A Rosary for unity and peace

A million children praying the Rosary together for unity and peace.  As has been customary for the past 13 years, Aid to the Church in need has invited children from all over the world to pray.

“Children from about 80 countries and all the continents are participating – explained Father Martin Barta, international spiritual assistant to CAN. Last year also children from Argentina, Cuba, Cameroun, India  and the Philippines.  It is truly a campaign of the World Church!”.

For this reason the material distributed by the Foundation  –  a guide for praying the Rosary, a poster and a letter inviting both children and adults –  is available in 25 languages, including Arabic and Hausa, the language spoken in West Africa and above all in persecuted Nigeria.

The initiative started in Caracas, Venezuela in  2005.  While a group of children were praying at a wayside shrine, several women felt the presence of the Virgin Mary. One of them remembered Padre Pio’s promise: “When one million children pray the Rosary together, the world will change”. Father Barta explained that it is exactly  all about “having faith in the strength of children’s prayers.”. 

The 18th October was chosen both because we are in the month of Our Lady and it is  the feast day of Saint Luke the Evangelist, who “handed on to us the story of Jesus’s childhood” and “was very close to Mary”. 

 A video is also available on to make children aware of the event and can be freely published on websites and social media profiles.