The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1913-10-04
THE ROSARY.
The Vocal Prayers of the Rosary
Special Indulgences During October.

The Reverend W. Lescher, o. p, in
his little volume, THE Rosary of the
Blessed Virgin" gives the following
admirable exposition of the prayers
and indUIgences of the Rosary:
The vocal prayers of the Rosary are
one hundred and fifty Hail Mary's,
divided into tens, and one Our Father
before each decade.
The Glory be to the Father is now
universally said after each decade,
but it is not, strictly speaking, part
of the Rosary.
The Our Father is the best of all
prayers, because it was taught by Our
Lord Himself, and, as st. Augustine
says, IF we pray well, we can ask
nothing but what we find in the
Lords Prayer"
st. Thomas Aquinas says, that not
only Tin the Lords Prayer are all
necessary things asked for, but also
and hence this prayer, besides teaching
us to pray, forms Alright the whole
disposition of our heart"
The Hail Mary was brought straight
from heaven by the Archangel
Gabriel, and was inspired by the
Holy Ghost to ST. Elizabeth. In say
ing it we renew the joy of the Blessed
Mother of God in hearing the Saluta-
ton for the first time.
St. Dominic was prominently the
Apostle of Vocal Prayer. He not only
practised it himself, as all the saints
have done, but he made it popular;
that is to say, he made it understood
and loved. 1t is recorded in many
places in his life how much he loved
to exercise his voice in the service
of God He would spend hours in
ejaculatory prayer. He strove to
spread the same practice far and wide,
thereby forestalling certain objections
that prevent some from adopting vocal
prayer as much as they might
1t is a great mistake to imagine
that vocal prayer is not perfect
prayer. When properly recited, it has
all the conditions of prayer Some
persons almost seem to regard vocal
prayer as a distraction So far from
this being the case, it ought to be,
and is, when it has the fitting condi-
tions, help to meditation.
Vocal Prayer has these great ad-
vantages:
1. 1t is a great help to temptation,
especially when bad thoughts assail
the mind. The Holy Name JESUS,
devoutly pronounced, has a divine
ho11 - fh0 cir 10
word Credo may Danish all the So
phistical arts of the demon of false
hood
2 1t is a test against pride and
delusion. To pray with the voice is
the prayer of children; it humbles the
soul and fosters a childlike spirit.
Likewise it guards the soul from the
subtle errors of quietism, etc. There
is no4surer test for detecting illusion
than to bring our meditation into
conformity with the simple vocal
prayers of the Church.
8. 1t is the universal form of
prayer, common to all ages and cOun-
tries.
4. 1t is the prayer of community
life.
5. 1t is the prayer most clearly
and authoritatively sanctioned in the
Holy Scriptures, and by the Church.
6. 1t is the prayer used by Our
Lord Himself on many occasions in
the Holy Gospels, and by Our Lady
in her Magnificent.
Z. 1t fills the mind with good
thoughts for word is a thought, and
not an empty sound. To say good
and holy words, even in a mechanical
way, is useful exercise, for the power
of words over the mind is very great
These and the like considerations
made the glorious Patriarch ST. Dom
inic spread the Rosary far and wide
He meant it to be first and chiefly what
it is-a Vocal Prayer, suited for all,
and in that character it has overspread
Christendom.
1t is the most perfect expression of
his own spirit 1t suffices to read his
life to see that the Rosary could only
have come from him.
InduIgences Shared In by All the
Faithful for October Devotion to
the Rosary.
Plenary-On Rosary Sunday, or any
day within octave: Confession, Com
munion, visit to a church, with pray
ers for Pope's Intentions provided
five Mysteries are said on the feast
and on every day during octave, either
publicly in a church, or in private
Plenary-For five Mysteries, wheth-
er publicly or in private, on any ten
days of October latter the octave of
the Rosary. Confession, Commun-
ion, visit to a church and there pray
for Popes intentions or any day at
choice
Seven years and seven forty-days
every day in October for five Mys-
teries either in church or in private
All these indulgences are applicable
to the holy souls.
The indulgences named above are
taken from the Index of Indulgences
approved by His Holiness Pope Lee
XIII at an audience granted August
10, 1899.