As a fervent Catholic growing up, I prayed the rosary often. In fact, I still have my original rosary in a shadow box with a picture of me in my altar boy cassock. During those formative years, running my fingers over the crucifix and fifty-nine beads, while repeating the assigned prayers, was an often-recurring part of my spiritual regimen (quoting the Apostles’ Creed, fifty-three Hail Marys, six Our Fathers and six Glory Be prayers). Then I drifted from the church as a teenager and that practice became a faint memory. At the age of 19, however, I was born again, then shortly afterward, baptized with the Holy Spirit. From that point, I began serving God with all my heart. However, I have never prayed the rosary in over fifty years—and for the following five reasons.
(1) Jesus taught against repetitious prayer
Many who are deeply sincere pray the rosary often. But is doing so Scriptural? Does God approve of it? Does it work?
Jesus was very clear in warning against this practice. He instructed His disciples, “When you pray, do not use vain repetitions, as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their much speaking” (Matthew 6:7). Why repeat the same prayers, over and over, with no variation, thousands of times over years and even decades? We would never attempt to communicate with fellow humans using such a method.
What if every time a wife needed her husband to take out the trash, she grabbed a string of beads and repeated in mantra-like fashion, “Please take out the garbage,” at least a hundred times? Would that help facilitate the process? I don’t think so. Quite the opposite would probably happen. One time of sincerely making that request known should prove sufficient. In a similar way, prayer is meant to be heartfelt and conversational, not memorized and mechanical.
(2) The mind-boggling logistics of praying to Mary
There are 1.3 billion Catholics in the world. Just suppose only one-tenth of them prayed the rosary in a day. That’s 130 million people quoting the Hail Mary fifty-three times (the number of beads assigned to that prayer). That totals 6,890,000,000 Hail Mary petitions lifted to her in one day. Divide that by 1,440 minutes in a day and you have Mary receiving almost five million prayerful requests with each passing minute.
Think about that! Could you process nearly five million people talking to you at the same time? To intelligently log that many petitions, Mary would have to be omniscient and omnipresent—attributes only God possesses. Besides, isn’t it strange that there are fifty-three prayers to Mary in the rosary as opposed to twelve prayers to God logged during the rosary recitation? Doesn’t that seem totally out of balance, attributing far more importance to a created human being than the Creator Himself?
There is absolutely no record of anyone in the Bible praying to Mary or to the saints after they have passed to the next world. It is a non-Scriptural practice, even when using all 73 books of the Catholic Bible as a basis for proof. The few biblical passages sometimes cited by Catholics in an attempt to uphold this doctrine do not and can not successfully prove the legitimacy of the concept. (This is a subject I address extensively in my book The Beliefs of the Catholic Church.) Praying to the saints is actually an attempt to contact the dead, something God calls an “abomination” in Deuteronomy 18:11-12.
Many Catholics have no idea that the rosary did not exist until around 1208 A.D., over a thousand years after the church was birthed in this world. It wasn’t needed then, and it isn’t needed now.
(3) Are you a sinner or a saint?
Here’s the wording of the Hail Mary prayer:
“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.”
Those who pray the rosary repeatedly identify themselves as sinners (fifty-three times). However, the Bible speaks very disparagingly of that class of individuals. Read Psalm 1 and my point is quickly proven. Verse one declares, “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the way of sinners.” Then verse five warns that “sinners” will not stand in “the congregation of the righteous.”
All those who are truly born again are commonly referred to as saints in Scripture (not “sinners,” which is definitely quite the opposite). The Bible-based definition of a “saint” is someone who has been sanctified: cleansed from the defilement of sin, made holy, and consecrated to God. Check out Paul’s opening greeting to various churches in his epistles. He often refers to all believers as “saints” (Ephesians 1:1, Colossians 1:1-2).
Another side issue—how could Mary be aware of the “hour” of every Catholic’s death? There are approximately 1.3 billion Catholics in a world teeming with approximately 8 billion people, Therefore, Catholics make up about 16.25% of the world population. About 165,000 people die daily. If you do the math, that could mean about 26,800 Catholics passing away each day. Once again, only an omniscient, omnipresent God could be cognizant of such an ongoing exodus from this world to the next.
(4) Meditating on the mysteries
Those who pray the rosary are taught to meditate on various mysteries during its recitation. Most are pivotal happenings in the life of Jesus. However, two “Glorious Mysteries” are non-biblical and non-provable: the Assumption of Mary into heaven and the Coronation of Mary as Queen of heaven. Both have been strongly debated matters of speculation from around the fifth century onward. The Assumption of Mary finally became official church dogma in 1950. Her status as Queen of heaven, though contested for centuries, was finally ratified by the decree of Pope Pius XII in his encyclical Ad Caeli Reginam on October 11, 1954. That’s nearly two thousand years after the establishment of the church in this world. Such beliefs were never part of the doctrinal foundation of Christianity.
