Day 209: Praying With the Father

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Rosary in a Year (with Fr. Mark-Mary Ames)

Episode: Day 209: Praying With the Father
Date: July 28, 2026
Host: Fr. Mark-Mary Ames, CFR (Ascension)

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Episode Overview

This episode marks the beginning of Phase Five in the “Rosary in a Year” journey, where listeners start “building up the decades.” The focus is on deepening the relational aspect of prayer—especially our relationship with God the Father. Fr. Mark-Mary guides participants through two decades of the Rosary, inviting them to rest in the presence and love of the Father, and to experience prayer as a real, relational encounter.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Transition to Phase Five (01:00)

• Fr. Mark-Mary celebrates the community's perseverance in reaching Phase Five.
• The approach: “Poco a poco”—little by little—building prayer capacity gradually.
• Participants will begin by praying two decades, with each day focusing on a different person of the Trinity or Mary.

2. Relational Focus in Prayer (01:53–03:31)

• Fr. Mark-Mary revisits foundational teachings from Fr. Andrew Apostoli:
  • In prayer, focus on:
    1. The one to whom we pray
    2. The words we say
    3. The mysteries we meditate upon
• “The foundational one is…the relational part—that we’re not just, you know, talking on a phone that’s not plugged into the wall or doesn’t have any service. Our prayers are heard and our prayers are in relationship. We’re not alone in our prayer.” (02:26)

3. Today’s Relationship: Praying With the Father (03:31–04:21)

• Listeners are guided to focus on God the Father during today’s decades.
• “What hasn't been revealed…is like the physical face of God the Father. Certainly, we have a lot of artwork we can pull from, if that’s helpful. But what we do have very clear access to is the heart of our Father, which has been revealed to us, particularly through his Son.” (03:43)

4. Understanding the Father’s Heart (03:49–04:23)

• Fr. Mark-Mary highlights attributes of the Father:
  • Sees in secret
  • Is with us
  • Loves to give his children good gifts
  • Delights in us and hears us
• “We have the same relationship with him…in the Son. We have access to the Father.” (04:21)

5. Guided Meditation: Experiencing the Father’s Presence (04:31–05:38)

• Listeners are invited to become truly aware of the Father’s presence—not just to imagine, but to “pierce the reality, become aware of the reality.” (04:55)
• “Know right now, the Father sees you, he hears you. He rejoices in you. He knows your heart, and he is with you.” (05:06–05:15)

6. Rosary Decades Prayed with Emphasis on the Father (05:38–15:16)

• Two decades of the Joyful Mysteries are prayed:
  1. The Annunciation (05:38–10:18)
  2. The Visitation (10:39–15:12)
• Throughout, participants are encouraged to “remain and rest” in the Father’s love and awareness.

7. Daily Progress and Encouragement (15:17–End)

• Fr. Mark-Mary thanks listeners and encourages them to return for the next segment, continuing the gradual, relational approach to prayer.
• “Poco a poco, friends. God bless y’all.” (15:24–15:25)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Prayer as Relationship:
  • “We’re not just…talking on a phone that’s not plugged in…the foundational one is like the relational part…our prayers are heard and our prayers are in relationship.” (02:26)
• On the Father’s Presence:
  • “Don’t just imagine that the Father’s there with you, but know he is…Pierce the reality, become aware of the reality.” (04:46–04:55)
• Describing the Father’s Heart:
  • “He sees us, he is with us. One who loves to give his children good gifts, one who loves to hear our voice, one who delights in us, and one who always hears us.” (03:49–04:17)
• Affirming the Listener:
  • “Know right now, the Father sees you, he hears you. He rejoices in you. He knows your heart, and he is with you.” (05:06–05:15)
• Encouragement for the Journey:
  • “Thank you again for persevering in this journey with me.” (01:00)
  • “Poco a poco, friends.” (15:24)

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Timestamps of Important Segments

• Phase 5 Introduction / Structure Overview: 01:00–03:31
• Relational Teaching in Prayer: 02:23–03:31
• Focus on Relationship with the Father: 03:31–05:15
• Guided Meditation on the Father’s Presence: 04:46–05:38
• First Decade: The Annunciation: 05:38–10:18
• Second Decade: The Visitation: 10:39–15:12
• Closing Blessing/Encouragement: 15:17–End

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Structure of the Next Days

• The coming episodes will continue by focusing prayer on:
  • The Son
  • The Holy Spirit
  • The Holy Trinity
  • Mary

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Summary Takeaway

This episode invites listeners to slow down and pay attention to the relational reality of prayer—especially with the Father. By being present and receptive, the daily Rosary practice shifts from recitation to a transformative encounter, reminding each person that they are seen, loved, and heard by the Father. The journey continues, poco a poco, deepening relationships at the heart of the Rosary.

