Friday, February 27, 2009

Celtic Rosary and St.Dominic - The Legality Behind It

The tradition of rosary is long and time honored. The present form of Rosary dates back to the 14th century. Celtic rosaryis wholly Irish in descent. While most schools of thought agree that the present day form of Rosary is attributable to work done by St.Dominic, some people also differ and hold that this cannot be entirely true.

The majority belief

Majority of Christians do believe that the Blessed Mother handed down the method of praying the Rosary to St.Dominic. The time when St.Dominic is said to have received the revelation, he was fighting with the Albigensians. This is a sect which lived in southern France during the 12th century and was responsible for the creation of a group called heresies. They rejected sacramental church and the sacraments. Among their radical beliefs was that there was no resurrection of the body. St.Dominic attempted to use the rosary as a means to comfort the heresies and bring back the Albigensians to the church.

A different opinion

While several people have made efforts to minimize the role of St.Dominic in creating the modern rosary and hold that it dates back to periods before St.Dominic. However, even without a reference to the 12th century, rosary has a rich and long history and importantly its meditative properties and devotion to Mary. The Celtic rosary holds this view too.

Absence of Documentation

Tracing the history of rosary – Celtic rosary- has been difficult because the level of documentation is very minimal. But, throughout the ages, every Pope has unfailingly advocated the use of rosary and written favorably about it. All these add up to the presence of a great Dominican influence as well as devotion to rosary- Celtic rosary.

During the 12th century, the original rosary was thought to contain 150 prayers and the residents of towns surrounding the monasteries could only hear the prayers since most of them could not read. “Our Father” initially held the base and then moved on to the Hail Mary’s over three groups of 50. In the present times, this is known as the Joyful, the Sorrowful and Glorious Mysteries in Christ’s life. By the 16th century, the rosary came to be what we all know it to be now and Pope John Paul II added the Luminous Mysteries during the 25th anniversary of his being Pope. The Celtic rosary incorporates these modern day addendum.

Use of Rosary in modern times

In modern times with increased levels of information dissemination and the ability to view the various offerings under Celtic rosary or other forms of rosary, more and more people are keen to possess and use the rosary for their religious or spiritual accomplishments. Gifting Celtic rosary has also gained popularity because Celtic rosary not only conveys your warm and affection but it also helps the recipient pursue his or her life in the path of righteousness and devotion to God. Youngsters of the present generation have taken to various forms of rosary and rosary accessories for non religious reasons too.

About the Author

Celtic Rosary and St.Dominic - the Legality behind it is a tricky issue. The Celtic Cross Rosary is the true question - can it really be given as a Traditional Irish Gift?

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