The purpose of the rosary in the Roman Catholic Church is to commemorate certain events in the life of Jesus Christ, and to thank and praise God. There are a total of twenty Mysteries reflected upon in the Rosary, and these are divided into four groups of Mysteries: Joyful, Luminous, Sorrowful, and Glorious.
The Catholic rosary contains five decades, each one a reflection of one of the Mysteries within the Mystery group. Mystery groups are prayed on a certain day of the week or during a particular time of the year.
Following are the Glorious Mysteries, which are prayed on Wednesdays, on Sundays, and during the Easter season.
1st Glorious Mystery – The Resurrection of Jesus Christ
In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre. And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it. And the angel answered and said unto the women: “Fear not ye! For I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here. For he is risen, as he said”. (Mat 28,1-6)The risen Jesus has proved that man, together with Him, can have power over sin and therefore death. Jesus, help raise us, deliver us from sin, from evil, give us Your light, give us Your joy. Rekindle inside us the love, the faith, the hopefulness, and the gift of prayer. Let us ask Mary for the gift of an unshakeable faith.
2nd Glorious Mystery – The Ascension of Jesus to Heaven
And as they are speaking these things, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them, and saith to them, “Peace to you”; being amazed, and becoming affrighted, they were thinking themselves to see a spirit. And he said to them, “Why are ye troubled? and wherefore do reasonings come up in your hearts? see my hands and my feet, that I am he; handle me and see, because a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me having.” And having said this, he shewed to them the hands and the feet. … “And, lo, I do send the promise of my Father upon you, but ye — abide ye in the city of Jerusalem till ye be clothed with power from on high.” And he led them forth without — unto Bethany, and having lifted up his hands he did bless them, and it came to pass, in his blessing them, he was parted from them, and was borne up to the heaven. (Luk 24,36-51)Jesus, You have not deserted Your apostles in anguish, but have given them the joy of knowing Jesus “glorified” over 40 days . After Your Ascension, You granted to all those who seek You the gift of recieving You in the Eucharist. Through Mary we trust in you. Mary, give us the gift of hope.
3rd Glorious Mystery – The Descent of the Holy Ghost
And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. (Act 2,1-4)Jesus, inffuse us with the Comforter, the Holy Ghost, enlighten us with the light of Your Spirit, with His strength enter in the deepest parts of our hearts and heal us. Deliver us, fill up our hearts with Your love. Make us apostles of Yours, dear Lord. Let us ask Mary the gift of true love, the gift of prayer from the heart.
“Come Holy Spirit, come by means of the powerful intercession of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Your well-beloved Spouse.”
4th Glorious Mystery – The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven
Blessed art thou of the most high God above all the women upon the earth; and blessed be the Lord God, which hath created the heavens and the earth, which hath directed thee to the cutting off of the head of the chief of our enemies. … Thou hast done all these things by thine hand: thou hast done much good to Israel, and God is pleased therewith: blessed be thou of the Almighty Lord for evermore. And all the people said, So be it. (Jdt 13,18-20; 15,10)Now that Mary is raised into heaven, She prays for Her sons and daughters, those sons and daughters Jesus left Her when He was on the cross. Mary, pray for us, You know our fears, take us into Your Heart, the Heart of a Mother. Help us now and in the time of our death to be with You in Heaven. We ask of you a devotion to Your Immaculate Heart, where we may take refuge in times of trouble.
5th Glorious Mystery – The Coronation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen of Heaven and Earth
There appeared a great sign in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. (Rev 12,1)Let us trust in Mary, Let us call to Her, let us love Her, let us confide in Her, because She gives Her all to us. We have a Mother in Heaven who is also a Queen; thus we need to turn to Her with full faith and hopefulness. If we ask for something while praying the Holy Rosary, it will be granted to us. Ask Her for the gift of prayer, a prayer of the heart, said only for love, a love for Her and Jesus. Let us also ask for a consistency of prayer, to always be joined to Her Heart, and therefore to the Heart of Jesus.
The Other Mysteries of the Rosary
The Joyful Mysteries
The Luminous Mysteries
The Sorrowful Mysteries