An extra long rosary?

[Xithras]

My grandfather recently died, and among the belongings of his that were given to me was a old wooden rosary. The rosary is about twice the length of the standard rosary, and the silver medal has a cross with an M over it, with the two hearts below.

Has anyone seen a rosary like this before? My grandfather attended a seminary and was a priest in both North America and Europe, so it could have come from anywhere. I'm hoping that I can find out what type of rosary it is, so that I may figure out where it came from and when he might have got it.

[Matilda]

1. It is possible to get longer rosaries

that have fifteen decades instead of the usual five. So you have
the Joyful, Sorrowful and Glorious Mysteries all together in one
rosary, whereas it's more usual just to have five, and you pray
whichever Mysteries are for a particular day.

[dflprincess]

2. My mom has a larger than normal rosary

It was given to my grandma by a nun and it was the kind that nuns used to wear from the waistband of their habits. It only has 5 decades, but the beads are larger and spaced further apart than the standard pocket size rosary. It has a beautiful crucifix on it, but no M.

[DemBones DemBones]

3. Why don't you try asking

people who deal in religious goods, especially antique ones? There are probably a number of online sites but here are two to start with:


http://www.rosaryworkshop.com/index.htm

http://www.yankeelady.com/yl-antiques/chapel/index.htm#Medals%20Currently%20Available


My condolences on the loss of your grandfather and blessings to you and your family in mourning and remembering him.

[Tinoire]

4. Sounds like the Miraculous Medal/aka Immaculate Conception Rosary

Is it twice the length of a chaplet or is it a full rosary? I noticed that in the states, the terms are often mixed up.

Note: A rosary consists of fifteen decades. Each decade
contains ten Ave Marias marked by small beads, preceded
by a Paternoster, marked by a larger bead, and
concluded by a Gloria Patri. Five decades make a
chaplet, a third part of the rosary. --Bp. Fitzpatrick.
http://dict.die.net/rosary/

And is this the medal you're referring to? The Miraculous Medal(aka Medal of the Immaculate Conception)

So happy for all your wonderful inheritances!
One of my most precious possessions is a gold Miraculous Medal blessed by His Holiness John Paul II :P so I think your inheritances are really neat.

Scan a photo for us and let us have fun identifying it for you! Your grandfather seems to have had a strong Marian devotion. Could he have been an Oblate of Mary Immaculate? They're a very famous international order with a heavy devotion to Our Lady.

[Xithras]

5. Yes, it's a 15 decade rosary

And the design on the medal is the Medal of the Immaculate Conception. I'd never seen it before, but it was apparently given to him when he entered the seminary back in the 1930's. We're really just now beginning to dig through his old paperwork, and my aunt found some paperwork relating to his time as a seminarian and priest just yesterday (including his membership in the Association of the Miraculous Medal).

What I'm finding really interesting is your link to the Oblates of Mary Immaculate. We did find paperwork referring to his membership in the Brotherhood of Mary Immaculate, but haven't been able to find any info on that group. I wonder if it's a related group, or even just a different name for the same group?

[Tinoire]

6. Check this out... The Brotherhood of Immaculate Mary

I only know so much about this because my uncle was an OMI, official Mariologist of the Vatican, and my family has a very strong Marian devotion. It's a fine order of very well-formed and theologically sound priests and friars. What memories you are bringing back Xithras!


I think the Brotherhood of Mary Immaculate is part of the OMIs but don't quote me. This would need more research.

Anyway, check this out:


Father Turcotte bought a house in Hudson, New Hampshire for the establishment of a Novitiate on June 22, 1922, and he opened a Juniorate at Colebrook, New Hampshire on September 1 of that same year.

The small vice-province made such significant progress that within three years, on May 1, 1924, it became a province with Father Turcotte at its head. The membership then consisted of 34 priests, 10 lay brothers, and 4 scholastics. Two years later, in 1926, there were 16 scholastic novices, and 12 novices/postulants for the brotherhood in Hudson.
http://ecommunity.uml.edu/francolowellma/religiousorders/OblatesofMaryImmaculate.htm

http://www.omiusa.org/jeanbapt-prov.htm




Step Four
Once you have made this solemn commitment to live out the vows for a year, your course is set to complete your studies for priesthood or Brotherhood at Catholic Theological College and possibly Monash University, which normally takes between 4 and 6 years, and can include studies for your Bachelor Degrees.

