US Catholic has something about expanding your Rosary recitation with… wait for it…
SYNODAL Mysteries!
Here they are! Have at!
Sunday: Attentional
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- Reading the Gospel (Acts 1:1–5). Listening to the scriptures
- Waiting on the Spirit (Acts 1:6–11). Patience
- Praying in the Cenacle (Acts 1:12–14). Inclusion
- Peter Stands to Speak (Acts 1:15–22). Reciprocity
- Selection of St. Matthias (Acts 1:23–26). Discernment
Monday: Pentecostal
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- Descent of the Spirit (Acts 2:1–4). Boldness of speech
- Multitude in Jerusalem (Acts 2:5–13). Diversity
- St. Peter’s Sermon, (Acts 2:14–40). Encounter
- Baptism of the 3,000 (Acts 2:41–42). Generosity
- Growth of the Church (Acts 2:43–47). Joy
Tuesday: Ecclesial
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- Healing at the Beautiful Gate (Acts 3:1–10). Giving what one has
- Prayer after Persecution (Acts 4:23–31). Prayer
- Care for the Needy (Acts 4:32–37). Generosity
- Selection of Deacons (Acts 6:1–7). Collaboration
- Burial of Stephen (Acts 8:1–2). Compassion
Wednesday: Evangelization
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- Philip and the Ethiopian Treasurer (Acts 8:26–40). Dialogue
- Raising of Dorcas (Acts 9:36–43). Charity
- Mission to Cornelius (Acts 11:1–18). Transformation of conflict
- The Church in Antioch (Acts 11:19–26). Unity
- Deliverance of St. Peter (Acts 12:11–17). Listening to unexpected voices
Thursday: Reconciliation
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- Controversy Concerning Circumcision (Acts 15:1–6). Discernment
- Synod of Jerusalem (Acts 15:7–21). Communion
- The Jerusalem Decree (Acts 15:22–29). Sensus Fidei
- Reception of the Decree (Acts 15:30–35). Joy
- The Disagreement between Paul and Barabas (Acts 15:36–40). Evangelical frankness
Friday: Missional
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- Mission to Derbe and Lystra (Acts 16:1–5). Inculturation
- Conversion of Lydia (Acts 16:9–15). Hospitality
- St. Paul’s Speech in Athens (Acts 17:16–32). Proclamation
- St. Paul in Ephesus (Acts 19:1–7). Conversion
- Raising of Eutychus (20:7–12). Devotion to the Eucharist
Saturday: Pilgrimage
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- Arrival in Troas (Acts 21:1–6). Fruit: Setting sail
- Prophecy of Agabus (Acts 21:7–14). Fruit: Trust
- Sailing Toward Italy (Acts 27:6–9). Fruit: Perseverance
- Shipwreck at Sea (Acts 27:9–44). Fruit: Listening in the Spirit
- Arrival on Malta (Acts 28:1–10). Fruit: Assuming the best in others
Thoughts?
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Non,merci.
It’s hard to say it’s bad or wrong to mediate on scripture within the rosary even if it’s not the traditional mysteries. That being said, the “fruit” of some of them seems fairly contrived, like “setting sail” for Saturday A. What does that mean as a fruit of a mystery? What virtue does it inculcate?
I think there’s a danger in trying to forcefit preexisting devotions into something else, especially the “current thing.” I’m not saying that the person who developed these is doing this, but I think there’s a danger of mistaking the power or meaning of something like this for one’s own conception of what it represents or is supposed to be about.
It seems to me that if Synodality(TM) ever ends up being more than the contrived mess it has been, devotions and such (*shudder*) will organically or synodalically arise from it. And I really hope I didn’t just synodolize that into existence.
Trying their best to keep Synodality on the artificial respirator of digital mentions. Frankly, the legacy of Pope Francis will die with the last lib who has a fondness for squishy theology, the Season of Creation, and off-the-cuff in flight pressers. Synodality was always about keeping libs busy and trying to sneak garbage into the deposit of the Faith. Pray the rosary and read the Bible, but don’t square peg / round hole the two together in support of a bad idea.
I rejoice in the 50 clausulae of Dominicus Prutenus (which seem to be easily available online in assorted modern languages – though the handy German Wikipedia article External link to the Latin vanished long since) – but where, O where, do I find his 150?
I have yet to hear any account of sinodality that holds any water at all, that exceeds in informational and experiential value the short and MUCH CLEARER “you should listen openly to others.” As far as I can tell, anything else that has been mentioned in connection with sinodality is merely other good stuff that sinodalists are trying to co-op that doesn’t really come out of sinodality.
I expect that it will be just one more newspeak buzz-word, this one for the 2020s, like aggiornamento was for the 1960s, new evangelization in the 1980s, and stewardship in the 1990s. I would wonder whether the elite class doesn’t get tired of the rat race involved in rushing to meet the new catch-phrase, but I expect that most of them know perfectly well that the flavor of the month mantra is just for distraction. In the meantime: a synod is just a meeting of prelates, a man-made operational action in concert with others; Since it is man-made, it doesn’t have any internal, by-nature “essence”, it only has what men chose to make of it. “Synodal” is merely the adjective for “having to do with a synod”, and “synodality” is trying to make an abstract noun out of “synodal”, as if there was an essential, core reality inside of “synodal” that can be abstracted and known in its universality. But…is there? If there is, it doesn’t subsist in anything more special than “you should listen openly to others.”
