In an age where matter seems to carry such a great importance and where the word "spirit" is not often heard, I wonder how many Christians today still cherish the importance of the Holy Rosary. However, while the Christian Church continues its role of "reading the signs of the times" to find modern and attractive ways to preach the Gospel and enter into the lives of the people and especially youth, the prayer of the Rosary must not be forgotten.
Pope John Paul II made this quite clear in one of his later documents, the apostolic exhortation Rosarium Virginis Mariae.
The Rosary is a traditional prayer originating in the Middle Ages; at a time when the ecclesiastical hierarchy was focused more on the arts and their accomplishments, many Christians felt the need of a spiritual revival, thus causing a movement from which stemmed both the Franciscan and the Dominican orders.
It was in this milieu that the prayer of the Rosary came about. It began with the repetitive recitation of the Our Father and the Hail Mary and these prayers which have a biblical foundation were used by lay brothers of the Carthusian and Cistercian orders as a replacement for the prayers of the Divine Office.
Professor Anne Winston-Allen, in her book Stories of the Rose. The Making of the Rosary in the Middle Ages says that the prayer became more popular among the laity who were illiterate and therefore could not read the Gospels for themselves but needed a substitute for prayer and meditation.
Thus the Rosary became the central prayer for Christians, encouraged mostly by the Dominicans, who are well known for their special devotion to the Virgin Mary.
The Rosary is considered a devotional and traditional prayer; it is not a liturgical prayer like the sacrifice of the Mass or the Liturgy of the Hours. However if the Rosary is prayed in the right manner it becomes more than a traditional prayer. When properly recited, the Rosary can help the faithful practise the holy exercise of meditation.
The repetitive Hail Marys said one after the other become like a mantra which lifts the mind up to God the Creator and takes away our human distractions. Besides, it is also a prayer with a difference! It was the Virgin Mary herself who requested the children of Fatima to say it as regularly as possible.
Therefore, its recitation is the fruit of a heavenly mandate for those who believe. It is a prayer which can be the cause of unity in the family if we find the right time of the day and dedicate it for its recitation.