Rosary for the dead, step by step

The rosary for the dead is the usual rosary, offered for the soul of someone who died. After each decade you add: “Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him. May he rest in peace. Amen.” In a novena it is prayed nine days in a row.

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How to pray the rosary for someone who died

  1. Offer the rosary. Make the Sign of the Cross and say who you are praying for: “For the eternal rest of…”.
  2. Opening prayers: the Creed, one Our Father, three Hail Marys and a Glory Be.
  3. Name the mystery and pray an Our Father. Pray the mysteries of the day; many families pray the Sorrowful Mysteries.
  4. Ten Hail Marys while you think about the mystery.
  5. After the decade: the Glory Be, the “O my Jesus” and the prayer for the dead, “Eternal rest grant unto him…”.
  6. Repeat for all five decades.
  7. At the end: the Hail, Holy Queen and, if your family does, a litany.
  8. Close with “May his soul and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen” and the Sign of the Cross.

The prayer for the dead

After each decade

Eternal rest grant unto him (her), O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him (her). May he (she) rest in peace. Amen.

For several people

Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace. Amen.

At the end of the rosary

May his (her) soul and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

The wording varies a little from place to place; pray the version your family knows.

Which mysteries do you pray for the dead?

The mysteries of the day: Joyful on Monday and Saturday, Sorrowful on Tuesday and Friday, Glorious on Wednesday and Sunday, Luminous on Thursday. Many families pray the Sorrowful Mysteries every day of a novena.

What is a rosary novena for the dead?

A novena (in Latin American families, the novenario) is the custom of praying the rosary for the person who died on nine days in a row after their death, asking for their eternal rest. It often ends with a Mass. The Church teaches that salvation rests on God’s grace, not on a family finishing all nine days: the novena is an act of love and hope.

Pray together, even from far away

When a family lives in different countries, it is hard to gather every night. On Go2MARY you can make a free novena page with your loved one’s name and photo. Share it on WhatsApp, everyone prays from wherever they are, and all can see which day you are on and how many are praying.