THE EASTERN ORTHODOX ROSARY
THE RULE OF THE MOTHER OF GOD

Copyright (c) October 1, 1992, REUNION
Holy Innocents Orthodox Church
Harahan, Louisiana

By Archpriest Lee Stephen

As seems to occur more and more often these days, members of our
younger, sister jurisdiction, the Roman Catholic and Apostolic
Church, now realize the Rosary is much older than its more modern
introduction in the West. Almost from the earliest days of the
Kingdom, perhaps even while Our Virgin Mother was still daily
walking this Earth, but definitely shortly after she was taken to
live with Our Father, Our Savior, and Our Love, the formalized
prayer to the Virgin Mother of God was in wide use. The Eastern
history of the Rosary will await another day. The manners of
prayer, and the Rule of the Mother of God, will be presented here.

What is known in the West as the Hail Mary, is in one of its oldest
forms in Orthodoxy, "O Hail Mother of God and Virgin, Mary full of
Grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women and
blessed is the fruit of thy woumb, for thou has given birth to the
Savior of our souls."

The "O Hail Mother of God and Virgin . . ." is prayed not just in
the Rosary, but at every hour of the twenty-four in each day.

The praying of the "O Hail Mother of God and Virgin. . ." in
conjunction with other prayers or in a prayer system, is more
properly known as The Rule of the Mother of God. It was given by
the Mother of God herself in about the eighth century (the seven
hundreds), and at one time all Christians fulfilled it. Later, it
fell into disuse; and contention, disarray, lack of cooperation,
disunion, and holding Holy Office for personal gain, entered into
the Earthly Kingdom; and has remained.

The Rule of the Mother of God is that the "O Hail Mother of God and
Virgin. . ." is to be recited through praying to the Mother of God,
and saying the "O Hail Mother of God and Virgin. . ." one hundred
fifty times daily. If it is difficult to recite it one hundred
fifty times a day, say it fifty times at first.

After  every  ten repetitions, say the "Our Father" once, and the
"Open unto us the door of thy loving kindness, . . ."

Before each decade is a prayerful remembrance of an event in Our
Savior's Life, in the life of the queen of Heaven, as given below.
After every decade is prayed special, private prayers. The beloved
Blessed Bishop Seraphim's [St. Seraphim (Zevedinsky)] prayers
before each decade are given below, followed by the prayers of one
of his pupils, a nun, for the prayers after every decade. (St.
Seraphim never revealed his private prayers after each decade to
anyone. The tenth, thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth decade
"after" prayers are reconstructed, the originals being incomplete,
out of order, or lost.)

Before the first decade:
Let us remember the birth of the Mother of
God - pray for mothers, fathers, and children.

After the first decade:
Our Lady, Blessed Mother of God, save and preserve your servants
(names of parents, relatives, friends), increase their faith and
repentance, and when they die give them rest with the saints in
your eternal glory.

Before the second decade:
Let us remember the feast of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin
and Mother of God - let us pray for those who have lost their way
and fallen away from the Church.

After the second decade:
Our Lady, Blessed Mother of God, save and preserve and unite or
re-unite to the Holy Orthodox Church your servants who have lost
their path and fallen away (names).

Before the third decade:
Let us remember the Annunciation of the Blessed Mother of God let
us pray for the soothing of sorrows and the consolation of those
who grieve.

After the third decade:
Our Lady, Blessed Mother of God, soothe our sorrows and send
consolation to your servants who are grieving and ill (names).

Before the fourth decade:
Let us remember the meeting of the Blessed Virgin with the
righteous Elizabeth - let us pray for the reunion of the separated,
for those whose dear ones or children are living away from them or
missing.

After the fourth decade:
Our Lady, Blessed Mother of God, unite your servants who are
separated.

Before the fifth decade:
Let us remember the Birth of Christ - let us pray for the rebirth
of souls, for new life in Christ.

After the fifth decade:
Our Lady, Blessed Mother of God, grant unto us (me) who have ben
baptized in Christ, to be clothed in Christ.

Before the sixth decade:
Let us remember the feast of the Purification of the Lord, and he
words uttered by St. Simon: 'Yea, a sword shall pierce through thy
own soul also' (Luke 2.35). Let us pray that the Mother of God will
meet our souls at the hour of our death, and will contrive that we
receive the Holy Sacrament with our last breath, and will lead our
souls through the terrible torments.

After the sixth decade:
Our Lady, Blessed Mother of God, let me receive the Holy Sacrament
with my last breath, and lead my soul yourself through the terrible
torments.

Before the seventh decade:
Let us remember the flight of he Mother of God with the God-child
into Egypt. Let us pray that the Mother of God will help us avoid
temptation in this life and deliver us from misfortunes.

After the seventh decade:
Our Lady, Blessed Mother of God, lead me not into temptation in
this life and deliver me from misfortunes.

Before the eighth decade:
Let us remember the disappearance of the twelve year old boy Jesus
in Jerusalem and the sorrow of the Mother of God on this account.
Let us pray, begging the Mother of God for the constant repetition
of the Jesus Prayer.

After the eighth decade:
Our Lady, Blessed Mother of God, grant to me the unceasing Jesus
Prayer.

