The Rosary of the Virgin Mary

“For behold, all generations shall call me blessed”

(Luke 1:48)
 Rosarium Virginis Mariae
o Apostolic Letter by Pope
John Paul II, issued on
October 16, 2002, the
twenty-fifth year of his
pontificate
o A definition (1569
St Pius V): the Rosary or
Psalter of the Blessed
Virgin is a method of
prayer
 The Rosary of the Virgin Mary
o We venerate Mary with the
Angelic salutation repeated
150 times according to the
number of David's psalms
o Before every set of ten
Hail Mary's we say the
prayer of Our Lord with
meditations that illustrate
the entire life of the Lord
Jesus
 The Rosary of the Virgin Mary
o Though Marian in character
it is, at heart, a
Christocentric prayer. It
contains “all the depth of
the Gospel message in its
entirety”.
o It allows us to “contemplate
the face of Christ” the way
Mary did throughout her
own life.
 Being conformed to Christ: Louis de Montfort

o Our perfection consists in

being conformed, united
and consecrated to Jesus
Christ. Hence the best of all
devotions is that which
conforms and unites us best
to Jesus Christ.
o Now, since Mary is of all
creatures the one most
conformed to Jesus Christ.
 Reflections of St. John Paul II
o The Rosary is my favourite
prayer. It is marvellous in its
simplicity and its depth. It
shows the presence of the
Mother of God in the mystery
of Christ and the Church and
the Church.
o The mysteries put us in living
communion with Jesus through
the heart of his Mother.
 An addition to the traditional mysteries
o Apart from the miracle at
Cana, Mary remains in
the background.
o The Gospels made brief
references to her
occasional presence at
one moment during the
preaching of Jesus (cf.
Mk 3:31-5; Jn 2:12).
 An addition to the traditional mysteries
o The revelation of the Father
at the Baptism in the Jordan
was on Mary’s lips at Cana,
the great maternal counsel
which Mary addresses to the
Church of every age: “Do
whatever he tells you” (Jn
2:5). It is a fitting
introduction to the words and
signs to the public ministry
and is the Marian foundation
of all the “mysteries of light”.
 Reflections of St. John Paul II
o Our heart can embrace in the
decades of the rosary all the events
of the lives of individuals,
families, nations, the Church, and
all mankind, our personal concerns
and neighbours’, especially those
closest to us, dearest to us.
o Thus the simple prayer of the
Rosary is at the rhythm of human
life.
 Objections: Directed to Mary?
o Mary is not worshipped
within the prayers of the
Rosary, but honored. And
when you honor the
Blessed Virgin Mary, you
honor her Divine Son.
Ultimately it is directed to
Jesus.
o The rosary: a repetitive
prayer?
 Objections: Repetition?
o Jesus asked Saint Peter
three times, “Simon, son of
John, do you love me?”
and three times Peter
replied that he did, indeed,
love Jesus.
o None can fail to recognize
the beauty of this
repetition, from the
universal experience of
human love.
 Objections: Repetition?
o The Rosary is a way to
ask the Blessed Mother
to pray for and with us
while telling her “I love
you” with each Hail
Mary.
o What mother ever tires
of hearing her children
tell her this?
 A Path to Contemplation
o JPII calls it a genuine
“training in holiness.”
We have to develop the
“art of prayer.” Our
communities should
become “schools of
prayer.”
o Prayer should be a work
of art for us, drawing us
into the beauty of God.
 A Path to Contemplation
o Contemplating Christ,
says can transform us to
His own likeness.
Remember Peter, James,
and John beholding (and
entranced by) Christ.
o This scene with the
Apostles is an icon of
Christian contemplation.
 Mary, a model of Contemplation
o The face of the Son
belongs to Mary.
o As the Mother of the
Lord, Mary gave Jesus
his human resemblance,
which the pope tells us
points towards their
spiritual closeness, as
well.
 Contemplating is Remembering (zakar)
o No one has ever devoted
himself to the
contemplation of the face
of Christ as faithfully as
Mary.
o Mary gazed at her Son
throughout His entire life.
Mary’s gaze would never
leave Him. She kept and
pondered things in her
heart.
 Contemplating is Remembering (zakar)
o The veneration of icons
and the many devotions
appealing to the senses, as
well as the method of
prayer proposed by Saint
Ignatius, make use of
visual and imaginative
elements (the compositio
loci), judged to be of great
help in concentrating the
mind.
 A Prayer for Peace and the Family
o Throughout the roughly
800 years of praying the
Rosary as a Church,
many people have called
it a prayer for peace.
o JPII called for a revival
of praying the Rosary as
a family to counter the
“devastating effects of
the family crisis”.
 A Prayer for Peace and the Family
o The Virgin Mary
appeared in many
places in the 19th and
20th Centuries, each
time urging
Christians to pray the
Rosary.
o John Paul II noted
two: Lourdes and
Fatima. 
 Witnesses to the rosary as a path…
o St. Dominic, St. Louis
de Montfort, Padre
Pio, and Blessed
Bartolo
Longo:‘Whoever
spreads the Rosary is
saved!’
o The Holy Rosary: by
St. Josemaria Escriva