New Study—The Mental Health Benefits of the Rosary—SOUL # 27

Last updated on: July 2, 2025 at 5:56 am by John Gravino

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New Study—The Mental Health Benefits of the Rosary—SOUL # 27 2025-07-02T05:56:04-04:00 John Gravino

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New study links rosary to mental health. SOURCE: Myriams-Fotos / Pixabay

Podcast: Soul Science #27—Research on the Rosary

A great article by the Catholic News Agency reports on a new study linking the rosary to improved mental health and stress reduction. I discuss this study on my latest episode of SOUL SCIENCE. Here are some of the highlights from the CNA article.

Health Benefits of the Rosary

“Researchers from Italy, Poland, and Spain surveyed 361 practicing Catholics to assess the impact of praying the rosary on well-being and mental health. They found that participants who prayed the rosary reported higher levels of well-being, increased empathy, and significantly lower levels of religious struggle or spiritual anxiety — which research has shown can be benefits of other meditation techniques.”

High Educational Attainment Among Rosary Devotees

“Researchers also found that 62.2% of participants held graduate or master’s degrees, challenging an assumption they say some may hold that traditional Catholic devotions appeal mainly to the less educated.”

Is Research Biased Against Christianity?

The lead researcher of the study commented that they undertook the project “out of frustration” that research on the rosary was practically nonexistent while research on other faith traditions and practices was bountiful:

“The researchers noted a striking bias in academic literature: PubMed contains 30,060 entries for “mindfulness” but only 13 for “rosary prayer.” This disparity reflects broader cultural prejudices that often dismiss Western devotions as more primitive.”

Empathy, Anyone?

It’s possible that “sex and drugs and rock ’n’ roll” turned out to be a poor substitute for prayer and organized religion. According to the rosary study, meditation using the rosary was associated with higher levels of empathy. Maybe more Democrats should try it. In fact, everyone could use a little more empathy. It might help us all to remember that it is far better to love our enemies than to assassinate them!

Show Notes

Article on rosary study: https://x.com/cnalive/status/1937265918960083275

“Assassination Culture”: https://www.patheos.com/blogs/soulscience/2025/04/secular-humanism-poisons-everything/
*Journal of Religion and Health—*rosary study: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10943-025-02265-y
Man with highest I.Q: https://x.com/CaldronPool/status/1936986802960859337
“Smartest man” defends belief in Jesus Christ: https://x.com/AgainstAtheismX/status/1935499044333519269
The Immoral Landscape of the New Atheism: https://www.amazon.com/Immoral-Landscape-New-Atheism-Everything/dp/1515380866/

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About John Gravino

John Gravino is the author of The Immoral Landscape of the New Atheism, which was the topic of a health and spirituality seminar at Duke Medical School. He continues to explore the intersection of health and religion and the other big questions of life right here at Patheos. You can read more about the author here.

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April 17, 2025

Secular Humanism Poisons Everything