Benedict XVI presides over the recitation of the Rosary.
To the Motherhouse of all Marian shrines in the world, a treasure chest of incomparable beauty, the Holy Father welcomed the faithful to the Basilica of Saint Mary Major for the beginning of the Marian month of May and the recitation of the Marian prayer loved by the Saints, the Rosary. This devotion, which in its simplicity and depth is a prayer of great meaning, is a means of Christian contemplation and meditation on the mysteries of the Son, pondered in the silence of the heart of the Mother, she to whom the Lord was closest.
The faithful of Rome were packed tightly around Benedict XVI, offering along with the Pope homage to the image of Salus Populi Romani, greatly venerated in Rome, and united in the prayer of the Hail Mary, which opens the hearts of all to the joyful mysteries. "This is not a pious practice relegated to the past - the Holy Father stated - as if it were a prayer of another era to think about with nostalgia. …More