Before the ninth decade:
Let us remember the miracle performed in Cana of Galilee, when the
Lord turned water into wine at the words of the Mother of God:
'They have no wine' (John 2.3). Let us ask the Mother of God for
help in our affairs and deliverance from need.

After the ninth decade:
Our Lady, Blessed Mother of God, help me in all my affairs and
deliver me from every need and sorrow.

Before the tenth decade:
Let us remember the Mother of God standing at the cross of the
Lord, when grief pierced through her heart like a sword. Let us
pray to the Mother of God for the strengthening of our souls and
the banishment of despondency.

After the tenth decade:
Our Lady, Blessed Mother of God, strengthen my soul and banish my
despair.

Before the eleventh decade:
Let us remember the Resurrection of Christ and ask the Mother of
God in prayer to resurrect our souls and give us a new courage for
spiritual feats.

After the eleventh decade: 
Our Lady, Blessed Mother of God, resurrect my soul and give me
constant readiness for spiritual feats.

Before the twelfth decade: 
Let us remember the Ascension of Christ, at which the Mother of God
was present. Let us pray and ask the Queen of Heaven to raise up
our souls from earthly and worldly amusements and direct them to
striving for higher things.

After the twelfth decade:
Our Lady, Blessed Mother of God, deliver me from worldly thoughts
and give me a mind and heart striving towards the salvation of my
soul.

Before the thirteenth decade:
Let us remember the Upper Room and the descent of the Holy Spirit
upon the Apostles and the Mother of God. Let us pray: 'Create in me
a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me
not away from thy presence; and take not thy Holy Spirit from me.'
[Ps. 50(51).12-13].

After the thirteenth decade:
Our Lady, Blessed Mother of God, make me a clean temple inwhich
God's Holy Spirit will ever dwell.

Before the fourteenth decade:
Let us remember the Assumption of the Blessed Mother of God, and
ask for a peaceful and serene end.

After the fourteenth decade:
Our Lady, Blessed Mother of God, grant me a peaceful and serene
end.

Before the fifteenth decade:
Let us remember the glory of the Mother of God, with which the Lord
crowned her after her removal from earth to heaven, and let us pray
to the Queen of Heaven not to abandon the faithful who are on earth
but to defend them from every evil, covering them with her
honorable protecting veil.

After the fifteenth decade:
Our Lady, Blessed Mother of God, preserve me from every evil and
cover me with your honorable protecting veil.

Thus, in the Rule of the Mother of God, for each decade one: 

first prays the before prayer;

then prays "O Hail Mother of God and Virgin, Mary full of Grace,
the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women and blessed is
the fruit of thy woumb, for thou has given birth to the Savior of
our souls," ten times;

and at the end of the tenth time, prays, "Our Father, who art in
heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy Will be done,
on Earth, as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and
forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against
us, and Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Amen."

then prays: "Open unto us the door of thy loving kindness, O
Blessed Mother of God; in that we set our hope on thee, we may not
go astray; but through thee we may be delivered from all
adversities. For thou art the salvation of all Christian people."
then prays the after prayer (although some pray the after prayer
before the Our Father, and some pray it between the Our Father and
the Open unto us).

As stated above, in following this RULE, one also is encouraged to
also pray the "O Hail Mother of God . . . on every hour of the
twenty-four in each day. Also, the after prayers are designed to be
an intentional offering up of the decade and the associated
prayers; an offering from the prayor.

St. Seraphim kept a little took with this RULE in it, and the
before prayers, though none but God and the Queen of Heaven knew
his after prayers. In this little book he also made note of the
many miracles which had taken place with people who performed this
RULE.

Some of our Orthodox brothers, especially in the Americas, are a
stiff necked lot. They probably would not pray the Our Father if it
had been lost and then found first by our Roman brothers.

Some of our Roman brother Priests and Bishops are a haughty lot,
treating Orthodox Priests as though they were jokes, and our
Bishops as though they were taper bearers (altar boys).

Yet, in this ancient RULE, we find a common ground, and its
commonality is in its Orthodox roots. Its continuation is in its
Roman development. It exemplifies the need for reunion of the
Church: for this Holy prayer is ancient in the Orthodox tradition,
just as the Roman Apostolic Succession is derived from the Orthodox
roots; its continued life and use, especially in the Americas, was
strengthened by the Romans, but its full scope of beauty is found
only in the Orthodox. Does it not make sense that both should be
combined? Does it not make sense, that the prejudices of each must
be abandoned? Does it not make sense, that the Queen of All of Us,
should be honored in her Son, and His Father, and the Spirit, by a
Church united with the Heavenly bodyless beings, a Church where all
are equal, and all are of respect because of their actually being
one, since all are in Our Savior?

                                + 

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+ Reprinted from REUNION (News Letter)   +
+ Volume 2 Number 10                     +
+ (c) Copywright,  October 1, 1992       +
+ May be reproduced without further      +
+ permission - credit requested          +
+ Very Rev. Fr. Lee Stephen Mc Colloster +
+ Publisher of REUNION (publication)     +
+ Sysop for                              +
+ REUNION BBS (504) 738-1207             +
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