NOTES ON HOW TO SAY MORE ROSARIES

Until recent years I had been in habit of offering one five-decade Rosary a day. Occasionally, when I was very concerned about someone close to me, I used offer as many as seven Rosaries on one particular day, but these days were the exception in a year and could be counted on my first hand. My Rosary routine was either one a day and seven a few days of the year when I was troubled or felt called to pray a great deal for someone. The most Rosaries I ever offered in one day was eight, and these four hundred Hail Marys were for an abortion doctor I met outside a clinic who in her extremely cold callousness towards the unborn seemed eerily similar to Bernard Nathanson before his conversion (I knew Bernard after his conversion, so I am relying on his self-portrait in his memoir,  The Hand of God).

So, in years gone by, my total Rosary count for the whole year was three hundred and eighty Rosaries.

Often, I find that Catholics who are faithful to Our Lady's request at Fatima say one Rosary a day (bravo to them) or they offer many (bravo to them). This sometimes but not always reflects their station in life; the mother with a newborn, the busy professional, the student studying for exams; they may all have to labor to find time to pray five decades a day. Conversely, there are people with more time and with a burning desire to pray, people who are convalescing, unemployed, retired or they have children and a heavy work schedule, yet they have found a way to use all the spare minutes here and there to offer more Rosaries.  One of my best friends has a demanding, full-time job and has found a way of offering a minimum of three Rosaries a night. After dinner, he starts a Rosary on the hour, and then attends to pressing duties, then he starts a second Rosary on the following hour.  He often starts at six p.m, then offers another at seven p.m and keeps going 'til he has often said five. His highest ever was nine. In times past, he had a very hard time offering one five decade Rosary, but over time it became easier and like breathing, and so now he offers more. It is like building up stamina of soul.

I, however, was in a blind quandary as to how to pray more. I did feel called to say more than one Rosary a day, but because I could not say many Rosaries a day, I stuck to one. I prayed to the Holy Spirit to guide me, and it dawned on me that I could offer two Rosaries a day. Personally, I have not known any Catholic who offers two Rosaries a day, and so I had never seen the practice of two-a-day modeled. Yet for those of us who can say more than one, but cannot say several, the option of offering two Rosaries is the right balance.

During 2019 and 2020, I developed the practice of offering ten decades of the Rosaries every day. Admittedly there are overwhelmingly busy days when I struggle to offer five decades. But the exceptional days when I offer six or seven make up for those days. Last week there was one of those outlier days when I offered six Rosaries for the man who is about to meet Sister Death.

Then I felt a bit of devilishly inspired discouragement, I put myself down, telling myself that, hmmm you only offer two Rosaries a day. But then I took an overview of the year, and praying two a day means the grand total is a minimum of seven hundred which lifted my heart and gladdened my mind. This is several hundred more than my previous yearly average of three hundred and eighty, so I think there could be an incentive for the demonic to dissuade me from offering two a day.

That which I advocate for you, dear reader, is if perhaps you have been offering one Rosary a day, but feel like you need to pray more, but don't have time for all fifteen decades, why not offer ten decades instead?  And what better month to start than in May?

This has been a marvelous boon to my meditation life. If I may explain by way of example, my first Rosary is the set of Mysteries that are for that day followed by the Mysteries for the next day. If on a Monday I offer the Joyful Mysteries and afterwards I offer the Sorrowful Mysteries, which are to be said on Tuesday, when Tuesday comes I start the day with a mind acquainted with all the scenes of Our Lord's Passion and this gives rise to more automatic meditation.

My friend, Danny Risdon made this rosary for my birthday, made of brown glass beads that sparkle with orange - they match Padre Pio's eyes and earthy Franciscan habit. I love having this set of beads between my fingers so much that I have been led to offer more Rosaries just by having them in my hands.

I have been making an effort to wear blue this month, in honor of Our Lady. Although, this dress is perhaps more cornflower blue than Marian blue.