The Rosary and The Hail Mary are rooted in Scripture, not man made. Mary, Our Blessed Mother, was chosen by God, the Father! She was chosen for God, The Son! She is a Holy Vessel, but so much more. She is the Ark of The New Covenant (see link at the bottom of this article) because her womb bore and housed God Himself! She is The Bride of The Holy Spirit!
Mary is called Theotokos in the Greek which translates to English as Mother of Jesus or Mother of God.
Mary is also the perfect model of human obedience to the will of God and wisdom (See Proverbs 9:10). No other human being in the history of mankind cooperated with God’s grace like she did. She could have said no to the Angel Gabriel and to God’s will for her life. God did not make her become the mother of Jesus, he asked her. Thank God for her FIAT! Her act of faith, her YES!
I encourage all to prayerfully and meditatively read The Gospel of Luke Chapter 1:26-56 as well as The Catechism of The Catholic Church starting at section 484.
For me, my Bible is my playbook and The Catechism of The Catholic Church is my weekly game plan. These two books work together like peanut butter and jelly and are necessary for growth in spiritual matters and formation of conscience. I played football from age 7-21 so this makes sense to me. I needed my playbook and weekly game plan to succeed in carrying out my duties as a football player and I need my Bible and CCC to reach my full potential as a Christian.
As for The Mother of God, she was esteemed by the Apostles and early church fathers starting in the first century. At the foot of the cross Jesus gave her to the care of The Apostle John who took her into his home and gave John to her to care for as son and so in turn gave her to His Church as Mother!
Mary of Nazareth, guided Jesus with tenderness and maternal love. We are called to bring her love and guidance to all those we come into contact with.
Mary of The Cenacle approached everything she did with an unselfish spirit. Cenacle was the group that the Holy Spirit descended upon at Pentecost, when Mary and The Apostles were in that room together. Cenacle is also the Upper Room Jesus and His Apostles were in during The Last Supper. We are called to always be open to the promptings of The Holy Spirit in our lives and to pray and work tirelessly for the communion of all people, encouraging all to go out to the world and tell the Good News.
Mary of The Visitation went without delay while pregnant into the “hill country” to visit and spend time with and help her older cousin Elizabeth when she heard the good news that she was pregnant in her old age. May we go out without delay to all people, bringing them news of the justice and faithful mercy of God.
Mary of The Annunciation and The Incarnation and The Presentation of the baby Jesus and The Finding of Jesus in the Temple when he was only 12 years old pondered all these things in her heart and listened to and obeyed God’s voice! May we listen to God’s voice obediently so we may experience His love for us; and may we place our trust in God and receive the spiritual energy we need as Mary did.
Mary of The Wedding Feast of Cana was attentive to the needs of others around her and always simply says to us as she said to them: “Do whatever He tells you.” May we never waiver from going to Mary to ask her simple intercession to bring our needs to the feet of Her beloved Son.
Mary at The foot of the Cross never ran or was faint. She suffered spiritual martyrdom “as a sword pierced her own soul” as the prophet Simeon forwarned her at the presentation of Jesus as an infant, while her Son Jesus, King of Martyrs, suffered physical death and total humiliation and abandonment throughout His Passion. Mary was always there by His side suffering with Him. (Luke 2:25-35)
Jesus, The King, and Mary, The Queen Mother are two hearts beating as one starting at The Annunciation to forever; The Sacred Heart and The Immaculate Heart.
The Scriptural Rosary –
Joyful Mysteries – (prayed on Monday and Saturday)
The Annunciation of Mary that she is to be the Mother of the Savior (Luke 1:26-38; Isaiah 7:14)
The Visitation of Mary to her cousin Elizabeth (Luke 1:39-45)
The Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ (Luke 2:1-7; Matthew 1:23)
The Presentation of the Infant Jesus in the Temple (Luke 2:22-38)
The Finding of the Child Jesus in the Temple (Luke 2:41-52)
Luminous Mysteries – (prayed on Thursday)
The Baptism of Jesus in the Jordan (Matthew 3:13-17)
The Wedding Feast at Cana (John 2:1-2)
The Proclamation of The Kingdom of God (Mark 1:15; 2:3-13)
The Transfiguration of Jesus (Luke 9:28-36)
The First Eucharist (Matthew 26:26-30)
Sorrowful Mysteries – (prayed on Tuesday and Friday)
The Agony of Christ in the Garden (Mark 14:32-36)
The Scourging of Jesus at the Pillar (John 18:28-38; 19:1)
The Crowning with Thorns (Mark 15: 16-20)
The Carrying of the Cross (Luke 23:26-32)
The Crucifixion and Death of Jesus (Luke 23:33-34; 39-46)
Glorious Mysteries – (prayed on Sunday and Wednesday)
The Resurrection of Jesus (Luke 24:1-6)
The Ascension of Jesus into Heaven (Luke 24:50-53)
The Coming of The Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1-4)
The Assumption of Mary into Heaven (1 Thessalonians 4:14-17)
The Coronation of Mary (Revelation 12:1-6)
The Memorare, Salve Regina and Ave Maria forever!!!
As I stated in this article, devotion to Mary, Mother of God started in the earliest days of Christianity and was passed on to each generation.
“Mary and Jesus go together. Through Mary we want to continue our converse with the Lord and to learn how to receive Him better. Holy Mother of God, pray for us, just as at Cana you prayed for the bride and the bridegroom! Guide us towards Jesus–ever anew! Amen!” – (Homily , Altotting, September 11, 2006 – Pope Benedict XVI)
In the early 1200’s Mary appeared to St. Dominic and gave Him the Rosary as we know and pray it today. It is made up of beads on a chord that makes a circle with the Crucifix at the end of it and we pray the Apostles Creed, Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be and Hail Holy Queen while holding our hand and fingers over the beads as we move our fingers from one bead to the next to completion. There are 5 decades with 50 beads and we meditate upon the mysteries for that particular day as outlined above.
Special thanks to The Marist Brothers pamphlet on Mary, Our Good Mother, http://www.maristbr.org
http://www.catholic.com/magazine/articles/mary-the-ark-of-the-new-covenant
Charles DeFeo: Catholic Blogger and Useless Servant of Christ 
Chas, I enjoyed the Theotokos post today. I’ve been praying the Rosary every day for many years but never really committed the Mysteries to memory. this post has helped. Your analogy to PB&J made perfect sense. Keep writing! MLB
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