(5) An unknown practice for over a millennium
Dominic promoted the concept of the rosary (1208 A.D.) after claiming to receive a vision of Mary and instructions from her concerning its use.
Most people believe the origin of the rosary can be traced to Dominic, a Castillian Catholic priest who claimed to have a vision of Mary in 1208 A.D. She supposedly instructed him to pray the rosary so that his inferior force of only 1,500 Catholic fighters could prevail against a superior army of over 30,000 Albigensian soldiers. This attacking group was trying to take over a certain region of France, teaching a dualistic view of the Godhead and creation, the heresy that everything material is evil, created by an evil god, while only that which is spiritual is good and was created by a holy God.
The Albigensians spent the night in drunken revelry before the battle while Dominic’s followers spent the night praying the rosary. Then Dominic’s forces launched a surprise attack and miraculously won. The idea of praying the rosary became popular as a result, but that one battle is not sufficient proof of this non-biblical practice that has become so all-pervasive within Catholicism.
Besides, that was over a millennium after the Lord Jesus walked in this world. The original church would have never used beads to count repetitious prayers or prayed to Mary. Other religions count prayer beads (like Buddhists, Hindus, and Muslims), but there’s no account in the book of Acts of early Christians doing so.
There is a scripture that warns, “Learn not the way of the heathen” (Jeremiah 10:2 KJV).
Thank you!
Thank you, Kimberly, for visiting our website. Please share it, especially with those who need it the most. Also, just in case you are not aware of it, I have another website that deals with the comparison of world religions: http://www.thetruelight.net. Blessings!
Hi Mike, Pope Saint John Paul 11 wrote an Apostolic Letter entitled “Rosarium Virginia Mariae” on the Rosary, addressing it to Bishops, Clergy and the Faithful which may be helpful towards addressing some or all of you re concerns regarding the Rosary.
Hello Mary, I apologize for being so long in responding to you. I have been traveling and speaking for three weeks. Thank you for the suggestion. I will look it up, though I cannot imagine anything changing my mind on this matter. I appreciate you visiting our website. God bless!
Hi Mike,
I wish you God’s peace.
Well, I’d not want to write such a long and arduous comment but in order to defend my religion from the arguments you’ve made would require quite a long post…so here it is.
I’ll keep it as short as possible for your benefit.
First of all, you’re a Christian…so you’re on the right track. Unfortunately you’ve been dispelled by lies and lured away from the one true Church of Christ.
As a Catholic, I am taught that while other Christian religions make it possible for their followers to earn their way into eternal glory, the perfect way to worship Christ is through His one Church, the Catholic Church and It will never be too late for you to return. While I am praying my rosary I will offer the intention for your conversion back into His perfect glory.
Ok…so first. You’ve cited a verse in Deuteronomy (18:11-12) of which Moses is expounding to the Israelites not to pray to the dead. That God finds this to be an abomination. You’ve taken that way out of context. God is reinforcing his will upon the people to not worship as the pagans worshipped…false idols and gods. He’s talking like, spirits, Moloch, Baal…necromancers, diviners, dark spirits, demons…he’s not talking about people who’ve passed. Theology is all about language Mike…
Yet also on this topic…that’s Old Testament stuff. When Christ came…a new covenant came upon us. A covenant of love, redemption and forgiveness.
Why would we need redemption if we weren’t sinners? You referring to us all as Saints merely because we are baptized or “born again” is absurd. Again you’ve taken out of context the words of Saint Paul…he’s not referring to those people in the openings of his letters as Saints because they are actually saints…he’s calling them Holy or Saints to prop them up. To inspire them! But their judgement is yet to come and Paul has no business anyway in partaking of that judgement. That the Messiahs job.
From the very mouth of Christ comes a story of the prayers to the dead…The Rich Man and Lazarus…Luke 17:19-31…it is rich and vivid in the rhetoric of the dead and dead souls in action. You’re KJV of the Bible is even more profoundly in favor of prayers directed to the dead (from the mouth of Christ himself) that the exact words resonate “I pray thee!” Go read and learn.
Ok…back to the Old Testament…1 Samuel 28:15-16…pretty to the point…prayers and petitions to the dead…
There are many more, I’m sure you know them. My point is, your argument is weak. You cite one verse, out of context (because it’s referring to pagan worship) and then assume that a person asking a Saint to pray for them is sinful…and that is the only abomination on this page.
