Clutched by the global faithful and draped on candles and statues, rosaries abound for Pope Francis

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As Pope Francis remains hospitalized in Rome, thousands of faithful from around the world have been gathering at St. Peter’s Square and by the hospital to pray the rosary for him. Dating back to the Middle Ages and popularized in the 16th century, the chain of beads that comprises a rosary is one of the most visible symbols of Christianity.

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As Pope Francis remains hospitalized in Rome, thousands of faithful from around the world have been gathering by St. Peter’s Basilica and by the hospital to pray the rosary for him. (AP Video by Francesca Primavilla & Silvia Stellacci)

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A woman prays for Pope Francis at Almudena Cathedral in Madrid, Spain, on Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

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Nuns pray for Pope Francis in front of the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic, where the Pontiff has been hospitalized since Feb.14, in Rome, Saturday, March 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

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A Catholic man attends a nightly rosary prayer service for the health of Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

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A man holds rosary beads during a spiritual celebration praying for the health of Pope Francis, at The Cathedral of Christ the King in Johannesburg, South Africa, Sunday, March 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)

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A nun holds rosary beads as people pray for Pope Francis in front of the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic, where the Pontiff has been hospitalized since Feb.14, in Rome, Saturday, March 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

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A woman holds a rosary during a Mass for Pope Francis’ health at the Cathedral in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko)

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A nun holds rosary beads as she prays for Pope Francis in front of the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic, in Rome, Sunday, March 2, 2025, where the Pontiff is hospitalised since Friday, Feb. 14. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

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FILE- A woman prays for the health of Pope John Paul II at a state-approved Catholic church in Beijing Saturday April 2, 2005. (AP Photo/Greg Baker, FILE)

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FILE- Hands hold a rosary as people pray for the recovery of Pope John Paul II during a mass in the Polish St. Stanislaw church in Rome, Thursday, Feb. 24, 2005. (AP Photo/Domenico Stinellis, File)

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FILE- Connor Power from Brisbane, Australia, prays in St. Peter’s square at the Vatican early Friday, April 1, 2005, for the health of Pope John Paul II. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino, File)

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FILE- Faithful pray with a rosary after the death of Pope John Paul II was announced in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Saturday, April 2, 2005. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno, File)

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FILE- A young Kosovar Albanian Catholic prays during a Sunday mass for Pope John Paul II in the St. Anthony’s Catholic church of Pristina, Kosovo, Sunday, April 3, 2005. (AP Photo/ Visar Kryeziu)

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A man attends a rosary prayer with Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle held for the health of Pope Francis in St Peter’s Square at The Vatican, Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

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A man holds rosary beads as he prays for Pope Francis in front of the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic, where the Pontiff has been hospitalized since Feb. 14, in Rome, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

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Parishioners pray for the health of Pope Francis at the Metropolitan Cathedral in Mexico City, Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

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A Catholic woman attends a nightly rosary prayer service for the health of Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

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A Catholic nun attends a prayer of the Rosary for Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square at The Vatican, Monday, Feb. 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

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A man holds rosary beads as he prays for Pope Francis’ health in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Tuesday, March 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

By GIOVANNA DELL’ORTO

VATICAN CITY (AP) — As Pope Francis remains hospitalized in Rome, thousands of faithful from around the world have been gathering by St. Peter’s and by the hospital to pray the rosary for him.

Dating to the Middle Ages and popularized in the 16th century, the chain of beads that comprises a rosary is one of the most visible symbols of Christianity — handheld by young and old, hanging from monks’ belts, draped around rearview mirrors in vehicles, crafted in precious stones, olive tree wood from the Holy Land or cheap, even gaudy plastic.

Repetitive prayer exists across multiple faiths. For Catholics, the rosary consists of reciting one “Our father” and ten “Hail Mary” prayers, five times over — starting each “decade” with a brief meditation on different mysteries about the life of Jesus and Mary.

They vary depending on the day of the week — from “glorious” ones like Mary’s assumption to “sorrowful” ones like Jesus climbing the Calvary hill.

“Mary is the mediator between God and humankind,” said the Rev. Enzo Fortunato, a Franciscan who leads the Vatican committee for World Children’s Day. “We turn to Mary as children, with the certainty that she listens to us like a mother.”

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The prayer can be done individually or in groups, as it has been done for Francis, at home or on pilgrimage on in churches. The Basilica in Lourdes, France, one of the most popular sites of pilgrimage in Europe, is dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary, the origin of the images of Mary holding the rosary.

It’s long been a tradition in many countries to pray the rosary for the ill. When the group rosaries in St. Peter’s Square started the night of Feb. 24, many were reminded of the somber vigils held when St. John Paul II was hospitalized at the end of his papacy in 2005.

“It’s a simple prayer, that doesn’t require special knowledge or preparation,” said Fermín Labarga, professor of church history at the University of Navarra in Spain. “It teaches us to pray like Mary, always contemplating Christ.”

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