Editing Rosary (section)

==Devotions and spirituality==
{{Main|Rosary devotions and spirituality}}

[[Pope John Paul II]] placed the Rosary at the very center of Christian spirituality and called it "among the finest and most praiseworthy traditions of Christian contemplation."<ref>Madore, George. ''The Rosary with John Paul II,'' 2004, Alba House, {{ISBN|2-89420-545-7}} p. 18</ref><ref name=JPII/><ref>{{cite book |last1=Smith |first1=Scott |author-link=Scott L. Smith, Jr. |title=Pray the Rosary with St. John Paul II |date=12 December 2019 |publisher=Holy Water Books |isbn=978-1950782086 |pages=8–14 |url=https://www.thescottsmithblog.com/2020/09/pray-rosary-with-saint-pope-john-paul.html |access-date=6 January 2021}}</ref> [[Pope Pius XI]] is quoted as saying, for example, "The Rosary is a powerful weapon to put the demons to flight."<ref>{{cite web |title=The Power of the Rosary |url=https://www.opwest.org/poweroftherosary/ |website=Dominican Friars: Province of the Holy Name of Jesus |access-date=6 January 2021 |archive-date=8 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210108100557/https://www.opwest.org/poweroftherosary/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Saints and popes have emphasized the meditative and contemplative elements of the rosary and provided specific teachings for how the rosary should be prayed, for instance the need for "focus", "respect", "reverence" and "purity of intention" during rosary recitations and contemplations.<ref>{{cite book |last=Winston-Allen |first=Anne |title=Stories of the Rose: The Making of the Rosary in the Middle Ages |date=1997 |publisher=[[Penn State University Press]] |isbn=0-271-01631-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZUJ2B8FME6MC|pages=32–34}}</ref> Scriptural meditations concerning the rosary are based on the Christian tradition of ''[[Lectio Divina]]'' (literally "divine reading") as a way of using the [[Gospel]] to start a conversation between the person and Christ. [[Padre Pio]], a rosary devotee, said: "Through the study of books one seeks God; by meditation one finds him."<ref>Kelly, Liz. ''The Rosary: A Path into Prayer,'' 2004 {{ISBN|0-8294-2024-X}} p. 79</ref> From the sixteenth century onwards, Rosary recitations often involved "picture texts" that further assisted meditation. Such imagery continues to be used to depict the Mysteries of the rosary.

References to the Rosary have been part of various reported [[Marian Apparitions]] spanning two centuries. The reported messages from these apparitions have influenced the spread of Rosary devotion worldwide.<ref>Shamon, Albert J. M., ''The Power of the Rosary,'' CMJ Publishers, 2003. {{ISBN|1-891280-10-4}} p. 5</ref><ref>Miller, John D. ''Beads and prayers: the rosary in history and devotion,'' 2002 {{ISBN|0-86012-320-0}} p. 151</ref> In ''[[Quamquam pluries]],'' [[Pope Leo XIII]] related Rosary devotions to [[Saint Joseph]] and granted [[indulgence]]s in favour of Christians who, in the month of October, would have added the [[Prayer to Saint Joseph]] at the end of the Holy Rosary.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.vatican.va/holy_father/leo_xiii/encyclicals/documents/hf_l-xiii_enc_15081889_quamquam-pluries_en.html| title = Vatican website: ''Quamquam pluries''}}</ref>

Praying the Rosary may be prescribed by priests as a type of [[penance]] after the [[Sacrament of Penance (Catholic Church)|Sacrament of Penance]]. Penance is not generally intended as a "punishment"; rather, it is meant to encourage meditation upon and spiritual growth from past sins.<ref>No penance is meant as punishment, according to the Catechism: [https://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p2s2c2a4.htm Catechism, the Sacrament of Penance]</ref>