Rosarium Virginis Mariae

[3]In the 1569 papal bull Consueverunt, Pope Pius V noted that "the Rosary or Psalter of the Blessed Virgin" is a "method of prayer" through which we "venerate Mary with the Angelical salutation repeated 150 times according to the number of David's psalms, and before every set of ten Hail Mary's we say the prayer of Our Lord with meditations that illustrate the entire life of the same Lord Jesus Christ".

[4] The apostolic letter quotes Louis de Montfort: “Our entire perfection consists in being conformed, united and consecrated to Jesus Christ.

Thus, the affectus dilectionis (preferential love) warms Cistercian piety with Bernard of Clairvaux and William of Saint-Thierry, whereas Franciscan spirituality focuses on the tradition of the crib and contemplation of the passion.

Dominican piety, with Albert the Great and Catherine of Siena, like Francis of Assisi sees the crucified Christ as the center of religious devotion.

[8] Lengthy and diversified in content, the apostolic letter can be considered a practical pastoral instrument in various ways: How to pray the Rosary as a form of contemplative prayer, brief explanations of the mysteries, the meanings of the "Our Father", the ten "Hail Marys", the "Gloria", the concluding prayers, the beads, and the chain.