A Rosary for Young People ~ The Second Glorious Mystery ~ The Ascension

Our Father Who art in heaven...

Jesus remained for forty days with the apostles after his Resurrection from the dead. During that long time he showed his wounds to them and explained the parts of the bible that spoke about him long before. One morning, he made breakfast for them on the beach. How wonderful it would have been to be there!

Hail Mary full of grace...

Ascension means that Jesus went up to heaven. He is sitting inside a mandorla - a circle of light. Something is happening that is beyond my understanding - something wonderful beyond my normal sight. Six angels go with Jesus. Some of them even blow horns. The air is alive with brightness. Jesus is light for my mind.

Hail Mary full of grace...

The bible says, "The Lord has gone up with a shout; the Lord with the sound of the trumpet." There's lots of shouting today: shouting at the soccer match, shouting while we argue over the remote, shouting at our parents and siblings (that's sad), shouting on the playground. What about a happy shout-out for Jesus, who rose from the dead, to raise us up to God's new idea of joy and love.

Hail Mary full of grace...

And while Jesus ascends to heaven, he carries all human beings to the higher heavens with him. He carries us to his promise of full living. He wants us to see the complete plan that God has had for every person from the very first moment. God gets everything out of the way that can keep us from being grown-up all the way.

Hail Mary full of grace...

There are angels in white telling the apostles not to be afraid, Jesus will return. Angels come to give us a message of peace. So if I am ever afraid of the darkness or being alone - I will say hello, welcome and thank you to the angel who cares for me.

Hail Mary full of grace...

Here in the icon, Jesus is blessing us with his right hand. He wants me and my family to be happy, safe and well. But maybe his outstretched hand reminds us that we are small and sometime or other we all need a helping hand. I can count on Jesus.

Hail Mary full of grace...

One bible page tells us that during the forty days Jesus ate fish and honey with the apostles. Fish are silent, and Jesus was silent during the terrible time of his suffering. And bees make honey - life with Jesus is pleasurable and sweet. Bees also make wax for candles that give light. The light of Jesus pushes away the darkness - especially the darkness that gets inside hearts and minds.

Hail Mary full of grace...

Mary is here too, in the middle with the apostles. Wasn't her suffering terrible when she stood underneath the cross and all the friends ran away except John? Now Jesus gives Mary the great joy of seeing him alive and returning to heaven. It's a joy that is equal to her sorrow.

Hail Mary full of grace...

The apostles were eye-witnesses when Jesus ascended. And the word apostle means, one who is sent out. So when we put the two together, the apostles went out to tell people what they saw and heard from Jesus. We're apostles too - sent out to tell other people that God is good and true to his promise of friendship.

Hail Mary full of grace...

Jesus said, "I go to prepare a place for you, so that where I am you also may be." We live on this earth which can be very wonderful, but in the end, we're citizens of heaven! We can throw off  the silly things that belong just to earth and dress ourselves in goodness - the bright clothing of heaven.

Hail Mary full of grace...

Glory be to the Father...

A Rosary for Young People ~ The First Glorious Mystery ~ The Resurrection of Jesus

Our Father Who art in Heaven...

The Resurrection of Easter Morning - Jesus has gone through death to the other side where there is full life, light, new energy and joy. And he has returned to us changed and new!

Hail Mary full of grace...

Jesus has not returned to impress us but to invite us. His brightness seems to say, put selfishness and hate away and come with me into the new life of love.

Hail Mary full of grace...

Since he died on the cross the women friends of Jesus have been getting ready to return to the tomb. The women have continued doing the things of love. Love spreads like ripples in water when it's touched.

Hail Mary full of grace...

An angel greeted the women of Easter Morning. He sat on the stone which had been rolled away from the front of the tomb. "Jesus is not here," the angel said, "Go and tell the apostles he will meet them in Galilee!" Heaven begins each new day with the news that Christ is Risen!

Hail Mary full of grace...

It is wonderful news that Jesus is Risen from the dead. But it is also news that we can all become a new kind of human being. And Jesus has shown the way, with hearts of kind feeling for all who suffer - even for the animals, the plants, the air and the water.

Hail Mary full of grace...

Easter isn't just for one Sunday each year. The Resurrection of Jesus is my new way of life. Look for signs of resurrection each day: building friendships, forgiving people, a new willingness to learn from others, a deep respect for living things.

Hail Mary full of grace...

Easter comes at the time of year when plants begin to grow again, baby animals are born and ice melts. All of this says, "See, we can change!"

Hail Mary full of grace...

There is a great candle in church during the Easter time to announce that Jesus lives and has left the tomb empty. And at my Baptism I was given my own candle which carries this Easter light. I will keep the Easter flame alive and burning brightly in my heart.

Hail Mary full of grace...

When Jesus rose from the dead the guards in front of the tomb fell to the ground in a great crashing of shields, spears, helmets and armor. The way of Jesus is not about power but about helpful service to others.

Hail Mary full of grace...

On Easter night two apostles were walking on the road to a place named Emmaus. They met the risen Jesus along the way, but didn't recognize him until they went in to eat and he broke the bread and gave it to them to eat. Then they knew him and were glad. Me too! 

Hail Mary full of grace...

Glory be to the Father...

A Rosary for Young People ~ The Fifth Sorrowful Mystery ~ Jesus Dies on the Cross

These are the left and right hands of Jesus ~ the wounds of God reaching far, far into the world to find what God had lost. Us.

Hail Mary, full of grace...

A soldier put a spear into the side of Jesus to be sure he was dead. Blood and water poured out as God's power of love poured out over a world that is often very dirty with selfishness and pride. Pride thinks, "We're the best; it's all ours."

Hail Mary, full of grace...

Jesus never asks us to do anything that he has not done first. and so as soon as the cross was placed in the ground and everything had become very quiet, Jesus said,"Father forgive them they don't know what they are doing." Forgiveness is often very difficult, but it is a big part of following Jesus.

Hail Mary, full of grace...

When Jesus died the sun disappeared and it grew very dark. Human hearts can be dark with hatred. And so I will make this little prayer now, "Shine in our hearts, Lord Jesus!"

Hail Mary, full of grace...

And the ground shook like an earthquake and the stones cracked and broke. There are hearts as cold as ice and as hard as rock. I ask Jesus to warm and soften them.

Hail Mary, full of grace...

They took away the clothes of Jesus. He is like a champion wrestler or a boxer without his shirt. He has won the fight with dark and loveless powers. At Easter Jesus will be dressed in brightness!

Hail Mary, full of grace...

From the cross Jesus told Mary and John to take each other in as a new family. Then when he died, the body of Jesus was taken down put into the arms of his Mother. She held him with the same love she felt at Bethlehem.

Hail Mary, full of grace...

Nicodemus was a secret follower of Jesus. He bought the long white cloth that was needed to wrap Jesus' body before burying him. Death does not destroy love.

Hail Mary, full of grace...

Jesus was poor and didn't have his own grave, so Nicodemus gave the tomb he had made for himself and let Jesus be buried there. That was very generous, wasn't it?

Hail Mary, full of grace...

The friends of Jesus buried him in a tomb like a cave  that was cut out of the rock mountain. God has gone to a very deep place to find us - to all the places people hide from God's love or wait in death. But God is not a loser!

Hail Mary, full of grace...

Glory be to the Father...