lifetime of legitimate rosaries filled with indulgences.
If you wish to add the 5 optional mysteries, they are as follows.
Luminous Mysteries
- The Baptism of Jesus
- The Miracle at Cana Galilee
- The Proclamation of the Kingdom of God
- The Transfiguration
- The Institution of the Eucharist
These are good to add to the Rosary because they focus on the incarnate life of Christ.
How These Prayers are Used in the Rosary
- A mystery is announced, such as the Annunication.
- The Our Father is recited.
- The Hail Mary is recited 10 times in a row, whilst meditating on the mystery.
- The Glory Be is recited.
- Repeat this process with the next four mysteries to pray a complete Rosary.
Many Catholics add the Fatima prayer after each Glory Be. This is optional.
Fatima Prayer
The Fatima prayer was allegedly requested by Mary when she revealed herself to the Fatima seers.
However, the Catholic Church does not mandate that Catholics MUST believe in the revelation of Mary at Fatima (although, personally, I do believe in it). I suspect it’s for this reason that the Fatima prayer is optional, but I’m not sure about this.
The prayer is as follows:
O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, and lead all souls to heaven, especially those most in need of thy mercy.
Introductory Prayers
There are two ways to introduce the Rosary before getting into the mysteries.
First Possible Introduction
The first is longer and much more popular. It goes like this.
- Do the sign of the cross, saying: ‘In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.’
- Recite the Apostles Creed (see below).
- Recite one Our Father.
- Recite three Hail Marys (traditionally for the virtues of faith, hope and love)
- Recite one Glory Be.
The Apostles Creed
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and earth;
and in Jesus Christ, His only Son Our Lord,
Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into Hell; on the third day He rose again from the dead;
He ascended into Heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from there He shall come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body and life everlasting. Amen.
Second Possible Introduction
This introduction is much shorter and much less popular, but that doesn’t make it any less valid.
- Do the sign of the cross, saying: ‘In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.’
- Say: ‘Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb Jesus.’
- Say: ‘O Lord, open my lips and my mouth shall show forth thy praise.’
- Say: ‘O God come to my assistance; O Lord make haste to help me.’
- Recite the Glory Be.
- Say: ‘Alleluia.’
This introduction can be found here.
Concluding Prayers
When you have finished praying the Rosary for the day, you should finish with some appropriate concluding prayers.
There are different options here, so I’ll list the most common ones.
The ‘Hail Holy Queen’
(Most Catholics end the Rosary with this prayer.)
Hail Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy;
Hail our Life, our Sweetness and our Hope.
To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve;
To thee do we send up our prayers, mourning and weeping in this vale of tears.
Turn then, most gracious Advocate, thine eyes of mercy towards us, and after this our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb Jesus.
O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.
Pray for us, O holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ. Amen.
Final Rosary Prayer
(Most Catholics end the Rosary also with this prayer.)
Let us pray. O, God, Whose only-begotten Son, by His life, death and resurrection, has purchased for us the rewards of
eternal life; grant, we beseech Thee, that, meditating upon these 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.
Prayer to Saint Michael the Archangel
(Many Catholics also add this closing prayer after saying the previous two.)
Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray; and do Thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host – by the Divine Power of God – cast into hell, Satan and all the evil spirits, who roam throughout the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.
Another prayer to say, especially if the second introductory prayers were used
May the Divine Assistance remain always with us. And may the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.
The Rosary is then finally concluded with the sign of the cross, ideally using the crucifix of the Rosary beads.
I hope you’ve benefitted from a post entirely devoted to precisely which prayers are used in the Rosary. Now you have all you need to get going with a lifetime of praying it!
If you have any questions, or which to add anything, please leave a comment below and I will try to get back to you as soon as possible.
God bless, in Christ, through Mary, immaculate Seat of Wisdom.