can non-Catholics pray the rosary…

… while the Rosary may be a strictly Catholic devotion that certainly doesn’t exclude non-Catholics. In fact, I firmly believe that non-Catholics can benefit from the practice, so much so I recommend the Rosary to anyone regardless of religious affiliation.

In 2003 I was first introduced to the Rosary, years before my conversion to Catholicism. Since then I have given away Rosaries to people suffering from insomnia, recovering in the hospital, dying in hospice, or merely struggling with prayer… just about anyone who needs a device to help them find comfort or quiet an over stimulated mind. Many like the soothing repetitiveness of the Rosary and find themselves taking up the habit daily.

Naturally my secret intent is to have the Blessed Mother win their souls for Her Son through the powerful prayers of the Rosary, but you don’t need to mention all that when you suggest the devotion to your friends.

Once, a very proud agnostic friend accused me of trickery in this regard. I simply explained that all I did was supply the Rosary and a little ‘how to’ pamphlet and let the Lord do the rest. I failed to mention that sometimes I also leave medals, holy cards, and scapulars under the hospital mattresses of patients… eh, minor details.

As a result, he had no one to blame for any resulting conversion but Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary and informed him to take his beef up with Them. Whether he did or not I do not know. He is still an agnostic, bless his heart… that’s Southern for ‘poor bastard’.

I still have in my possession the very first Rosary I ever owned. A little red plastic thing that was given to me by some Nashville nuns and I prayed that thing every day with a heart full of fervent un-baptised heathen zeal. It took over a year, but eventually I became the Papist you know me as today.

October is the month of the Rosary and today is the memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary. So clack those beads and give your Mother a call. More importantly, spread the devotion of the Rosary to non-Catholics and even those not-so-practicing Catholics who need gentle nudges and concrete reminders that, by God, they’re Catholic.