Rosary : Reflections for Consecrated Virgins

Recently I read a translation of the  catechesis given by Pope Benedict XVI which can be found on the link here.

Prayer is an important aspect of the life and vocation of consecrated virgins for whom Virgin-Mother Mary is a model. In this particular catechesis our Pope speaks about, “ a meditation that consists not in words but in our mind making contact with the heart of God.”

He also says, “And here Mary is a true model. The Evangelist Luke repeats numerous times that Mary, for her part, 'kept all these things, pondering them in her heart' (2:19; cf. 2:51). She keeps them; she does not forget. She is attentive to all that the Lord has said and done to her, and she ponders; that is, she makes contact with diverse things -- she dwells deeply upon them in her heart.”

“She, therefore, who 'believed' the announcement of the angel and became an instrument so that the Eternal Word of the Most High might become incarnate, also welcomed in her heart the wonderful miracle of the human-divine birth; she pondered it, she dwelt deeply upon all that God was doing in her, so that she might welcome the divine will in her life and conform to it. The mystery of the incarnation of God's Son, and of the maternity of Mary, is so great [a mystery] that it requires a process of interiorization. It is not only something physical that God accomplishes in her; rather, it is something that demands an interiorization from Mary, who seeks to understand it more deeply, seeks to interpret its meaning, to understand its implications. Thus, day after day, in the silence of ordinary life, Mary continued to keep in her heart the wondrous events she subsequently witnessed, even to the extreme trial of the Cross and the glory of the Resurrection. Mary fully lived her existence, her daily duties, her mission as mother, but she knew how to preserve within herself an interior space for reflection on the word and the will of God, on all that was occurring in her, on the mysteries of the life of her Son.”

“St. Augustine likens meditation on the mysteries of God to the assimilation of food, and he uses a word that recurs throughout the Christian tradition: 'ruminate.' The mysteries of God should continually resound within us so that they might become familiar to us, guide our life, and nourish us as happens with the food that is necessary to sustain us.”

“To meditate therefore means to create within ourselves an atmosphere of recollection, of interior silence, so as to reflect on and assimilate the mysteries of our faith, and all that God is doing in us -- and not only the things that come and go. We can 'ruminate' in many ways; for instance, by taking a short passage of sacred Scripture………………..by reading and reflecting on what we've just read, pausing to consider it, seeking to understand it, to understand what it says to me, what it says today -- to open our soul to all that the Lord wants to say to us and teach us.”

“The holy rosary is also a prayer of meditation: In repeating the Hail Mary we are invited to think back and to reflect upon the mystery we have announced. But we can also dwell upon some intense spiritual experience, on the words that have remained with us…………………You see, therefore, there are many ways of meditating and of thereby making contact with God -- of drawing near to God, and in this way, of being on the road to heaven.”

Drawing inspiration from this, a consecrated virgin can pray the rosary very beautifully, remembering  what the Lord has done in her own  life and continues to do. Meditating on the vocation of consecrated virginity in the light of the mysteries in the life of Virgin-Mother Mary also refreshes  the hope of our own future in the journey towards deeper union with God and  His Reign.

One can choose any 5 mysteries to meditate while praying the Marian rosary, from the following suggested sections or add one’s own:

Mysteries of being Human:

Birth in the human family

Childhood:   memories

Puberty / Adulthood

Human Suffering

Joyful memories

Mysteries of  Faith:

Ancestral faith tradition

First Encounter with Christ

Christening or Name-day : The significance of the Christian name

Baptism : initiation into the mystery of the  Trinity and the Church

Confession: Reconciliation

First Holy Communion

Confirmation

Anointing of the Sick / Healing

Mysteries of  the Vocation to Consecrated virginity:

First experience  of  a  Call

Vocation to Be

Vocation to Do

Receiving the Consecration

The Holy Trinity in one’s life

The Paschal Mystery

The Early Christian community

Jesus and I

Virgin- martyrs

Struggles

Victories

Spiritual motherhood

Being an Image of the Church

Bride of Christ

Body of Christ

Covenant with Christ

People of God

Service in the Church

Eucharist

Mission : Evangelisation and New Evangelisation

One can also try meditating on the vocation in the light of the mysteries of the Annunciation, the Visitation, the Birth of Jesus Christ, other Marian or Christ events in Scripture or Tradition, or on Scripture passages  that have been  of special significance or  inspiration in one’s life.