I already knew the use of prayer beads pre-dates christianity. Like most of their beliefs and traditions, it was borrowed from other faiths. Hindu monks, early Pagans and Buddhists first used pebbles as a tool to count their prayers while reciting them, then later the Hindus developed the practice of stringing the pebbles together to make the first prayer beads.

When catholics picked up the practice they adapted it to their faith; Jahweh (or Jehovah, if you prefer), Jesus and Mary all were honored by the different stations of the catholic rosary. The use of the rosary was one of the very few positive things I remember from my years as a struggling christian and still use today. Catholics do not revere Mary as a Goddess but I do. She is the mother of a god. In ancient Greek and Roman mythology, when a God wed and/or procreated with a human woman she then was elevated to the staus of a Goddess. Mary did both. She was approached by her god and asked to make a tremendous sacrifice in terms of her own reputation, social standing and personal safety (women were routinely stoned for perceived transgressions in biblical times, and muslim women are often murdered similarly today for the same reasons). She could have chosen to save herself the attempted stoning, the potential for permanent shunning due to being labeled as an adulteress and the potential for living her life ostracized and alone because as an adulteress she would have also been considered a 'whore'. Joseph needed some convincing to marry her after finding out that she was pregnant. By law he would have been justified in havning her killed and his people would have not only supported his decision but applauded it as godly. Yet, knowing the potential for disaster, she did what she thought was the right thing and became the mother of a god.

Gnostic christians revered both Mother Mary and the Magdalene, most likely because they had access to the original scrolls that were later cut from the bible then hidden, or because the early Gnostics had access via family connections or friendships to the oral history directly passed down from Jesus' own followers.

I'm straying off-topic here. Anyway...

As the mother of a God, Mary is a Goddess by association. Yet the catholics do not revere her as a Goddess, but as a vessel. She is a mediator between humans and their Gods (Jahweh or Jehova and Jesus), and as the mother of a God her prayers have great power to heal. In a sense she is the great messenger, the direct line to the Gods. But she is not, to catholics, a Goddess.

So I was shocked to see non-catholics bashing the practices of saying the rosary and honoring Mary so viciously on the message boards I found. Apparently many of them believe that the catholic rosary is one form of idolatry and that such devotion to Mary is another. It never ceases to amaze me that she, who according to christian belief, sacrificed so much to do what was asked of her and brought the son of her god into the world receives no respect or honor from non-catholics. Because of Mary, who birthed, raised and nurtured the Christ, christianity exists in all of it's various (borrowed) beliefs, forms and traditions.

I still say the occasional rosary to her, though my prayer is modified a bit to honor her only. To me she will always be a christian Goddess (like Mary Magdalene, to whom I also sometimes pray the rosary).

Early Gnostics had greater knowledge of their theology then any sect of christianity that has come along since, because they knew the full history of Mary, Jesus and Mary Magdalene and based their practices upon the history and their own beliefs regarding that history rather than believing the half-story that was later edited to death and thrust out into the world loaded with inconsistencies, contradictions and mistranslations.

Oops. Got off-topic again. So many interruptions this morning are making it difficult to keep my train of thought from derailing, and christianity is not a simple topic to think or write about.

Going back to the rosary...

Catholics and non-catholics were going back and forth with one another over the question of whether or not praying the rosary is a form of idolatry ('Mariolotry' - how ridiculous), and it got me thinking again about how goofy this debate is. Catholicism was the first form of christianity. The first church, so to speak. Other groups formed off of this basic nucleus. So how is it that praying the rosary is almost exclusively a catholic practice? It makes no sense to me that a religion that borrowed it's beliefs, practices and traditions from Buddhism, Hinduism and various Pagan traditions (even the concept of a virgin birth and resurrection are borrowed from pre-christian religions), spawns others like it who then go on to bash it and it's practices at every opportunity.

It's not that I haven't seen it before, it just manifested itself so well on the boards. Along with the accusations of idolatry the question arose of repetitious and time wasting monotony, which is apparently also unbiblical. What these people don't realize is:
1) NO positive prayer experience is a waste of time
2) Repetition does not always breed monotony, indeed it is considered the mother of learning
3) The repetition of prayers helps to center a person and create a sense of calm, thereby intensifying the connection between human and divine
4) Once that calm and centering has been achieved the person is not only able to communicate with the divine more effectively, he or she is more open to receiving communication from the divine
5) The catholic rosary is not merely a boring, monotonous single-prayer tool; it contains prayers to God and Jesus as well as appeals to Mary to pray for all sinners, and it contains 'mysteries', or meditations upon the different aspects of the life of Christ. Some rosaries also contain similar meditations upon the life of Mary, but she is still seen as a mediator and the actual prayers go to god and Jesus. Memorizing the different prayers (Our Father, Hail Mary, Apostle's Creed, etc.), at the different points on the rosary is not a simple undertaking. You have to really think about it, reflect upon it and eventually it does become like second nature and the rosary becomes a tool of deep, meditative prayer.

People who condemn it are often the type of people who don't truly understand the rosary and what it represents, or the benefits. They also tend to be the type of person who are unwilling to expand their horizons and take up the prayer beads for a little while to understand them and their purpose better because their specific tradition frowns upon it. We have to be willing to grow, to reach out and experience new things within our various faiths. To refuse growth is to become stagnant, and having used prayer beads myself I definitely recommend them. It's not idolatry. It's a deep, calming, beautiful and uplifting prayer experience and a way to achieve deeper communication with the Gods and Goddesses.

According to one idiot whose remarks I found particularly offensive, 'While some are playing with their stupid pebbles, others are praying to God with their heart and getting their prayers answered. I'm sorry for being so blunt, but Jesus was blunt when exposing false teaching.'

Use of prayer beads has nothing to do with stupidity, false doctrine or false prayers. It's been my own personal experience that they actually deepen the connection and communication with the divine. It comes completely from the heart. prayer beads can also be personalized and given a purpose. I have separate sets for Mary, Mary Magdalene, Kuan Yin and am about to create one for Gaia and Pan.

I do recommend crafting one's own prayer beads, as you don't have to follow someone else's template and the design has greater significance and meaning. Catholic rosaries and Buddhist or Hindu malas can be modified as well, which a lot of Pagans do if they don't have access to beads they like or specific materials for home-crafting.

What I don't recommend is taking advice on the theological aspects of prayer beads from people who have never used them and condemn them based upon the misconceptions and rules of their particular sect. People who refuse to explore are ill equipped to give others direction.