How do you pray the rosary with a counter?
Count the Hail Marys on the counter instead of the beads: a round of 10 for each decade, or 50 for all five. Say the Our Father before each decade and the Glory Be after it, as you would on beads, while holding the mystery in mind. The counter only keeps the number; the prayer is yours.
The shape of the rosary
The steps below follow the order given by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Other forms and devotions exist; follow the one you were taught.
- Opening. The Sign of the Cross and the Apostles' Creed; one Our Father; three Hail Marys; a Glory Be.
- Each of five decades. Announce the mystery, pray the Our Father, then ten Hail Marys while meditating on the mystery, then the Glory Be. Some add the Fatima prayer here.
- Closing. The Hail, Holy Queen and the closing prayer, then the Sign of the Cross.
Which mysteries, which day
The USCCB gives the Joyful mysteries on Mondays and Saturdays, the Sorrowful on Tuesdays and Fridays, the Glorious on Wednesdays and Sundays, and the Luminous on Thursdays, with seasonal changes for the Sundays of Advent and Lent. The Luminous mysteries were added by Pope John Paul II in Rosarium Virginis Mariae (2002).
Using the counter
- One decade at a time. Set a round of 10. Tap once for each Hail Mary; the round closes at ten, and you say the Glory Be and move to the next mystery.
- All five decades. Set a round of 50 and count straight through. The count tells you where you are: 23 means the third Hail Mary of the third decade.
- The opening three. Most people say these without counting. If you want them counted, count them first and reset, or add them to your total.
Fifty Hail Marys and five Glory Bes to a set are the rosary's own numbers, not Japa's.
The prayer rope
In the Eastern churches, the Jesus Prayer is counted on a knotted prayer rope, a chotki or komboskini, commonly of 33, 50 or 100 knots. The same counter works for it.
Print the decades
The printable rosary decade guide has the Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be in full, a ring of fifty to tick and the four sets of mysteries with their days, as a free PDF in A4 and US Letter.
Questions
How many Hail Marys are in a rosary?
Fifty in the five decades of one set of mysteries, ten to a decade, with three more in the opening prayers.
Is it still the rosary if I use an app instead of beads?
The prayers are the rosary; the beads are a way of counting them. Many people pray on a counter when they have no beads with them. If you are unsure, ask your parish.
Does Japa guide me through the mysteries?
No. Japa is a counter with the prayer text in view. It does not announce prayers or mysteries; it keeps the count so you don't have to.
Read the texts
Sources
- United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, How to Pray the Rosary
- John Paul II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae (2002)
- Luke 1:28, 42, and the Roman Breviary (1568), for the Hail Mary
- Japa practice library, Hail Mary and Glory Be
Count it in Japa
Japa keeps the Hail Mary, the Our Father and the Glory Be beside a large counter on iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch, with a haptic for every bead and an optional bell when a decade or a set is complete. On the watch, count with a tap or the Digital Crown.
Counting is free and unlimited on iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch. No account, no ads, no subscription. Japa is an independent app and is not endorsed by any teacher, lineage or community.