As wise and valuable as this advice is, it does not represent the essential core of what it means to be the Catholic Church. Pope Francis would have done us more good by changing his stupid motto “hagan lio” to “you should listen to others”, and saved us all 10 wasted years of toying with a sinodal sinod on the sinodality of sinods called to be sinodal-like on sinodalitylikeness.
Pure vomit. The type that chases away faithful Catholics
Hmm, three sets of mysteries made for 150 Ave’s, a layman’s psalter in pre-literate societies. Luminous mysteries wrecked that, bringing total to 200, and this makes a total of 550 mysteries.
1. It includes a mystery about a “shipwreck” – telling indeed.
2. It reminds me of St. Pius X’s comment that {certain types of detractors} will talk a lot and in vague terms and try to sound reasonable, and maybe just imprecise in their language, but leading to their anti-ecclesial objectives.
3. Only a couple of these episodes seem to be theologically “mysterious” – dumbing down whoever falls for it?
Holy Mary, our Mother, pray for us.
St. Paul, pray for us.
St. Dominic, pray for us.
Thoughts?
This is surreal and hilarious.
My favorite is the Mystery of Diversity.
I suppose there is something inexplicable about the phrase “Diversity is our Greatest Strength” since no one understands it much less is able to explain why it is so.
Spare me. :( :(
I’ll take the 5 originals and raise them 2 Confiteors!
I think someone took a pretty solid 301 level (201? maybe) undergrad syllabus on Acts and thought “hey! This would make a great 7 decade rosary!” Kudos for imagination.
What a time to be alive!
7 days. One ‘mystery’ devoted to the Lord. The rest navel-gazing new age initiatives and feel good about myself…oh, I can’t even use the terms I’d use in polite company, so, in deferring to our host, I’ll leave it there.
I’ll stick with what we’ve had for ages since Alanus de Rupe wrote on St. Dominic’s devotion to spreading devotion to “Our Dear Lady’s Psalter”. Pretty sure that’s a lot more propitious for the state of my miserable soul.
Will using these “mysteries” fulfill the requirements for a plenary indulgence (under the normal conditions)?
“Inculturation”
My experience with this word in the remote country I live is that it is used to justify anything, or to push any idea into any direction. First I decide what I want, then I sell it as Inculturation.
The ~~navel gazing~~ ahem, self referentiality of it all. As if the Bride of Christ was more of a sad divorcee.
No.
I wonder how many people there are who both care about synodality and pray the Rosary.
The rosary is for meditating on the life of Christ. None of these “mysteries” even hints towards our Lord. Why would I waste my time?
Is this a prayer or a guided Bible study? Whatever its merits, like contemporary liturgy—and most contemporary things of the church in general—it is way too complicated. Trying to be all things to all people, succeeding at none.
I honestly was expecting it to be a joke. I am now worse off because I checked out the US Catholic website.
I will not use these. They feel like an attempt at brainwashing.
Why might they possibly have skipped Acts 5? :-D
What would the “theme” be?
My first thought is to go back to bed and hope I wake up to find it was a nightmare. On more serious reflection, this is obviously meant to dilute a devotion that has long given glory to God and saved souls. Our Lady gave us the original three decades. They are intended to have us meditate on the life, death and resurrection of her Son. These new “mysteries” take the focus off of God and place it on other things in an attempt to take the merit out of the rosary and replace it with political agenda. Our Lady has told us many times that the rosary is (aside from the Mass and the merits of Christ) the most powerful tool we have for the conversion of souls and our own salvation. That is why they are now trying another way to attack it and draw people away from what Christ and our Lady want it to be.
It is not a Dominican Rosary. It is a separate chaplet.
If people wanted to call it “the Ecclesial Chaplet” or “the Ecclesial Rosary,” that would make some sense. But calling it “Synodal” is weird.
A Synodal Rosary logically would meditate on Church councils, or on local synods of one’s own diocese/archdiocese. Like the Decade of Ephesus, the Decade of Chalcedon, etc.
Mind you, a Rosary focused on Christological and Mariological decrees could be fun and nerdy. Extra credit if you tied them into existing Mysteries.
But you would have to pray that out of a book. Nobody could remember all that stuff (or not without a memory palace).
Is it wrong of me to get up every morning and ask what fresh hell will the church be experiencing today?
A lot of trads despite my opinions because I am a zealous defender of the Luminous Mysteries. When understood in the correct context, they are such an enrichment to the Rosary. In short, the correct context is that if you read what Pope John Paul II said when he introduced them, it seems he was more proposing them as a slightly lesser set of additional mysteries. An additional devotion that no one was required to pray. The fact that they have become so wide spread and accepted by the faithful is, I believe, God’s will. Also, for those of you who despite them, make note of the fact that each of the Luminous Mysteries directly corresponds to a moral problem of the 21st century. I digress
I’ve heard of a variety of other mysteries that people have tried to get to catch on. There was a set called the “Hopeful Mysteries” that came out of some diocese in Florida last year. They didn’t even have you meditate on Christ or Mary, but rather on Old Testament Stories. Weird.
