meditation - Live Holiness

Last Wednesday I returned from Rome where I’d been visiting with seminarians at the North American College. It was my fifth trip to Rome, but each time I visit I’m always reminded of the importance of the transcendent in our lives.

When one walks into St. Peter’s basilica–or other major basilicas or churches in Rome or around the world–one’s heart and mind is drawn to contemplate divine mysteries and eternal truths. The very art and architecture of these sacred spaces propel one’s vision heavenward. Indeed, these places of worship were designed to lift the mind and heart to God.

The Rosary, too, is meant to elevate the mind and heart to God. I believe that this aspect of transcendence is what sets Christian meditation apart from other generic forms of meditation. By “generic” I do not intend to demean other forms of meditation; I simply want to distinguish between Christian meditation and meditation that focuses solely on calming the mind and relaxing the body.

The Rosary, like a great basilica, is meant to draw us out of ourselves. The Rosary leads us deeper into the mysteries of Christ’s life, and therefore deeper into friendship with Christ himself. Whereas some forms of meditation focus on emptying the mind through deep breathing, the meditation of the Rosary fills the mind and heart with thoughts of the divine. The Rosary takes us up into something greater than ourselves.

What’s so healing about this form of meditation is that our own lives are illuminated by the very mysteries we contemplate in the Rosary: the Joyful Mysteries show us how we can bring Christ’s presence into the world; the Sorrowful Mysteries teach us to see the good that can come from our suffering; the Luminous Mysteries enable us to discover our mission in Christ; and the Glorious Mysteries enflame our hearts with the hope of eternal life.

Breathing meditation can be a tool to prepare us to pray the Rosary; but the Rosary itself is meant to lead to communion with God. The paradox is that the more we “lose” ourselves in meditating on Christ’s life, the more we “find” our true selves in Christ.

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There’s a renewed interest in spirituality these days, especially the practice of meditation. For the next several posts I’d like to reflect upon a great Catholic tradition that I believe is one of the best ways to practice meditation and to progress in contemplative prayer: the Rosary.

Let’s start with the most obvious fact about the Rosary: it’s a set of beads.

Interestingly, many world religions use beads. Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, and Catholics all use beads as an aid for prayer. Some might consider this idolatrous: Why use a handmade instrument for the spiritual practice of prayer?

I’d like to attempt to answer that question in this short post; for, rather than being a form of idolatry, Catholics pray the Rosary to deepen their contemplation of the mysteries of Christ’s life. The beads themselves are not the focus of the Rosary, but they aid us in our meditation upon the Lord.

So why use beads? Why not just sit quietly, meditating on the Lord? Well, we certainly can do that. However, Christianity, in essence, is a very tangible religion. After all, God became man in the person of Jesus Christ. You can’t get much more tangible than God taking on human flesh. Jesus used his own spittle combined with dirt to heal the blind man (John 9:6). He took ordinary bread and wine and changed it into his body and blood, a miracle that we relive every day at Mass. A wooden cross became the instrument that brought about our salvation.

If Christ used tangible realities to communicate his divine life to us, then we can use tangible things to deepen our union with him. The Rosary is just that: it’s tangible; the beads guide us as we pray; the beads free our minds and hearts to focus on the mystery we are contemplating.

Dr. Mark Miravalle, one of my college theology professors, used to say that “The beads are for the prayers, and the prayers are for the mysteries.” In other words, the beads helps us to focus on the prayers, and the prayers help us to focus on Christ. The beads and the prayers, in a sense, become the dramatic musical score leading us to experience Jesus in a deeper way.

There’s something relaxing, contemplative, about letting the beads flow through our fingers, spinning them as we prayer the Hail Marys. Like life, like breathing, like the heartbeat, the Rosary is rythmic.

If you’re not Catholic, stick with me for the next few posts. I know there are a lot of misconceptions about Catholic devotion to Mary and the Rosary and I’d like to have the opportunity to explain it to you. If you’re Catholic but don’t pray the Rosary, I encourage you to form the habit. Just start by praying one decade a day. It’s not about quickly firing off a bunch of Our Fathers, Hail Marys, and Glory be’s; it’s about praying from the heart and entering more deeply into friendship with the Lord. As we let the beads pass through our fingers, our minds are free to meditate upon Jesus.

In the next post I will focus on the difference between meditation in general and Christian meditation as practiced in the rosary.

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