what is the significance of praying the Holy Rosary?

Answer 1

Holy Rosary is approved by the Catholic Church as a devotional, a "sacramental".

Devotionals/sacramentals are "extra", church-approved ways that people can expand their prayer life and spirituality, but they are not "required" of Catholics! Many people do not know that.

The Rosary is a popular, powerful devotion, a list of reasons here:
http://www.ewtn.com/Devotionals/prayers/rosary/

One reason is:
"The Rosary is the compendium of the entire Gospel"

Most of it (the Our Father, Hail Mary, most of the mysteries) are Biblical. While the hands and lips are occupied with the prayers, the mind meditates on 20 mysteries of Jesus while saying 10 Hail Mary's each (decade): 5 joyful, 5 sorrowful, 5 glorious, and the 5 luminous which were added by JPII.
http://www.ewtn.com/Devotionals/prayers/rosary/how_to.htm

This gives the person praying insight into Jesus' life and death, comfort in times of distress, a focal point for meditative prayer, another way to give our time and attention to God and so on.

There are many ways it is used, such as offering up a mystery/decade, one hail Mary, or entire rosary for each of one's children or for a special prayer request (the health of a loved one or stranger). Others pray it daily, with or without an intention, as a beloved habit, (for any and all the reasons listed at the links above).

Answer 2

The Rosary (from Latin rosarium, "Rose Garden"), is an important and traditional devotion of the Roman Catholic Church consisting of a set of prayer beads and a system of set prayers. The Rosary combines prayer and meditation centered around sequences of reciting the Lord's Prayer followed by ten recitations of the "Hail Mary" prayer; one such sequence is known as a decade. A complete Rosary involves the completion of fifteen decades, as well as other prefatory and final prayers. The Rosary being easier to memorize, came to replace the prior popular devotional practice that consisted of reciting the 150 Psalms of the Bible in thirds or 50 at a time. The Rosary is usually prayed in thirds in the same way, with the "Mysteries" (which are meditated or contemplated on during the prayers) being rotated daily. Roman Catholics may often wear rosaries as an outward symbol of their faith.

The Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary has the liturgical rank of universal memorial. It is associated with Our Lady of Victory and is celebrated on October 7th on the Catholic liturgical calendar in commemoration of the "Victory of Our Lady" at the Battle of Lepanto.

The rosary is also sometimes used by some adherents of other Christian denominations, particularly in the Anglican Communion, the Old Catholic Church, and the Lutheran Church. Other Protestants sometimes condemn it as idolatry.[1]

John Paul II, in his Apostolic Letter of October 16, 2002 Rosarium Virginis Mariae [2], presented five new Mysteries in addition to the traditional fifteen. The Luminous Mysteries however, are optional.


A quote from a website:

The purpose of the Rosary is to help keep in memory certain principal events or mysteries in the history of our salvation, and to thank and praise God for them. There are twenty mysteries reflected upon in the Rosary, and these are divided into the five JOYFUL MYSTERIES, the five LUMINOUS MYSTERIES, the five SORROWFUL MYSTERIES, and the five GLORIOUS MYSTERIES.

Answer 3

According to old tradition, it was the devotion of the Rosary revealed to Saint Domingo, in 1206 by the virgin herself, she provided the Rosary, and it was believed to be the most efficient tool in the crusade against the Albigensian; it consists of 150 Hail Marys (the same number of Psalms) it was called 'Salterio Marial'.

In a more recent time there's been a re-birth of the Holy Rosary after the revelations done by the Holy Virgin in Lourdes (1858) and Fatima (1917). This devotion is the most efficient to strengthen the unity between members of the family, to strengthen our faith, and to Honor God's Mother and to invoke the Virgin's intervention, "The help of the Christians" and the "refuge of the upset ones".

Answer 4

many believe that the repeated chanting of prayers actually can create a state of being which is more conducive to contact with God. Hence the recitation of the rosary is encouraged so as to be able to reach a different plateau of consciousness which should make the supernatural more accessible.

Answer 5

it helps to meditate on the life of Jesus Christ

Answer 6

NO SIGNIFICANCE WHAT SO EVER!!!!