***Paraphrased version only***
Many people don't like praying the rosary. Some people say it is only boring, vain repetition. Consider this: when you like a new song and you want to remember it, you usually repeat it again and again. And even the songs that you sing probably repeat the same things again and again. Are these vain repetitions? The rosary is a very beautiful prayer. In it, we repeat the words of an angel and a saint. And in the end is added a very beautiful and interesting request, "Pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death." Every word of the Hail Mary is filled with so much meaning. And although it may seem that we are giving too much attention to Mary, by repeating the Ave Maria more times than the Lord's Prayer and the Glory Be, we mention the Most Holy Name of Jesus just as often, if not more. For at the center of each Ave Maria is Jesus. When the mystery of each decade is announced, it is not just a phrase that we announce. It leads us to a meditation on the life of Our Lord like Mary, who kept the words of Jesus in her heart and contemplated on them.
Now, it is true that we sometimes find difficulty in praying the rosary. Oftentimes, we get distracted. We start praying the first decade and before we know it, we've reached the fourth decade, and realize that in between, we have spaced out. Our minds had fluttered to other things again. But we should not despair. St. Therese used to confess in her letters that she prayed the rosary so badly. She would always be distracted or feel sleepy. But still, she tried to pray it well everyday. I'm sure that Our Lady is not standing beside you, criticizing you everytime you pray the rosary distractedly. Of course, we should give it our best effort and say it as lovingly as we can. But I'm sure the effort you put in praying the rosary, although you may get distracted, will make Our Lady very happy.
In this month of the Rosary, it would be good for us if we can say the rosary daily. Not only do we make Our Lady happy, we also attain many graces for ourselves. We should also encourage our family and friends to pray this prayer. The Rosary is a prayer that has been loved by all the saints, endorsed by the Church for hundreds of years, and endorsed by Mary herself in the apparitions approved by the Church. What more recommendations do we need?
"Blessed be that monotony of Hail Marys which purifies the monotony of your sins!"
- St. Josemaria Escriva
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