May 2016 Staff Meeting Faith Formation
Know Him Through Prayer

May 2016 Staff Meeting Faith Formation

Know Him Through Prayer

Slide 1

Leader (reader 1):

The month of May has traditionally been devoted to the Blessed Virgin Mary and prayers to her. The prayer most associated with Mary is the Rosary. Praying the rosary invites us into a relationship with Jesus Christ, nurturing our faith and deepening our understanding of who Jesus Christ is for the world. Though the rosary is Marian in character it is Christocentric at heart. We contemplate Christ’s life with Mary.

Slide 2

Reader 2:

As we look at the icon of Our Mother of Perpetual Help, we see Our Lady lovingly holding her Son and we see that her other hand directs us to him. Through Mary we are led to Christ and with the rosary we are led to contemplate his life. May we learn in Mary’s school how to open our lives to her Son and how to imitate his example of sharing God’s love with the world.

The rosary is a contemplative prayer by its nature and is not to be rushed through. The rosary is a meditation with Mary on Christ. No one can introduce us to a profound knowledge of Christ better than his own mother, Mary. When we pray the rosary and contemplate the life of Christ, it should aid us in our spiritual life to become more like Christ and we should commend ourselves to the maternal care of the Virgin Mary, who is the Mother of Christ, Mother of the Church and our Mother.

Slide 3

Reader 3:

Pope St. John Paul II had great devotion to our Blessed Mother and to the rosary. In 2002, he wrote an Apostolic Letter on The Rosary of the Virgin Mary in which he introduced a new series of mysteries called the Mysteries of Light or Luminous Mysteries. These mysteries focus on the Jesus’ public life and the proclamation of the Gospel. They include: the Baptism of Jesus in the Jordan, the Wedding at Cana, the Proclamation of the Gospel, the Transfiguration, and the Institution of the Eucharist. Pope St. John Paul II added these mysteries so that the rosary may more fully reflect the Gospel and the key events in Jesus’ ministry. The other mysteries are the Glorious, Joyful and Sorrowful Mysteries. Through all the mysteries Mary is present with and to her Son, inviting us to contemplate his life, passion and death, resurrection and ascension, and his presence in our Church and in our lives. St. John Paul II encouraged the faithful and especially families to take up the practice of praying the rosary together as so many families did in the past. He recommended that children be taught the rosary at an early age.

Reader 4:

Of the rosary Pope St. John Paul II said:

Contemplating Christ’s birth, they learn of the sanctity of life;

seeing the household of Nazareth, they learn the original truth

of the family according to God’s plan; listening to the Master

in the mysteries of his public ministry, they find the light that

leads them to enter the Kingdom of God; and following him on

the way to Calvary, they learn the meaning of salvific suffering.

Finally, contemplating Christ and his Blessed Mother in glory,

they see the goal towards which each of us is called. ¹

The rosary, a simple yet profound prayer has the ability to assist us in our growth in holiness.

Leader (reader 1):

The rosary is introduced by the Creed, the Our Father, three Hail Marys and the Doxology (Glory Be). It involves the recitation of five decades consisting of the Our Father, 10 Hail Marys and the Doxology. At the beginning of each decade the mystery is announced and a few moments of silent reflection are taken to contemplate the mystery. The rosary concludes with the Hail, Holy Queen (Salve Regina).

Now let us take a few moments and place ourselves in the presence of God and ask Mary to intercede for our needs and the needs of our world as we begin:

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

Let us pray together.

Slide 4:

Lord’s Prayer

Slide 5:

Hail Mary (3 times)

Slide 6:

Glory Be

Slide 7:

Hail, Holy Queen

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

References:

“Rosarium Virginis Mariae” (Pope John Paul II). 2002. Vatican, April 20, 2016 <https://w2.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/apost_letters/2002/documents/hf_jp-ii_apl_20021016_rosarium-virginis-mariae.html >.