And now this. This is without a doubt the weirdest proposed set of mysteries I have ever seen. St. Louis de Montford (I believe it was) did advocated for meditating 0n many different mysteries of Christ’s life, including others that weren’t a part of the original 15. But he did clarify that the original 15 were the greatest and ought to be prayed most frequently (I am paraphrasing since I don’t remember the exact quote, mind you). This is way out of proportion with that. Additionally, my understanding is that if you choose to meditate on, say, Christ’s parables while praying the Rosary, it ought to be done in a private context, and not a public one.
Venerator: All 150 of Dom. Dominic’s clausulae (in Latin and English) are published as “Our Lady’s Psalter: The Rosary of the Mystery of Christ” translated by Marco Testa. Just checked and it’s available at Amazon.
As for thoughts on this, my first was that, apropos of this month, Mary now has an eighth sorrow. Our Lady guides us to her Son through the recitation of her Rosary. That verticality is lost here, and is replaced with a horizontal we-are-church-ness that misses the point entirely.
[sigh]
This is a novel distraction. We must keep our eyes on Jesus, not look at the waves. We must keep our peace and pray for the conversion of sinners, especially ourselves and those ordained to sacred ministry.
God help me. This is like living with an addict.
That sounds too much like work, asking people to do that.
Here’s a radical idea. After Mass (when everybody is already in Church, if they haven’t headed to the doors already), everyone could say together (see! Synodal! Togetherness! Unity! Equality! Fraternity! Vive la revolution etc!)…. Some Hail Marys (3), a Hail Holy Queen, and a prayer to St Michael. Put in some other bits, and name them after the current Pope (wink wink) say… the Leonine Prayers. They could be to stop the war in Russia and the Ukraine or some such…. we could even ask for the conversion of Russia.
If that’s not enough scripture, the first chapter of the Gospel of St John could be inserted at the end of Mass too. Those weird trads won’t have thought of such things….
I’m with Sonshine135 on this one. Praise the Lord and pass the whiskey please.
My apologies to all. My last comment was overtly sarcastic. But yes, what fresh hell will we be expected to subscribe to now? We went straight from an inserted synodal prayer in the Novus Ordo Mass to an inserted Jubilee prayer in the Mass. I wonder what the prayer will be next year.
Recycling is virtuous, right? So let’s recycle your comment on the airline “meal” for this mess: BLECH.
The Third Luminous Mystery, “Our Lord Proclaims the Kingdom,” could include virtually any event of Our Lord’s public life that isn’t already included elsewhere in the Rosary — the Sermon on the Mount, the Parable of the Prodigal Son, the Woman at the Well, the Man Born Blind, any of His miracles or discourses, etc. I personally would use it to meditate on the Gospel reading of the day or the previous Sunday. Also, could the Third Glorious Mystery (Descent of the Holy Spirit) be expanded to include other events recorded in Acts besides Pentecost?
@TradCathMale
I listened to a conference by the Dominican promoter of the Holy Rosary, where he proposed framing the Luminous Mysteries as mysteries about the sacraments (1st mystery – Baptism, 2nd mystery – Marriage, 3rd mystery – Penance, Annointing of the sick, 4th mystery – Confirmation [I confess I don’t remember his reasoning here], 5th mystery – Eucharist and Holy Orders). In that way they’d compliment the 15 mysteries of the Dominican Rosary, which are the mysteries of salvation, with the way in which we receive them sacramentally.
At the very least, in the end, they are still very much mysteries of Christ’s life, and JPII didn’t come up with them out of the blue, but drew them in some form from (soon to be) St. Bartolo Longo’s writings.
Now, these “synodal” ones (who knows who came up with them, they are, of course, not official from the Vatican or anything) show the kind of… unthinking-ness we live in these days. They reflect a poor understanding of what the Rosary is, what a mystery is, what the point of prayer is, even how people actually, concretely pray the rosary, etc, etc.
Romualdus,
Excellent – many thanks!
The Holy Rosary is a meditation on the mysteries of Our Lord and in the life of Our Lady.
This set of expanded synodal ‘mysteries’ is weaponization of the Synod on Synodality by the late Pope, breathing more ‘spirit’ to that synod.
Is not the traditional rosary mysteries not enough?
If you want discernment, The Annunciation.
If you want generosity, The Visitation.
If you want ‘evangelical frankness’, The Crucifixion and Death of Christ.
If you want ‘setting sail’, The Agony in the Garden.
Goodness gracious. Only the boomers are so concerned with this Synodality, laden with a personal agenda.
For Saturday D, they totally missed the boat! They could have called it “Climate Change!” ;-)
If the Babylon Bee had done this, it would be considered too on the nose to be funny.