Jesus gave us the prayer we often call “the Our Father”. But where do the other prayers of the Holy Rosary come from, like the Hail Mary? The Glory Be? Who selected the mysteries that we meditate on for each decade? …who even decided to pray a rosary in “decades”?
Fr. Mike breaks down the historical origins of the rosary as well as the logic that the saints who went before us used to organize the rosary as we know it today.
If you’re interested in praying the Rosary with Fr. Mike, you can pray the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary with him here:
Meet Fr. Mike Schmitz
Fr. Mike Schmitz serves as Director of Youth and Young Adult Ministry for the Diocese of Duluth and as chaplain for the Newman Catholic Campus Ministry at the University of Minnesota-Duluth.
He is a presenter in Ascension’s Chosen, Altaration, and The 99 programs, and has a channel on Ascension Presents. He is also the host of the Ascension podcasts The Bible in a Year and The Catechism in a Year.

Fr. Mike,
Where does the second part of the Hail Mary come from? The part that is an intercessory prayer to the Blessed Mother.