Secondly, this thing with you and the math! Auy! The millions of prayers and the “who can keep track”… let me ask you this…do you believe time works in the Heavenly Kingdom as it does here on Earth? Do you actually think that there are minutes and hours in God’s glorious kingdom? I know with certainty that there is not. My proof will come at another time if you request it…but it’s too long to explain here and now.
God’s will is the only thing that is. Our prayers go up from our minds and they linger there in his midst like trillions of pin pricks of light. He can behold them all…when you direct a prayer to the Trinity, an Angel or a Saint those prayers are all there for the One Omniscient Loving and Holy God to to see, feel or hear…upon his will. There is not a thought that can cross your mind, without even being spoken, that Our God does not know…so then, are you telling us that our prayers to Mary are not known or being kept track of? It’s a silly argument really.
I have more if you want it…my brother in Christ…
Do you think Christ is still at work doing the will of his Father? Or do you think he sits idle at the right hand of God?
You see, that is the biggest lie of the Protestant churches…Sola Scriptura…
You think that God has stopped working since the resurrection of His son. And that all His revelation has stopped with the Bible. You can’t admit that “post Bible”, God is still revealing himself to us all.
So when you say, “only after a millennium” did the beads come…I say, kudos…and thank you God and the Blessed Mother for bringing them.
Just because some part of God’s revelation happened after the Bible was written does not make it illegitimate. In fact, it’s a preposterous assertion that all Protestants make.
Do yourself a favor…go get those beads from your shadow box and return to your proper place my man. The Blessed Virgin Mary is calling you to Christ.
Many blessings through Our Lord Mike.
Ralph A.
Hello Ralph,
I love the passion you evidently have for what you believe. Of course, we disagree on many issues—but I am sure we agree on some essential truths, such as — Jesus dying on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins and rising again the third day. In the following message, I will respond to some of your claims. You said, “As a Catholic, I am taught that while other Christian religions make it possible for their followers to earn their way into eternal glory, the perfect way to worship Christ is through His one Church” (the Catholic Church). That is very gracious of you (and I believe you are a gracious person), to say that I could earn my way into eternal glory, however, there are two things wrong with that assumption. First, your Catechism disagrees with your claim. Read Paragraphs 846-848 and you will discover that “Outside the Church there is NO SALVATION.” (a reference to the Catholic Church). It goes on to explain, that if I knowledgeably reject the claims of Catholicism, even if I claim to be a Christian, I CANNOT be saved. The only provision otherwise (repeated three times in those paragraphs) is if “through no fault of [my] own” I am ignorant of Christ and His Church, but I strive to live a godly life.
You bring up a valid point about the passage I quote (Deuteronomy 18:9-13 / especially verse 11). You say that language is important in theology and it is. You are misinterpreting those terms. Mediums, spiritists, and necromancers did not attempt to contact gods such as those you mentioned. Such persons would have been termed idolaters. Usually mediums, spiritists, and necromancers attempt to “call up the dead” in order to communicate with them (a 2-way conversation). I admit, Catholics do NOT do that. However, I believe a one-way conversation of praying to the saints is just as erroneous, but possibly, not as grievous a practice. There is no biblical example that actually supports the practice, even in the 73-book Catholic Bible. I go into great detail about that in the article – “Is Praying to the Saints Biblically Correct.” I do seriously believe, even though Mary and the other prominent early believers are in “eternity,” that they still cannot process the millions of prayer requests that ascend toward them every minute. Not only is it theologically incorrect; it is logistically impossible. But the support for my opinion is in the article that deals with the concept. You commented that “Sola Scriptura” (only Scripture) is the “biggest lie of the Protestant churches, however, please consider Paul’s warning:
Gal 1:6 I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel,
Gal 1:7 which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ.
Gal 1:8 But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.
Gal 1:9 As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.
Gal 1:10 For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ.
Those are strong words (so strong, he says it twice). Even though the early church did not have the Bible (bound together as one book), they DID have the individual parts (the Gospels and the Epistles and later on, the book of the Revelation). Copies were made and sent to the various churches in different areas. So this quote of Paul to the Galatians is relevant. If the pope and all the bishops worldwide (the magisterium) agree on a doctrine that is extra-biblical, it is serious error, even when infallibility is claimed. Or we might as well throw out the epistle to the Galatians (quoted above). Fresh revelation must agree with established revelation: like the two tracks that a train uses. If one track veers away, a train wreck is inevitable.
I love your fervency Ralph and I believe you love God, and I hope you have truly been born again (which is the MOST IMPORTANT ISSUE). But please pray about these things, and don’t just repeat the counter-arguments that Catholic apologists use until you prayerfully ponder the issues and ask God for His guidance. Thank you for visiting my page—-and by way, thanks for the suggestion, but I believe I will just leave the rosary in the shadow box where it belongs, a reminder of a time in my life whey I was very sincere, but sincerely wrong.