Hello there Rosary lovers 🙂 In this post we will explore questions surrounding praying half the Rosary, or just 2 or 3 decades.
No problem, go for it
In short, it’s really not a problem at all. There is no issue with just praying half the Rosary. If you only do this all day, then that’s wonderful.
I mean, you are free to pray all 5 decades in a single sitting, or to split them up throughout the day, as I do. I often don’t pray an entire Rosary in one sitting.
A lovely method is to pray one decade in the morning, then another decade later in the morning, then another decade in the afternoon, then one in the evening, then one just before bed.
I mean, why not? Spread throughout the day, the Rosary scatters its beautiful fragrance all over the day.
Pope Benedict XVI apparently said that he only ever prayed 2 or 3 decades of the Rosary at a time. This is half the Rosary. If this was good enough for a Pope, then surely it’s good enough for you or I!
But what if you only pray 2 decades in a day and don’t get round to doing the rest? Does this matter? No, it doesn’t. This often happens to me, and it’s no issue at all. You get wonderful blessings for just praying a single decade.
I’ve been in a Catholic Church which simply prayed one decade of the Rosary at the end of a service. No more than that.
So if you just want to pray half the Rosary, then go for it!
Less is more?
Often, less is more. It depends on who you are. Some Catholics pray 3 or 4 rosaries a day, but for many of us this is far too much.
You may find praying just one or two decades of the Rosary everyday to be a spiritual devotion you can stick to, and really give yourself to.
Rather than trying to pray 5 decades whilst having your mind wonder all over the place, perhaps you may find that by only praying 1 decade, you can really give yourself to those Hail Marys.
I’ve often heard that 1 decade of the Rosary prayed well is far better than 5 decades prayed badly. Something to consider.
God looks at the heart, not the actions. We often forget this, don’t we.
Happy Rosary praying 🙂
If you have any further questions, please let me know. God bless you!