Transcript

[Mark Mary]

Foreign.

[Franciscan Friar (Host)]

Mark Mary with Franciscan Friars of the

[Prayer Leader]

Renewal and this is the Rosary in

[Franciscan Friar (Host)]

a Year podcast, where through prayer and meditation, the Rosary brings us deeper into relationship with Jesus and Mary and becomes

[Mark Mary]

a source of grace for the whole world.

[Franciscan Friar (Host)]

The Rosary in the Year is brought to you by Ascension.

[Prayer Leader]

This is day 209.

[Franciscan Friar (Host)]

To download the prayer plan for Rosary in a year, visit ascensionpress.com forward/rosary in a Year or text r I y to 33777. You'll get an outline of how we're going to pray each month, and it's a great way to track your progress. The best place to listen to podcasts is in the Ascension app.

[Main Speaker / Guide]

There are special features built just for

[Franciscan Friar (Host)]

this podcast and also recordings of the full rosary with myself and other friars. On behalf of myself and the whole team here at Ascension, we wanted to take this opportunity to thank everyone who's helped support this podcast financially. Your support is so appreciated and helps

[Prayer Leader]

us to reach as many people as possible.

[Franciscan Friar (Host)]

And if you haven't already, please consider supporting [e-mail] support

[Main Speaker / Guide]

all right, everybody, welcome back. We have just completed phase four. Congratulations everybody who's made it this far. Thank you again for persevering in this journey with me. Now we are going to be beginning phase five, building up the decades. And so what we'll be doing here is slowly but surely poco, poco, if you will, like, just practicing, like, prayer, practicing meditation and applying to prayer, like what we have discussed and covered up to this point, while building up our capacity. So we're going to start again, small and focused at the service of depth. But little by little, as we go through phase five and then into phase six, we're going to be building up the amount of decades we're going to

[Prayer Leader]

be praying at each time.

[Main Speaker / Guide]

How we're going to begin, though, phase five is going to be like somewhat of a callback all the way back to the very beginning of our journey. If you recall, in our introduction to the Rosary, I pulled from what I had been taught by one of our founders, Father Andrew Apostoli, in his class and his encouragement with the rosary, he. He was reminding us and teaching us that we want to be focused on one of or a collection of these three things in prayer, the one to whom we are speaking, the words which

[Prayer Leader]

we are saying, and the mystery that

[Main Speaker / Guide]

we are meditating upon with. I would say the foundational one is like the relational part that we're not just, you know, talking on a phone that's not plugged into the wall or doesn't have any service like our prayers heard and our prayers in relationship. We're not alone in our prayer. And then with that, like, we can focus on, you know, the words and.

[Prayer Leader]

Or the mysteries.

[Main Speaker / Guide]

And so what I'm going to be, how we're going to begin is this is really, really just practicing the relational components of our prayer and really, really focusing on the fact that we're not in it alone. And so for this first 10 episodes of the building up the decades, we're

[Prayer Leader]

going to be praying two decades together,

[Main Speaker / Guide]

but what we're going to be doing is focusing on, like, particular relationships. So today we're going to focus on, like, being in a relationship with the

[Prayer Leader]

Father, tomorrow, the Son, the next day, the Holy Spirit, the next day, the entire Trinity.

[Main Speaker / Guide]

And then lastly, being in relationship with Mary. And we'll repeat this twice, and then we'll move on to the words and

[Prayer Leader]

then bringing it all together.

[Main Speaker / Guide]

So for today, we're going to really focus these two decades on our relationship with the Father. What hasn't been revealed, you could say, is like the physical face of God the Father. Certainly we have a lot of artwork

[Prayer Leader]

we can pull from, if that helpful.

[Main Speaker / Guide]

But what we do have very clear

[Mark Mary]

access to is the heart of our

[Main Speaker / Guide]

Father, which has been revealed to us,

[Prayer Leader]

particularly through his Son. And who do we know the Father to be? One who sees in secret, one who sees us, one who is with us. One who loves to give his children good gifts, one who loves to hear our voice, one who delights in us,

[Main Speaker / Guide]

and one who always hears us. And we know this right because we

[Prayer Leader]

have access to the Father, like in the Son.

[Main Speaker / Guide]

We have the same relationship with him. And so I'm going to invite you to find your space.

[Prayer Leader]

This could be the beach.

This could be the lake. This could be your favorite prayer spot or chapel dinner table.

