World Mission Rosary
In February 1951, Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, who served as the national director of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith from 1950 to 1966, introduced the World Mission Rosary during a radio address on the Catholic Hour. In his message, Archbishop Sheen emphasized the importance of praying not only for ourselves but for the entire world. He explained, “To this end, I have designed the World Mission Rosary. Each of the five decades is of a different color to represent the continents.”
The intention behind praying this rosary, as Archbishop Sheen expressed, was to “aid the Holy Father and his Society for the Propagation of the Faith by supplying him with practical support, as well as prayers, for the poor mission territories of the world.” Each decade of the World Missionary Rosary symbolizes a specific area where the Church continues its evangelizing mission:
- GREEN represents the forests and grasslands of AFRICA.
- BLUE symbolizes the ocean surrounding the ISLANDS OF THE PACIFIC.
- WHITE signifies EUROPE, the seat of the Holy Father and shepherd of the world.
- RED calls to mind the fire of faith that brought missionaries to the AMERICAS.
- YELLOW represents the morning light of the East, symbolizing ASIA.
Missionary rosaries are available from the Comboni Mission Center in Cincinnati for $10 (includes shipping to addresses in the continental US). For areas outside the continental US, please enquire at info@combonimissionaries.org.
