If you want to say the whole rosary it's a little bit more than the Hail Mary. But I have found that just saying the Hail Mary repeatedly is very helpful. I try to focus on the words and what the meaning is that it's trying to convey. Not just saying the words for the sake of saying the words. Below is a link on how to say the rosary. It's quite lengthy but near the top is a short version on how to say it:
That is lengthy. If I just do the Hail Mary part, what do I do with the beads?If you want to say the whole rosary it's a little bit more than the Hail Mary. But I have found that just saying the Hail Mary repeatedly is very helpful. I try to focus on the words and what the meaning is that it's trying to convey. Not just saying the words for the sake of saying the words. Below is a link on how to say the rosary. It's quite lengthy but near the top is a short version on how to say it:
How to Pray the Rosary
The Rosary is a Scripture-based prayer. It begins with the Apostles' Creed, which summarizes the great mysteries of the Catholic faith. The Our Father, which...www.usccb.org
Also, here is the Hail Mary if you just want to try saying it:
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.
Depends on what you mean by "works." I've experimented with more traditional prayer routines just to see how it affects my mind. I think prayer can be a meditative exercise; I'm agnostic about God's existence and have no expectations. I was raised protestant, so formal prayers were discouraged in favor of making rambling requests from God, which I never liked doing.
That's a fair point. I was imposing my own goals and values onto the practice. I definitely don't have the same relationship to it as a believing Christian. I think what I found beneficial was that it acted as a crutch for concentration, which can then be calming. I liked the tactile quality of it too.I honestly don't get how praying to Jesus or Mary could possibly be an effective meditative exercise if one is an atheist. Christian prayer isn't like the most widespread form of Buddhist meditation in the West; the latter doesn't require the belief in anything supernatural. (Yes, I know you are not an atheist.)
I assume that @indigomoon benefits from praying the Rosary because they believe that Mary & Jesus are very much real & that they love them... Would a believing Catholic profit from spending an hour praising Allah, Odin, Zeus or some other deity they don't think exists?
Yeah I would do it for the meditative benefit. Like a long mantra.
If you're such a devout believer, then why are you considering suicide? You have a connection with the creator and know his mind through his holy book. How is that not enough to sustain you through life's trials and tribulations?
Being a believer does not erase the pain from the past and my current suffering in the present. This isn't to discourage anyone away from God. I was also terribly neglected, abused as a child. I lost my children to abortions, failed in relationships and have had many heartbreaks and dissappointments. So I've been chronically suicidal for many years but will I go through with it I don't know. I guess to some extent my faith is keeping me here. Probably the main reason is bc of Christianity is why I'm not dead yet.
No he's not. Much of my suffering came through my own ignorance about guidance on how to live. I was destroying myself. I was a victim through child abuse but that didn't have to destroy my life if I had understood about how to live according to God so that I do not bring uneccessary suffering into myself.
I just hold them between my fingers. They are mainly there to help you count how many Hail Mary's you've said with the rosary.
I think it could help. Full disclosure, I'm not a religious person but a spiritual one. Even before I was, I found that small repetitive actions were very calming. Decorating, drawing things repetitively etc got me to relax a lot.
