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INTRODUCTION Prayer counters such as the rosary became prominent monastical items in the Middle Ages. Legend states that the rosary, notable for its emphasis of the 'Hail Mary' prayer and its devotion to the Blessed Virgin, was given to Dominic, founder of the Dominican Order, in the 13th century by the Blessed Virgin herself. In Martin Luther's day the rosary had become quite a significant and popular means of devotion and prayer. The rosary often comes in for particular scorn from Protestants who condemn both its focus on Mary as well as its repetitive nature. Support for this can be found from a cursory reading of Luther's works. However, careful attention will reveal that Luther preaches against the overuse and the misuse of the rosary rather than against the rosary itself. Central to Luther's criticisms are the widespread understanding of the praying of the rosary as a good work in and of itself earning merit for salvation; and as a prayer audible and visible to others rather than silent and interior. (Matt. 6:6) This clearly violates the Lutheran position of sola fide, or salvation by faith alone. In addition, Luther objects to what he sees as the overuse of the rosary to the neglect of "the truly spiritual, inner, and true Lord's Prayer" (Luther's Works, vol. 42, p. 22). Much of this was due in Luther's time to praying the rosary out of obediance rather than out of the motivations of the heart. As long as the rosary is used as a means of gaining merit in heaven, it will be against Lutheran theology. However, if it is not seen as a good work but instead as a true devotional practice, there is nothing in it inherently contrary to Lutheran teaching (we will address specific Lutheran objections below). Indeed, Luther says of prayer centered particularly on Mary -- such as St. Bridget's prayers, the rosary, the Franciscan Crown, the Psalter, and the like -- not that I reject these prayers; I merely say that too much reliance is placed on these spoken prayers (Luther's Works, vol. 42, p. 22). At another point Luther goes to lengths to defend himself against "lies" and "childish fables" being circulated against him and condemns these "slanderous tongues" in the
strongst terms, one of their false charges against him being "that I tore up a rosary," an accusation he vigorously rejects (Luther's Works, vol. 51, p. 55). It is
more the beliefs surrounding the rosary that should be at issue, rather than the practice of the rosary itself. Just as Luther gives an evangelical
interpretation of the Ave Maria, it is possible to give an evangelical interpretation of the entire rosary as well.
OVERVIEW OF THE ROSARY There are six basic prayers which make up the rosary:
Some Roman Catholic add the so-called 'Fatima prayer' as well: "O My Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of Hell, and bring all souls to Heaven, especially those most in need of Thy mercy." Among Lutherans there is obviously full agreement on 1, 2, 3 and 5. Both the Apostle's Creed and the Lord's Prayer are prominent elements of the Small and Large Catechisms and the Lesser Doxology is usually said at the end of Psalms. Even the Fatima prayer contains nothing objectionable -- although its origin in the supposed apparition of the Blessed Virgin at Fatima, Portugal in 1917 certainly makes it suspect. To my mind there are three 'stumbling blocks' for Lutherans regarding the rosary. Each is discussed in a section of its own below.
THE REPETITION OF PRAYERS The rosary is formally a type of prayer counter, and thus the repetition of prayers is at its heart. Luther certainly objected to the rote repetition involved in the rosary which to his mind did not always command the heart, mind and spirit to follow what the lips said. Many Lutherans today object to this repetition, appealing to Matt. 6:7, And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words. It is certainly true that repetition for the sake of repetition is to be condemned, particularly when viewed as a good work. Thus Article XXVII of the Apology of the Augsburg Confession argues that the rosary of the blessed Virgin . . . is mere babbling, as stupid as it is wicked, nourishing a false confidence. This is indeed strong language which reflects the time of its writing, motivated by the belief that the Roman Catholic church encouraged, even required(!), the "worship of saints". While this is not a faithful rendering of Roman Catholic teaching, the words of the Apology are not wholly misplaced considering the medieval understanding of the rosary as a good work earning merit for salvation. Repetition viewed as a means to gain the attention of God is likewise condemned by Christ himself. It is to be condemned even more if done for the sake of public performance, as Christ said: And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. (Matt. 6: 5-6) Yet there are places in scripture where repetitive prayer is praised, not condemned. The best example has to be Revelation 4:8, in which St. John states The four living creatures, each having six wings, were full of eyes around and within. And they do not rest day or night, saying: "Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, Who was and is and is to come!" This verse finds its way into the Lutheran liturgy when we state that we join in this "unending hymn" (Lutheran Book of Worship) and sing together Holy, holy, holy Lord, Are these "empty phrases"? I think they are not, and repetition does not diminish the devotion of those who pray them. It is not so much the outer
appearances but instead the inner state of the Christian praying that is of greatest importance. So long as a true "heartfelt desire" (in Luther's words) is
there, who are we to condemn? Of course, it must be remembered that from a Lutheran perspective praying the rosary must never be seen as superior
to, as Luther said, "one Lord's prayer with a devout heart and with thought given to the words" (Luther's Works, vol. 42, p. 22). Although the Psalms are inferior