Every year, you are invited to renew your vows for a year, and after three years, you can apply to take Final Vows, which makes you a full member of the congregation As well as the studies, students (known as scholastics) are given a variety of work experiences to develop skills and prepare them for their future mission For those who wish to, after Final Vows comes ordination to Diaconate and then Priesthood which completes the years of training for service as an Oblate Missionary.

http://www.oblates.com.au/original/content/04_b_how_do_i_join/04_c_hdij_becoming/04_c_hdij_becoming.html

Just in case we're on the right track... Here are the requirements to be in the Brotherhood of Mary Immaculate:

jOMI
The Junior Oblates of Mary Immaculate

Candidates for Priesthood:
11-1/2 years for High School Graduates
6-1/2 years for Young Professionals

Candidates for Brotherhood:
9-1/2 years for High School Graduates
4-1/2 years for Young Professionals

http://www.geocities.com/omi_phils/jomi.htm




There's also Society of Mary (La Societe de Marie) which has a Marist Priesthood and Brotherhood but and their devotion to Our Lady is very strong too. Nothing to stop them from having having chaplets with the Miraculous Medal but I have a growing suspicion your grandfather was an Oblate. What exactly does that document say and after the signatures do you see the initials "O.M.I."? If you see those initials, it's definitely Oblate of Mary Immaculate and if so, you're in luck because they maintain very thorough records.

Peace & good luck!

PS. Don't throw any of his stuff away ok? If you have old images to toss out, let me know. Also let me know if you find any paperwork in French and need help translating it (yes, you guessed it, the Oblates are a French order).

Peace

Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate
Congregation of the Missionary Oblates of the Most Holy and Immaculate Virgin Mary (OMI)

The OMI Story
We are a congregation of priests and brothers, founded in France in 1816 by Eugene de Mazenod (1782-1861). As a member of the French nobility, Eugene was forced into exile with his parents during the French Revolution. Upon his return to France as a young adult, he decided to leave behind his aristocratic lifestyle and dedicate himself to God. He was ordained a diocesan priest in 1811. However, his dream was to reach the many poor people of southern France who had lost contact with the Church during such turbulent times. Thus, he gathered around him a small band of like-minded priests and began the "Missionaries of Provence". The group preached missions throughout the countryside and also worked with youth, prisoners and the sick. They received papal approval in 1826 and changed their name to the "Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate". An 'Oblate' is someone who offers their life in service to God and the needs of His poor. The congregation quickly grew in numbers and Eugene was able to send his men to the mission fields opening up in other countries: Canada, Sri Lanka, South Africa and England. The Oblate motto is: He has sent me to preach the good news to the poor. In fact, the pope once described us as "specialists in the most difficult missions". As well as being the founder of the Oblates, Eugene also became bishop of Marseilles during his lifetime and was canonised a saint on December 3, 1995.


Mission and Ministry
Today there are about 5,000 Oblates working in 65 countries around the world. One of the distinctive features of the Oblates is that we do not restrict our mission to any specific work. Our rule states that "there is no ministry which is foreign to us provided we never lose sight of the Congregation's primary purpose: to evangelise the most abandoned". Thus you will find Oblates involved in a great variety of ministries.
The Oblates came to Australia in 1894 when we began working in Fremantle, Perth. Since then we have expanded and now have houses in every mainland state as well as New Zealand, and a mission in Hong Kong, China. Our men have also been sent to overseas missions such as Indonesia, Tahiti and South Africa. Our work in Australia consists of a range of ministries:
· parishes
· mission team (two men working on parish renewal programmes throughout Australia)
· secondary colleges (as teachers, chaplains, counsellors)
· youth work (including an outreach to streetkids in Brisbane and Melbourne called "Rosies")
· prison chaplaincy
· hospital chaplaincy
· army chaplaincy
· tertiary education (lecturers in history, philosophy and theology)
· counselling (psychologists and family therapists) http://www.catholicvocation.org.au/OMI.htm

[DemBones DemBones]

7. Alright! That's what I was thinking it was! But finding

my old Miraculous Medal to check was another story. ;-)