A Rosary for Life: The Sorrowful Mysteries

The following meditations on the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary are offered as a prayer for all life, from conception to natural death.

 

The First Sorrowful Mystery

The Agony in the Garden

Prayer Intention: For all who are suffering from abandonment or neglect, that compassionate individuals will come forward to offer them comfort and aid.

 

Jesus comes with his disciples to the garden of Gethsemane and prays to be delivered from his Passion, but most of all, to do the Father's will. Let us pray that Christ might hear the prayers of all who suffer from the culture of death, and that he might deliver them from the hands of their persecutors.

Our Father...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: hear the cries of innocent children taken from their mothers' wombs and pray for us sinners now, and at the hour of our death. Amen.
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: soothe the aching hearts of those afraid to welcome their child.
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: guide the heart of the frightened unwed mother who turns to you.
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: move the hearts of legislators to defend life from conception to natural death.
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: be with us when pain causes us to forget the inherent value of all human life.
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: pray for the children who have forgotten their elderly parents.
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: inspire all priests and deacons to preach the gospel of life.
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: be with those tempted to take their own lives out of pain or suffering.
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: move the hearts of those about to abort the life of an innocent child.
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: teaching us to love our life, even in the face of pain or suffering.
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
 

The Second Sorrowful Mystery

The Scourging at the Pillar

Prayer Intention: That the victims of violence, torture and slavery will be delivered from their suffering, find healing and know that God is close to them.

 

Falsely accused before Pilate, Jesus is cruelly tied to a pillar and scourged, then clothed in a cloak of purple and mocked. Let us pray for all innocent victims, that by the merits of his most holy Passion, Christ might deliver them and grant them eternal life.


Our Father...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: you know the suffering of the unwed mother, intercede for her.
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: you know the anxiety of the unwed father
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: you know of the derision faced by unwed parents
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: you know the joy of an infant in a mother's arms
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: you know the pride of a father in his little child
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: you know the sufferings of immigrants and strangers
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: you know the path of sorrow for the young widow
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: you know the pain of the mother of those condemned to die
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: you know the infinite value of the little child in his mother's womb
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: you know the life of the woman who is old and sick
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
 

The Third Sorrowful Mystery

The Crowning with Thorns

Prayer Intention: That the persecution of Christians will end in a new era of tolerance and respect for the religious freedom and conscience rights of all.

 

Pilate mocks the Christ by asking him if he is the King of the Jews. He is the King of all the world, through whom all things were made. He is the one who will judge the living and the dead at the end of time. Yet he is crowned with suffering out of love for us, in reparation for our sins.

Our Father...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: When children are killed in the womb, pray for us!
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: When old men and women are killed out of a false sense of mercy, pray for us!
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: When legislators use government resources to fund abortion, pray for us!
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: When we choose selfishness and death over love and life, pray for us!
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: When children are abused or abandoned, pray for us!
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: When old people are warehoused and forgotten, pray for us!
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: When researchers cause the death of human embryos, pray for us!
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: When we despise and abandon those we condemn to die, pray for us!
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: When the littlest and most innocent are forgotten, pray for us!
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: When we choose expediency over life, pray for us!
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
 

The Fourth Sorrowful Mystery

The Carrying of the Cross

Prayer Intention: For all who labor under burdens that seem too great to bear—due to illness, age, poverty, cruelty or injustice—that our prayers and aid will lighten their crosses.

 

Three times Christ falls under the weight of the Cross as he carries our sins to Calvary. Let us pray for all who struggle to live the Gospel of Life, that they might pick up their crosses and walk the way of sorrows with the Savior of the world.

Our Father...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: give us the courage to cherish all life despite the cost
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: teach us to cherish and support all mothers, especially those who suffer for their children
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: intercede for the woman who cries from the memory of her abortion
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: be close to all in government and teach them the beauty of all life
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: inspire us to work for life, no matter the cost
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: help us to make this country a land where all are free to live and love
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: move us to love and support those whom the world has forgotten
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: hear the prayers of those abandoned in nursing homes because they have grown old
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: Open our eyes to the wonder of God's love for us
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: stand beside us whenever we suffer, and give us the courage to carry our cross
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
 

The Fifth Sorrowful Mystery

The Crucifixion

Prayer Intention: For an end to the death penalty and for the release of all prisoners of conscience and all who have been wrongfully convicted.

 

Innocent and without sin, Jesus opens his arms upon the cross out of love for us. Let us join our sufferings, and the sufferings of the whole world, to his one perfect sacrifice of praise.

Our Father...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: stand with us by the cross of your son
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: join your pierced heart to our sufferings
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: intercede for the innocent unborn child
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: sustain with your prayers those who have grown old
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: open our hearts to the Gospel of Life Jesus preached from the wood of the cross
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: teach us to conform our sufferings to those of your son
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: be with the mothers of those condemned to die
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: open our eyes to the beauty of life in all of its stages
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: give us the courage to see in the life wracked with pain, the glory of God's creation
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Holy Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows: pray for us, that we might proclaim the Gospel of Life.
Hail Mary, full of grace...

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
As it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever.
Amen.