[GlennD]

“Here is another man praying the Rosary on the drive to work.”

I do also. I assume it had something to do with the picture in the St Joseph’s Catechism, when I was young, which showed the dad driving and praying the Rosary.-Glenn

[MarkBsnr]

I tried before to discover the praying proclivities of Protestants / non-Catholics, but was underwhelmed in responses.

We Catholic are reviled for praying the Rosary (Novenas, Chaplet of Divine Mercy etc etc), but I really don’t understand where and when the devout Protestants actually do pray, especially when the Scriptures say they should. We are reviled for kneeling and genuflecting, but do they ever bend a knee, in spite of all the Scriptures that say they should.

We keep Holy the Lord’s Day at least by attending church; my devout Protestant friends attend their services with much less frequency than we.

I refer back to the title of this thread once again.

[annalex]

I am a convert (from Orthodoxy), so the Rosary prayer is new to me. It is a deep, powerful prayer that works miracles.

Madonna of the Pomegranate (Madonna della Melagrana)

Sandro Botticelli

c. 1487
Tempera on panel, diameter 143,5 cm
Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence

The picture's title is explained by the pomegranate in Mary's hand: this should be understood as symbolizing Christ's Passion, the wealth of seeds conveying the fullness of Christ's suffering. A comparison of this painting with Botticelli's earlier tondo Madonna del Magnificat reveals that the artist has now arranged the angels symmetrically, thereby avoiding the compositional difficulties of the older depiction. The Christ Child, whose hand is raised in blessing, is lying securely in the arms of Mary, but the sad, melancholy expression on the faces of mother and child are intended to remind the observer of the torments the Son of God will suffer in the future. The angels are worshipping Mary with lilies and garlands of roses. The Rosary is a prayer that was created in its present form in the 15th century, and rapidly became widespread. The beginning of this prayer is embroidered on the left angel s stola: AVE GRAZIA PLENA (Hail Mary, full of grace).

(Source)

While the present Rosary form with its association with the Psalms and the Gospels can be traced to 13th c., and is associated with Saint Dominic de Guzmán (AD 1170-1221), the practice of moving a knotted string through the fingers while at prayer probably predates Christ.