Leo XIV opens global week of prayer for peace with hundreds of children
The Holy Father joined the “One Million Children Praying the Rosary” initiative, promoted by Aid to the Church in Need (ACN), in the Vatican Gardens.
Pope Leo XIV joined hundreds of children at the Grotto of Lourdes in the Vatican Gardens on Thursday, 1 October, to pray the Rosary for peace, launching a global week of prayer as part of “One Million Children Praying the Rosary”, an international initiative promoted by the pontifical foundation Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).
“I am truly happy to be with you,” said the Holy Father as he addressed the children. Leo XIV explicitly thanked ACN “for having promoted this initiative and for the great work it does”, before inviting those present to ask together for a special gift: “peace for all the children of the world, especially for those who live where there is war”.
The initiative runs from 1 to 7 October and unites children, families, schools, parishes, and communities around the world in a single prayer.
“One million children praying with us”
The Pope made it clear to the children gathered in Rome that this initiative has a global scope.
“This evening and during these days, it is not just us praying. Throughout the world, a million children are praying with us. A million!” he stated.
Leo XIV invited them to imagine “fifty million Hail Marys” rising to heaven “from everywhere and in all the languages of the earth”, united like a great Rosary crown encompassing continents, peoples, and nations.
Data collected by ACN already offers a first picture of this global scale. By 12:11 UTC on 1 October, the campaign’s online platform had recorded 313,938 prayers from 94 countries. This figure reflects only the registrations recorded online. Many parishes, schools, families, and communities join the initiative without formally registering, especially in places where internet access is severely limited or non-existent. The records also show the extraordinary geographical reach of the campaign, with participation coming from countries as diverse and distant as Finland, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Japan, Indonesia, and Bangladesh, alongside countries with widespread participation such as Brazil, Poland, India, the Philippines, and Ukraine.
A prayer that looks to the world’s suffering
Upon receiving the Holy Father, Cardinal Kurt Koch recalled that the initiative invites children to discover that they too can bring to Jesus, alongside Mary, “the sufferings of the world”.
“Languages and distances are different, but the hope that unites us is one,” he stated. During the preparation, videos and testimonies brought children closer to some of the realities that would be especially present in the prayer: Ukraine, the Holy Land and the Middle East, Pakistan, South Sudan, Venezuela, and Cuba. In his greeting to the Pope, Koch remembered the children of Ukraine and the victims of war; the families in Syria, Lebanon, and the Holy Land forced to leave their homes; persecuted Christians in Pakistan and elsewhere; the need for reconciliation in South Sudan; and families in Cuba and Venezuela, that they might not lose hope.
“Prayer also educates our hearts towards peace, forgiveness, and caring for others,” noted the cardinal, who asked the Pope for his blessing so that children might learn, with Mary, to be “little peacemakers”.
Before the arrival of the Holy Father, the children took part in a preparatory program featuring music, testimonies, and interactive activities designed to lead them progressively towards praying the Rosary. Musical animation was provided by KISI, featuring children from four countries, as well as a choir and musicians from the Shalom Community.
“This is how peace grows”
Finally, Leo XIV insisted that prayer must have a concrete reflection in daily life. He encouraged the children to do good at home, at school, during catechism, and while playing and doing sports. “Prayers must always be accompanied by good deeds, by acts of love. This is how peace grows!” he concluded.
The Rosary week of prayer for peace will continue until 7 October. Families, schools, parishes, and communities wishing to join can register their participation and download campaign materials on the “One Million Children Praying the Rosary” page.
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