My proposal to change the Rosary
Pope John Paul II recently proposed some additions to the Rosary. I have a proposal too.
Sing/chant it!
Droning this devotion aloud does no justice whatsoever to its beauty, especially when recited publicly, for example, after daily Mass or at a pro-life rally. I even think that mere recitation detracts from its beauty (yes, as a musician, I’m biased). How are we believers going to convert people (Catholic or non-Catholic) if we don’t believe our prayers are worthy of simple beauty?
Three student parishioners and I remained after Evening Prayer last night to sing the Rosary for the first time in probably any of our lives. For my part, I’m not going back to recitation unless absolutely forced to.
Here’s how one (or more) could do it:
Sign of the Cross: recto tono
Apostles’ Creed: recto tono
Pater Noster: English: Chant, Sacramentary adaptation; Latin: traditional
Ave Maria (x3): Latin: Gregorian chant
Gloria Patri: Latin or English: recto tono
For the Mysteries:
- Announcing the mystery: recto tono
- Pater Noster: English: chant, Sacramentary adaptation; Latin: Gregorian chant
- Ave Maria (x10): Latin or English: Chant on Psalm Tone 2D, 4c, 6F or another suitable tone
- Gloria Patri: Latin or English: Chant on same tone as the preceding Ave Maria
- “O my Jesus…”: recto tono
Salve Regina: Gregorian chant
“Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God…”: recto tono
“O God, whose only begotten Son…”: recto tono
If you want a copy of the texts pointed to the psalm tones, let me know. If we believe that the Rosary is a powerful devotion, and if we also believe there is truth in St. Augustine’s maxim, “The one who sings his prayer prays twice,” why not combine the two?
Sing the Rosary. It doesn’t have to be complex. Psalm tone chants are quite simple.
More information on the Rosary can be found here.
Update: I have compiled a worship aid for chanting the Rosary. See this post for details.
5 Responses to “My proposal to change the Rosary”
Comments (Leave a Comment)
Trackbacks/Pingbacks
-
[...] available shortly—the booklet, that is. Most of the pizza’s just about eaten. (See this previous post for why I think it’s a good idea to chant the [...]
-
[...] The simplest way one can chant the Rosary is simply to recite its prayers recto tono (straight tone—think the Buddhist “om”, but more beautiful). Also, I have set the English translations of many of the prayers of the Rosary to the Gregorian psalm tones (very simple to sing). I’ll mail a PDF of the settings upon request. My rationale for singing it can be found here. [...]
Leave a Comment
Follow CantemusDomino
![[SMMMHDH]](http://www.cantemusdomino.net/smmmhdh.png){kind=small}
![[Listed on blogs4God]](http://www.cantemusdomino.net/blogs4god.png){kind=small}
![[Valid XHTML 1.0]](http://www.cantemusdomino.net/xhtml10.png){kind=small}
![[Valid CSS 2.0]](http://www.cantemusdomino.net/css.png){kind=small}
hi. this is what i am searching for: someone chanting the rosary prayers, specifically the gloria patri in latin, mp3 or rm, ra or cd so i can put it on the web. for the lay person who has no idea what a tone 2d, 4c or 6f would be. can you help me?
I try to avoid public recitation of the Rosary, unless I’m trolling for a plenary indulgence. It’s so rushed and mechanical.
I sing it, especially on long car trips.
I printed off the “Chanting the Rosary” booklet and will give it a shot.
Thanks for the great resources!
PS Mother Angelica’s PCPA nuns should chant the Rosary. They chant the Divine Office in English and it is beautiful.
When I pray the rosary alone, I do sing it. I’ve often thought sung (or at least deliberate recitation at an easy rhythm) was the best way to pray rosary.
It would be nice if the rosary remained in its proper role as a PRIVATE devotional, rather than the default public prayer of the masses. Our public prayer should be Liturgy and it would be nice if parishes would propogate the Liturgy of the Hours and make it accessible for public recitation. The only exception ought to be in religious communities (such as the Dominicans) in which the rosary is integral to their charism and daily rhythm.
After all, we are the Western Church of Augustine and Aquinas…we distinguish between forms in Liturgical and Devotional prayer. If this were the East, we would blend it all together as we “stood in the flame” for several hours on Sunday morning! (Maybe they are really on to something? he he he)