rosary help?

Question

i was given a rosary about 7-8 yrs. ive never seen one like this. it belonged to a friends grandmother that she had for a long time. this rosary of course has jesus on it, but above him is a scroll with letters on it, and at his feet is a skull and cross bones. it has wood beads. and the small medalion on it says france, and a large M in the middle and then beneath that has 2 hearts, one with a sword in it. if anyone can possibly help me, please do. thank you

i would like to know what it means.

Answer 1

Ill help! You need to actually ask a question. Does that help?

Answer 2

I have never seen a rosary like this and I hope someone who has will answer your question. I will tell you what I think the decorations mean, but it is only my opinion, not the teaching of the Church.

Usually the scroll above Jesus represents the Greek letters that spell out "King of the Jews." This was put on the real crucifix when Jesus was sacrificed.

The skull and cross-bones is probably an interpretation of evil and it being at Jesus' feet represents his triumph over it in his death and resurrection.

The wood beads may be any kind of wood, but they may be rosewood, common for rosaries, or it may be olive wood from the Holy Land, also popular. Rosaries may be made of any kind of material - wood, crystal, plastic, glass, gemstones - some are even just knots tied in string. The rosary is just a method for counting prayers, so it could be soup cans lined up in the kitchen if it is the right number. Some rosaries are beautifully crafted, others are not. Some are blessed (any can be - ask your priest) others are not.

France is probably just a striking by the manufacturer - made in France.

The M could be your grandmother's monogram, or the monogram of the person she received it from, but most likely it stands for Mary, the Blessed Virgin. The center medallion stands for a special prayer for the intercession of Mary (asking her to pray for us), and it is often a depiction of her.

I do not know the symbolism of the sword, except that it may represent the Immaculate Heart of Mary and the other heart may be the Sacred Heart of Jesus, popular devotions in Catholicism.

I hope this helps and if anyone can confirm or correct, please do so.

Answer 3

the text on the top of the Cross is INRI which translate to latin and means Jesus the Nazarene King of the Jews. John 19:19 the the skull at the bottom are representing the mountain where he was put to death Golgotha(place of the skull ) Matthew 27:33, Mark 15:22, and John 19:17 (France and M) this one is tricky but I'm pretty sure that it's a french rosary and the letter M is for Mary Mother of God. The two hearts are the sacred heart of Jesus and the Immaculate heart of Mary. (the one with the sword is Mary's heart Luke 2:35)

As for graven images, God also said to place two cherubims (angels) exodus 25:18. I think we need to do more research before we claim something so ignorant. If God is commanding that two angels be put in the ark of the covenant (His dwelling place) isn't God guilty of idolatry?

Repetitions... Mathew 26:36-44 Christ repeats his prayers. The rosary is not just a bunch of pointless repetitions, it is a deep scripture based pryaer. The first three stanzas of the "Hail Mary" come from Luke 1:28. The last are all truths Mother of God(jesus is God Mary is his mother) Pray for us sinners(in heaven so close to God her son pray for us) now and at the hour of our death(always pray for us) The our Father is bible based I'm sure you know.

And if you would finish that passage you quoted, Scripture tells us that Christ is telling us not to say FALSE repetitions. And only to get the attention of MEN!

Answer 4

The scroll with letters probably says something like INRI, which is the first initials of "Jesus, King of the Jews" in Greek, if I remember right. This represents the notice that Herod had affixed to Jesus' Cross to indicate why He was being executed.

The skull and cross bones at His feet symbolizes Jesus conquering death.

The M stands for Mary, and the two hearts represent Jesus' heart (which should be bleeding) and Mary's which is the one with the sword in it. These are the Sacred Heart of Jesus (representing His love for mankind so powerful He died for all our sins) and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, a reference to the Scripture verse where she is prophesied over and told "a sword will pierce your heart."

The word "France" more than likely means that it was made in France.

It's not an idol unless you think it's God. No Catholic thinks a Rosary is God. It's just a lot of symbolism in a tool that is meant to help us pray and meditate on the life and works of Christ.

Answer 5

The skull and bones are often seen in artistic renditions of the crucifixion. They represent the grave of Adam.

Christ is the new Adam, the one who over came original sin brought into the world by Adam and Eve.

Answer 6

Not sure exactly what you are asking, but here are a few links about the Rosary.

http://www.newadvent.org/images/rosary.pdf

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosary

Answer 7

its just a decorated rosary

Answer 8

What's your question?
That's a statement.