LIVING AND GROWING: The Sorrowful Mysteries
Published 3:30 am Saturday, June 20, 2026
“Say the Holy Rosary every day to obtain peace for the world.” – Our Lady of Fatima, 1917.
The Holy Rosary prayer was given by the Blessed Virgin Mary to Saint Dominic de Guzman, a Spanish-born 12th-century Castilian priest and founder of The Order of Preachers, commonly known as the Dominicans, in Toulouse, Southern France.
In his book “The Dignity of the Psalter,” Blessed Alan de la Roche said that after seeing the gravity of people’s sins, Saint Dominic withdrew into a forest near Toulouse. There he prayed for three days and three nights, fell into a coma, and the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to him with three angels and said: “Dear Dominic, do you know which weapon the Blessed Trinity wants to use to reform the world?” St. Dominic answered, “Oh, my Lady, you know far better than I do because next to your Son Jesus Christ you have always been the chief instrument of our salvation.” Our Lady replied: “I want you to know that, in this kind of warfare, the battering ram has always been the Angelic Psalter which is the foundation stone of the New Testament. Therefore, if you want to reach these hardened souls and win them over to God, preach my Psalter.” St. Dominic arose and went to the cathedral, and there he preached with burning zeal for the people’s conversion. Upon hearing St. Dominic’s preaching, the people of Toulouse understood the value and importance of the Holy Rosary; almost all of them changed their ways and lived Christian lives. St. Dominic crushed the Albigensian heresy movement in 12th and 13th centuries, and for the rest of his life, he preached the Holy Rosary.
The Holy Rosary begins with the Sign of the Cross “In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,” followed by the Apostles Creed – the summary of all Christian truths – which begins with “I Believe in God….” Most of the Holy Rosary prayers are the Lord’s Prayer, also known as Our Father and the Hail Mary’s.
Today, do we still pray the Lord’s Prayer with love, remembering that its Author is our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave this prayer to His apostles? Or do we now pray it with our mouth only, with the speed of a marathon runner?
The first part of the Hail Mary is the Angelic Salutation, brought from Heaven and first spoken by the Archangel Gabriel to Mary at the Annunciation. The second part was the greeting of Elizabeth (mother of John the Baptist) to Mary during her visitation. Inspired by the Holy Spirit, she greeted Mary “Blessed are you amongst women and blessed is the Fruit of Thy womb, Jesus.” The prayer “Holy Mary Mother of God pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death.” was added by the Church after the Council of Ephesus defined that the Blessed Virgin Mary is truly the Mother of God.
Be present at every mystery of the Sorrowful Mysteries – feel Jesus and Mary’s deepest pain and sorrow, as they obeyed God the Father’s will for the salvation of souls. Be at Mary’s side as you pray the Hail Mary.
The Sorrowful Mysteries:
The Agony In The Garden: He was in such agony, and He prayed so fervently that His sweat became like drops of blood falling on the ground. When He rose from prayer and returned to His disciples, He found them sleeping from grief. (Luke 22:44-45)
Fruit of the Mystery: sorrow for sin.
The Sourging At The Pillar: Then Pilate took Jesus and had Him scourged. (John 19:1)
Fruit of the Mystery: purity
Crowning With Thorns: They stripped off His clothes and threw a scarlet military cloak about Him. Weaving a crown out of thorns, they placed it on His head, and a reed in His right hand. (Matthew 27:28-29)
Fruit of the mystery: courage
Carrying The Cross: And carrying the cross Himself, He went out to what is called the Place of the Skill, in Hebrew, Golgotha. (John 19:17)
Fruit of the Mystery: Patience
The Crucifixion: Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Father, into Your hands I commend My spirit;” and when He had said this, He breathed His last. (Luke 23:46)
Fruit of the Mystery: perseverance.
Rosary means “crown of roses.” In De Montfort’s book “The secret of the Rosary” he mentioned that the chronicles of Saint Francis tell about a true story of a young friar who had a habit of praying the Rosary before dinner. One day he did not manage to pray so he asked and was granted permission by the superior to return to his cell to pray it before dinner. Later, the Superior sent another friar to this young friar’s cell as he was gone for a long time and found him bathed in a heavenly light facing Our Lady who had two angels. At each Hail Mary, beautiful roses kept issuing from the young friar’s mouth; the angels took them one by one, placing them on Our Lady’s head, and she smilingly accepted them. When the other friar also did not return, the superior sent two other friars to find out what happened to the first two. They, too, saw the same lovely scene, and Our Lady did not go away until the whole Rosary has been prayed.
In closing, let us pray:
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with Thee. Blessed art thou amongst 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.
Gina Del Rosario is a Roman Catholic who was born and raised in the Philippines, and is a parishioner at Saint Paul’s Catholic Church in Juneau. “Living and Growing” is a weekly column submitted by local clergy and spiritual leaders. It appears every Saturday on the Juneau Empire’s Faith page