[Main Speaker / Guide]

And to really what we could say, not just imagine that the Father's there

[Mark Mary]

with you, but know he is

[Prayer Leader]

not.

[Mark Mary]

Create a reality, but pierce like the

[Prayer Leader]

reality, become aware of the reality. So know right now, the Father sees

[Main Speaker / Guide]

you,

[Mark Mary]

he hears you.

[Prayer Leader]

He rejoices in you. He knows your heart, and he is with you. And that remaining and resting here,

[Mark Mary]

let

[Prayer Leader]

us bring to him our hearts. Bring to him our adoration. Bring to him our needs as we pray with Mary. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. The first joyful mystery is the Annunciation. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done

on earth as it is in Heaven,

[Mark Mary]

give us this day our daily bread

[Prayer Leader]

and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace.

[Mark Mary]

The Lord is with the blessed art

[Prayer Leader]

thou among women, and blessed is the

fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for

us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace.

[Mark Mary]

The Lord is with the blessed art

[Prayer Leader]

thou among women, and blessed is the

fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for

us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace.

[Mark Mary]

The Lord is with the blessed art

[Prayer Leader]

thou among women, and blessed is the

fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for

us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace.

[Mark Mary]

The Lord is with the blessed art

[Prayer Leader]

thou among women, and blessed is the

fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy, Holy Mary, mother of God, pray

for us sinners now and at the

[Mark Mary]

hour of our death.

[Prayer Leader]

Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace.

[Mark Mary]

The Lord is with the blessed art

[Prayer Leader]

thou among women, and blessed is the

fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for

us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.

Blessed art thou among women, and blessed

is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for

us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace.

[Mark Mary]

The Lord is with the blessed art

[Prayer Leader]

thou among women, and blessed is the

fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for

us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace.

[Mark Mary]

The Lord is with the blessed art

[Prayer Leader]

thou among women, and blessed is the

fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for

us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace.

[Mark Mary]

The Lord is with the blessed art

[Prayer Leader]

thou among women, and blessed is the

fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for

us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace.

[Mark Mary]

The Lord is with the blessed art

[Prayer Leader]

thou among women, and blessed is the

fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for

us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,

as it was in the beginning, is

now and ever shall be, world without end.

Amen.

O My Jesus, forgive us our sins. Save us from the fires of hell.

Bring all souls to heaven, especially those

in most need of thy mercy. Before the second mystery, we'll refocus. Ask for the Lord's grace to remain

just in the presence of our Father

and aware of his presence. The second joyful mystery is the visitation. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.

Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

[Mark Mary]

Give us this day our daily bread

[Prayer Leader]

and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace.

[Mark Mary]

The Lord is with the blessed art

[Prayer Leader]

thou among women, and blessed is the

fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for

us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace.

[Mark Mary]

The Lord is with the blessed art

[Prayer Leader]

thou among women, and blessed is the

fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for

us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace.

[Mark Mary]

The Lord is with the blessed art

[Prayer Leader]

thou among women, and blessed is the

fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy, Holy Mary, mother of God, pray

for us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace.

[Mark Mary]

The Lord is with the blessed art

[Prayer Leader]

thou among women, and blessed is the

fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for

us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace.

[Mark Mary]

The Lord is with the blessed art

[Prayer Leader]

thou among women, and blessed is the

fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for

us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace.

[Mark Mary]

The Lord is with the blessed art

[Prayer Leader]

thou among women, and blessed is the

fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for

us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.

Blessed art thou among women, and blessed

is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for

us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace.

[Mark Mary]

The Lord is with the blessed art

[Prayer Leader]

thou among women, and blessed is the

fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy, Holy Mary, mother of God, pray

for us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord

[Mark Mary]

is with the blessed art thou among

[Prayer Leader]

women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for

us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace.

[Mark Mary]

The Lord is with the Blessed art

[Prayer Leader]

thou among women, and blessed is the

fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for

us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. Glory be to the Father and to

the Son and to the Holy Spirit.

As it was in the beginning, is

now and ever shall be, world without end.

Amen.

O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell

and lead all souls to heaven, especially

those in most need of thy mercy.

In the name of the Father and

of the Son and of and of the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

All right.

[Main Speaker / Guide]

Thanks, everybody, for joining me, for praying with me today.

[Prayer Leader]

I look forward to continuing this journey with you again tomorrow.

[Mark Mary]

Poco.

[Franciscan Friar (Host)]

Poco.

[Main Speaker / Guide]

Friends, God bless y' all.