Still on the Rosary: the vision of the Holy Fathers.
Translation:Throughout the centuries, there are numerous references from the Fathers of the Church regarding the Rosary. Rather than simply listing documents, we will explore in the following lines the novelty that each document brought to understanding the place of the Rosary in the magisterial teaching. We begin with Pius V (1566-1572), a Saint and Dominican. This Pope is known as the “Rosary Pope” because with the bull *Consueverunt Romani Pontifices*, September 17, 1569, he defined this prayer as:> ‘The Rosary, or Psalter of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is a pious mode of prayer to God, an easy mode that everyone can perform, consisting in praising the Blessed Virgin by repeating the Angelic Salutation one hundred and fifty times, corresponding to the number of David’s Psalms, divided into tens with the Lord’s Prayer, accompanied by certain meditations that illustrate the entire life of our Lord Jesus Christ.’Later, with the bull *Salvatoris Domini* (1572), Saint Pius V, referring to the victory in the Battle of Lepanto, instituted a liturgical feast in memory of such a triumph. The doctrine of Saint Pius V regarding the Rosary can be summarized as follows: a) it is a prayer to be recited to overcome difficulties, calamities, plagues, wars, and other problems. b) It is a means that everyone can use. c) This path has proven to be of great help against heresies and dangers to the faith, leading to numerous conversions. d) It should be recited by all Christians.The succeeding Pope, Gregory XIII, with the bull *Monet Apostolus* (1573), instituted the solemn feast of the Rosary, placing it on the first Sunday in October. Subsequent magisterial documents only grant privileges, indulgences, and norms for various confraternities. The importance of these documents lies in the fact that, even without introducing novelties, the Rosary continued to be of paramount importance to the Apostolic See ‘as an exaltation of the Catholic faith, the extirpation of heresies, and the preservation of peace among Christian princes’ (Pope Clement VIII, bull *Salvatoris et Domini*, January 13, 1593).
In the dawn of the 20th century, Blessed Pius IX (1846-1870) in his letter *Egregiis sui* invites the faithful to pray the Rosary for the success of the First Vatican Council (1869-1870). A few years later, Leo XIII (1878-1903), through 12 encyclicals and two apostolic letters on the themes of the Rosary, would decisively influence its formation in the Christian prayer experience. It is during this pontificate that October is dedicated to the Rosary, a prayer that, according to the Pope, is an easy means to introduce and root in souls the principal dogmas of Christian faith. Regarding the ills of society, the Pope of the social encyclical *Rerum Novarum* invites the recitation of the Rosary to overcome aversion to sacrifice and suffering that faith leads us to, as it teaches us to look at Christ’s sufferings and leads us to a life worked in the image of Christ’s and Mary’s humility. The mysteries of the life to come are conquered through meditation and contemplation of the mysteries of Christ’s, Mary’s, and the Saints’ lives.
In the same line of thought, Pius XI (1922-1939), in his encyclical *Ingravescentibus malis* of September 20, 1937, invites prayer at times of danger to the *Queen* of Heaven, especially through the Rosary, which among prayers to the Virgin holds the first place. It is a means to foster evangelical virtues, strengthen Catholic faith, revive hope and charity.
Venerable Pius XII (1939-1958) dedicated an encyclical and eight letters regarding the Rosary. According to the Pope, who dogmatically proclaimed the Assumption of Mary on November 1, 1950, this prayer is: the synthesis of the whole Gospel, meditations on the mysteries of the Lord, the evening sacrifice, the crown of roses, the hymn of praise, the family prayer, the compendium of Christian life, the sure pledge of heavenly favor, and the safeguard of hope for salvation. In his encyclical Ingruentium malorum (1951), His Holiness stated:> «Although there is not a single way of praying to obtain help, we nevertheless hold that the Holy Rosary is the most convenient and effective means: as its divine, rather than human origin demonstrates, and also by its intimate nature. We do not hesitate to affirm publicly once more that great hope rests in the Holy Rosary for healing the ills afflicting our times. Not by force, not by arms, nor by human power, but by divine aid obtained through this prayer, strong as David with his slingshot, the Church can bravely confront the infernal enemy.»
The Pope who would open the Second Vatican Council, Saint John XXIII (1958-1963), revealed that throughout his life, the Rosary had always been a part of his spirituality. He explained his teachings on the Rosary in various encyclicals and speeches. Among these, we cite Grata Recordatio (1959), speaking about the devotion to the Rosary during the month of October, where the Holy Father states: ‘The Rosary, as everyone knows, is an excellent form of meditated prayer, consisting of a mystical crown, in which the prayers of the Our Father, the Hail Mary, and the Glory are interwoven in the contemplation of the highest mysteries of our faith, so that it presents to our mind, as in so many pictures, the drama of the Incarnation and Redemption of our Lord.’ A few years later, with the apostolic letter O Religioso Conveni (1961), with a paternal tone towards the faithful, which presents in new language the value and effectiveness of the Rosary, it is a true summa of the Rosary.
Our journey ends here at the doors of Vatican II (1962-1965), where saints such as Paul VI and John Paul II influenced, reformulated, and re-read in the light of the Council the most prayed prayer in the world. Tomorrow, we will have more content celebrating the Rosary month!
To deepen your spirituality in the Rosary and devotion to Mary, consult Saint John Paul II’s encyclical Redemptoris Mater on Mary in the mystery of Christ and the Church.
Deepen your studies: explore Mariology, Marian theology, Marian apparitions, and Post-Graduate Marianology.
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