Indulgences

I’ve gotten in the habit of trying to say a Rosary to start off my hour with Jesus on Friday mornings. As I finished it off with my “how to” leaflet in hand I noticed a paragraph titled ROSARY INDULGENCES. My take on indulgences has always been a bit skeptical. It seems too much like a game show with rules of when and if it counts or whether it is a plenary or a partial indulgence. Anyway…I decided to see if I had scored any points and read on.

A Plenary Indulgence may be gained (under usual conditions) when the Rosary is prayed in church, in a family group or in a religious community.

Cool! I am in church…this is encouraging. Wait a minute…what’s this word also.

Also:
(A) five (5) decades of the Rosary must be prayed continuously.

Hum! I wonder if daydreaming breaks the “continuously”.

(B) The prayers of the Rosary must be prayed vocally and one must meditate upon the Mysteries of the Rosary.

Well…I did not say them out loud that would disturb the others in the chapel spending their hour of adoration. And that “meditate upon the mysteries” does it have to be continuous or can it be interrupted with frequent sojourns into my minds attention deficit disorder playground.

Do I even need to read part (C)?

(C) If the recitation of the Rosary is public, the Mysteries of the Rosary must be announced.

There’s not much point in reading on. I think I‘m out of the money, no points scored and no gold star. But that’s OK…I did not do it for the points anyway. I know God loves me. I know I can’t earn my way to heaven. Salvation is a gift. A gift I accept. A gift Jesus gave me.

Dear Jesus, I just want you to know I appreciate the gift and look forward to seeing you face to face to say thank you.

Amen