Monday, October 16, 2023

The Liturgical Rosary: A Unique New Devotional Book

A blogger once wrote: “We should liturgize devotion as far as we can, rather than devotionalize the liturgy.”

I was thinking about this sentiment when Alex Barbas of Arouca Press asked me if I would contribute a Foreword to a fascinating manuscript that he sent me. It takes the form of praying the Rosary, but within the framework of the liturgical calendar and the Divine Office, drawing heavily upon their texts as a source of enrichment. The goal is not to change anything about how the Rosary is prayed—all the same prayers are used—but, in the manner of a Scriptural Rosary, to bring it into closer connection with the Missal, the Hours, and even the music of the Roman Rite (since we are given concrete means for singing the Rosary or at least parts of it ad libitum: something I can see have great application in school settings or on pilgrimages).

Once I saw the manuscript, I eagerly agreed. And after a long and involved process of typesetting and publishing with offset printing in India, the book is finally finished:

The Liturgical Rosary: Meditations for Each Hour, Day & Season of the Liturgical Year, edited by the Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

An overview of the Contents:

Foreword by Dr. Peter Kwasniewski: Should the Laity Pray the Breviary or the Rosary?
The Prayers of the Rosary in English and Latin
A Simple Method of Chanting the Rosary with Suggested Rubrics and Antiphons
The Fifteen Promises of Our Lady to Those Who Pray the Rosary
The Fifteen Mysteries of the Rosary Synoptically Recounted
Meditations Taken from…
 Each of the Canonical Hours for Each of the Days of the Week
• The Votive Masses for the Days of the Week
• Each of the Feasts of the Sanctoral Cycle
• Each of the Feasts of the Seasonal Cycle: Advent Through Pentecost
• The Common Masses of the Blessed Virgin Mary
• The Common Masses of the Saints
The Votive Masses for Various Occasions, Including…
• For the Defense of the Church
• For Peace
• For the Sick
• For Pilgrims and Travelers
• For Any Necessity
• Of Thanksgiving
• For a Baptism
• For the Reception of Holy Matrimony
• In Preparation for Death

Details: 4.25 x 6.73 trim size | 528 pages | Paper type: 60gsm uncoated white | Black calf-skin cover | Alpha PU (Gold foiling) | Section Sewn | Hard Bound (Round Back) | HT Band & 3 Ribbons: Blue, Red & Black

$39.95 USD per copy (retail)
Bulk discounts applicable at checkout:  5–9 copies: $29.95 USD; 10 or more copies: $22.95 USD
Below are some pages from the book. I encourage lovers of the Rosary and of the traditional liturgy to pick up a copy. You can find a preview at the publisher's website; below are some further examples of pages.
(the 15 Scripture verses line up with the 15 mysteries)


Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary, pray for us!

Visit Dr. Kwasniewski’s Substack “Tradition & Sanity”; personal site; composer site; publishing house Os Justi Press and YouTube, SoundCloud, and Spotify pages.

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