to the Lord's Prayer, we should not therefore reject them. In like manner we should not necessarily reject the rosary. We turn to more specific contents
of the rosary below which may cause us to change our minds. AVE MARIA In Luther's time the "Ave Maria" or "Hail Mary" prayer existed in a form much shorter than it exists today. Thus in Luther's Personal Prayer Book he repeats the prayer as Hail, Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus Christ. Amen. Although various endings appealing for Mary's intercession were used in Luther's time, the familiar ending Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.was formalized only at the Council of Trent in 1568. Luther's 'short' version of the ave Maria is an excerpt from scripture (Luke 1:28, 42) and thus should find no objection from Lutherans today. Luther warns us, however, that theave Maria is not in truth a prayer or invocation but rather a giving of praise and honor to the Blessed Virgin Mary. By adding requests for Mary to pray for us, Christians in the Middle Ages turned it into a prayer. Lutherans object to this turning of the ave Maria from praise to prayer. In Luther's evangelical interpretation of the ave Maria he states quite forcefully Take note of this: no one should put his trust or confidence in the Mother of God or in her merits, for such trust is worthy of God alone and is the lofty service due only to Him. Rather praise and thank God through Mary and the grace given her. Laud and love her simply as the one who, without merit, obtained such blessings from God, sheerly out of His mercy, as she herself testifies in the Magnificat. (Luther's Works, vol. ?, p. 39) Further on Luther urges we should make the Hail Mary neither a prayer nor an invocation because it is improper to interpret the words beyond what they mean in themselves and beyond the meaning given them by the Holy Spirit. What then should be the proper Lutheran understanding and practice of this beautiful statement of praise? I do not think it is to condemn and abandon it, which is the usual practice among Protestants of all stripes. Instead, let us take our cue from Luther himself. But there are two things we can do. First, we can use the Hail Mary as a meditation in which we recite what grace God has given her. Second, we should add a wish that everyone may know and respect her as one blessed by God. . . . Furthermore, a prayer or wish is to be added -- our prayer for all who speak evil against this Fruit and the Mother. (Works, vol. ?, pp. 39-40) SALVE REGINA unlike the Ave Maria, the Salve Regina was not addressed by Luther. Also unlike the Ave Maria, there is no apparent way of constructing an evangelical understanding. Here are the words of the prayer: Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our life, our sweetness and our hope! The Lutheran objects on so many grounds! First, by calling the Blessed Virgin "our life, our sweetness and our hope" there is little left for Christ Himself to be to us. Second, there is no reason, either, why the Blessed Virgin should be the recipient of our "sighs, mourning and weeping" instead of Christ. Third, the "eyes of mercy" can only belong to "Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matt. 10:28) as well as save them. Luther urges us to reject praying to Mary herself and asking her to intercede with God on our behalf over praying directly to the Lord Himself. Although this is certainly the stated intention of those who pray the Salve Regina, the temptation to idolatry which Luther warns against is great. all those who heap such great praise and honor upon her head are not far from making an idol of her, as though she were concerned that men should honor her and look to her for good things, when in truth she thrusts this from her and would have us honor God in her and come through her to a good confidence in His grace. . . . What do you suppose would please her more than to have you come through her to God this way, and learn from her to put your hope and trust in Him, notwithstanding your despised and lowly estate, in life as well as in death? She does not want you to come to her, but through her to God. (Luther's Works, vol. 21, pp. 322-323) CAN A LUTHERAN PRAY THE ROSARY? Many Lutherans desire the benefits of an organized prayer life and look to the Dominican rosary as a place to find it. Yet the many theological problems wrapped up with the Roman practice of praying the rosary often ends up pushing Lutherans off into one of two undesirable directions: (1) ignoring the bad doctrine and praying the Roman prayers anyway; or (2) ignoring the benefits of a structured prayer life altogether. The greatest Lutheran Fathers of the past have prayed some form of the rosary, as evidenced by these paintings of Bl. Martin Luther, Bl. Martin Chemnitz and Bl. Andreas Musculus (one of the authors of the Formula of Concord). If the use of prayer counters is good Lutheran practice, how exactly should a Lutheran go about praying the rosary? One method is to pray the Dominican rosary [1] using the 'short form' of the Ave Maria and [2] replacing the Salve Regina with something more evangelical, such as some of the words of the Blessed Virgin's canticle or one of Bl. Martin Luther's evangelical praises of the Mother of God:
To my ear this latter praise of the Mother of God is both beautiful and very appropriate. Certainly this falls far short of the Catholic teaching, but may seem to go too far in the eyes of most Lutherans. For those Lutherans who would object to any praise of the Blessed Virgin, I quote Luther one final time. [She is the] highest woman and the noblest gem in Christianity after Christ . . . She is nobility, wisdom, and holiness personified. We can never honor her enough. Still honor and praise must be given to her in such a way as to injure neither Christ nor the Scriptures. (Christmas Sermon, 1531) A second method is to substitute the Ave Maria with a prayer focused solidly on Christ, such as the "Jesus Prayer": Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy upon me, a sinner. A full description of an alternative Lutheran rosary can be found under A Lutheran Rosary. © 2002 Darel E. Paul |
