On Tuesday the Rosary prays the Sorrowful Mysteries, the mysteries of Christ’s Passion: the Agony in the Garden, the Scourging, the Crowning with Thorns, the Carrying of the Cross, and the Crucifixion. Tuesday is the first of the week’s two days given to the Passion, a midweek turn to walk with Christ in his suffering.
Why are the Sorrowful Mysteries prayed on Tuesday?
The week gives two days to the Sorrowful Mysteries, Tuesday and Friday, and they carry a slightly different weight. Friday is the day the Lord died, kept with penance across the whole Church. Tuesday is quieter: a pause early in the week to remember what our redemption cost, and to bring the burdens already gathering into the light of Christ’s own suffering. Whatever is heavy by Tuesday, a worry, a grief, a task you dread, the Sorrowful Mysteries give it somewhere to go. Prayed here, they are less about the Church’s calendar than about your own week, an invitation to unite what you are carrying with the One who carried the Cross.
The Sorrowful Mysteries prayed on Tuesday
Tuesday’s Rosary meditates on the five Sorrowful Mysteries:
- The Agony in the Garden
- The Scourging at the Pillar
- The Crowning with Thorns
- The Carrying of the Cross
- The Crucifixion
Each carries its own Scripture, meditation, and spiritual fruit. For the full text and meditation on every decade, see the Sorrowful Mysteries.
Does the Tuesday Rosary change with the season?
Unlike Sunday, the weekday sets do not change with the season. This set is prayed on this day all year round. Sunday is the only day whose mysteries shift with the liturgical calendar. To see the whole week in one place, with today’s set already worked out, see which Rosary is prayed today.
◆ The same mysteries, a different day
The Sorrowful Mysteries are also prayed on Friday, the day the Lord died, kept with penance across the Church. See the Friday Rosary.
Praying the Tuesday Rosary
Tuesday is a good day to bring something specific to prayer. If a person or a problem is weighing on you, hold it before each mystery and let Christ’s Passion meet it. Orabimus opens to Tuesday’s set for you, with a voice to follow. For the beads and the order, see how to pray the Rosary.
You do not have to watch a video to pray along. On Orabimus you pray Tuesday’s rosary yourself, at your own pace and in your own language, or live and in sync with others, as a virtual rosary.
Pray Tuesday’s Rosary now.
Open Orabimus and Tuesday’s mysteries are already set for you, with a voice to pray alongside in nine languages. Free, no account needed.
Pray Tuesday’s RosaryTuesday’s set chosen for you · Audio in nine languages · Works offline
Sources: John Paul II, Rosarium Virginis Mariae §38 (2002) · USCCB, How to Pray the Rosary · The Mysteries of the Rosary (The Holy See)
Frequently Asked Questions
Which mysteries are prayed on Tuesday?
On Tuesday the Sorrowful Mysteries are prayed: the Agony in the Garden, the Scourging at the Pillar, the Crowning with Thorns, the Carrying of the Cross, and the Crucifixion. They contemplate Christ’s suffering and death.
Why are the Sorrowful Mysteries prayed on Tuesday?
Tuesday is the first of the two weekly days given to the Passion. Where Friday keeps the memory of the day Christ died, Tuesday offers an earlier, quieter meditation on his suffering, a place to bring the burdens the week is already gathering.
What is the difference between the Tuesday and Friday Rosary?
Both pray the Sorrowful Mysteries, but Friday carries the memory of the actual day of the Crucifixion, kept across the Church with penance. Tuesday is a second weekly meditation on the Passion without that specific weight. See the Friday Rosary for the day of the Cross.
Can I pray a different set of mysteries on Tuesday?
Yes. The schedule is a helpful custom, not a binding rule. It exists so the whole Church prays together and so a week covers the whole life of Christ. You are free to pray whichever mysteries you are drawn to on a given Tuesday.