Mary giving you the "Jesus doesn't like it when you're not nice to me" look. |
The Apostles asked Jesus the same thing. In less detail. They just said, "Lord, teach us to pray." And Jesus came up with what we call the "Our Father". Of course the Protestant version is slightly different than the Catholic one. You'd think it would be one thing on which we could agree.
Dream on.
We're delighted you're saying the rosary! Really. I can't tell you how that tickles us! For one thing, the biggest and most endless argument I've had with the Separated Brethren is the dismissal of Mary as a person of any importance, let alone someone to whom we turn for intercession. You saying all those "Hail Mary's"? Stellar.
Excellent.
Four gold stars.
It is possible to pray "wrong", but you are not praying "wrong". Technically, you're saying the rosary "wrong", but don't let that stop you. Asking you to stop saying the rosary in the fashion that you are is like asking an sober drug addict to stop drinking coffee because caffeine is also a drug.
But because we're Catholic and we love nothing more than to split theological hairs, I will tell you that the rosary is a meditative prayer. That's why it has those mysteries attached. There are four types of those and to say a complete rosary you would go around the beads four times and meditate on one of the four sets per lap. But we know most people don't have time for that, so the Church has broken it down to which set of mysteries to say on each day of the week, but sometimes that changes, based on what time of year it is.
Don't cry.
It's much easier than it sounds and it's just a guide line. You can meditate on any set you'd like, any time you'd like.
So, for example, if you're on the Sorrowful Mysteries (a good pick if you're praying for people in turmoil), you meditate on one mystery per decade of the rosary. You think about these events, and see Jesus through His mother's eyes. Isn't that lovely?
It's especially lovely to us if you're doing it. Any way that you do it.