On Sept. 27, Pope Leo XIV invited Catholics around the world to pray the Rosary for peace throughout October
VATICAN CITY — Pope Leo XIV prayed the Rosary with hundreds of children and their families at the Lourdes Grotto in the Vatican Gardens Oct. 1 after the pope invited Catholics to pray the Rosary throughout the month of October for peace in the world.
“Tonight and in these coming days, we are not alone in prayer. Across the globe, 1 million children are praying with us,” Pope Leo told the children.
“One million! Just think: 50 million ‘Hail Marys’ rising to heaven from every corner of the earth and in every language, asking for peace, and coming together as if in a single, immense Rosary, to embrace and bind together all the continents, races, and nations of the planet,” he said.
Pope Leo XIV and hundreds of children prayed the Rosary for peace in the Lourdes Grotto in the Vatican Gardens on the evening of Oct. 1.
The prayer with the pope as the sun set over the Vatican Gardens was part of the “One Million Children Praying the Rosary” initiative organized by Aid to the Church in Need, a pontifical foundation that supports persecuted and suffering Christians around the world.
For the first time, the 2026 campaign took place over an entire week, from Oct. 1-7, which allowed dioceses, parishes, schools, communities and families around the world to choose a day suited to their pastoral circumstances while uniting in prayer for peace and unity. The campaign concluded Oct. 7, the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary.
Pope Leo arrived at the Vatican Gardens singing the hymn “Jesus Christ, You Are My Life” with the children and the crowd gathered in the gardens for the prayer.
“Tonight we’ve gathered to be together with the two people who love us more than anyone else. Do you know who they are?” the pope asked. “The Lord Jesus and His mother Mary, who never leave us alone and who are always close to us.”
At the beginning of the prayer vigil, the pope was accompanied by a child as he brought a bouquet of flowers to the altar at the Lourdes Grotto.
During his address, Pope Leo invited the children to shout, “I love you, Jesus,” and “I love you, Mary.”
“Yes, we love you, Jesus and Mary, and tonight we ask you for a special gift: peace for all the children of the world, especially for those living in war-torn areas in so many countries around the world,” he said. “We do this through the prayer of the holy Rosary, which is a simple prayer that everyone can recite.”
Before beginning the Rosary, the pope explained that the children would reflect on five moments in the life of Jesus, corresponding to the Luminous Mysteries of the Rosary: His baptism in the Jordan River, the wedding feast at Cana, the proclamation of the kingdom of God, the Transfiguration and the institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper.
Pope Leo XIV greeted young people after he joined hundreds of children in praying the Rosary for peace in the Lourdes Grotto in the Vatican Gardens on the evening of Oct. 1. There were also prayer services around the world in which children prayed the Rosary for peace.
“These are moments in which He gave us wonderful gifts that we must never forget, and for this we want to thank Him,” the pope said.
The children prayed the Hail Mary in several languages, including Italian, Arabic, Urdu, German and Spanish, offering decades of the Rosary for peace in Syria, Lebanon, South Sudan, Cuba, Venezuela and other countries.
The “One Million Children Praying the Rosary” initiative began in Venezuela in 2005 and has since grown into a worldwide prayer movement involving children, families, parishes, schools and Church groups across the globe.
The campaign draws inspiration from words attributed to St. Pio of Pietrelcina, commonly known as Padre Pio: “When 1 million children pray the Rosary, the world will change.”
In 2026, the campaign was also inspired by the message of Our Lady of Fatima: “In the end, my Immaculate Heart will triumph.”
Children in communities around the world participated in the initiative, including in areas affected by war, poverty and political instability, including Sudan, Bolivia and Zimbabwe.
The prayer in the Vatican Gardens kicked off the month of October, which the Church dedicates to prayer of the holy Rosary.
During his Angelus address in Lourdes on Sept. 27, Pope Leo invited Catholics around the world to pray the Rosary throughout October for an end to war and peace among nations.
“I invite all the faithful and all Christian communities to pray the holy Rosary throughout the coming month of October, with the particular intention that wars may cease and that peace may be established among peoples in conflict,” he said.
“Let us accompany this prayer with concrete acts of penance and mercy, committing ourselves always to fostering dialogue and reconciliation,” he added.
