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The pope led the recitation of the Rosary in a breezy Vatican Gardens May 31 before an image of the Virgin Mary untying knots brought from Augsburg, Germany.
The pope introduced the Rosary standing before the image.
The Rosary marked the conclusion of a worldwide prayer marathon that the pope launched on May 1 at St. Peter’s Basilica. On each day of the event, a different Catholic shrine around the world led the Rosary.
Pope Francis has promoted devotion to Mary, Undoer of Knots, since he encountered the original image while studying in Germany, spreading it first in his native Argentina and, after his election, throughout the world.
The painting, by Johann Georg Melchior Schmidtner, is located at the Church of St. Peter am Perlach in Augsburg, southern Germany. The image, completed in around 1700, shows Mary untying knots in a long white ribbon while her foot rests on the head of a snake curled in knots.
Several shrines around the world were connected live to the Rosary in the Vatican Gardens, including the Basilica of Notre-Dame de Boulogne in Nanterre, France, Our Lady of Sorrows in Kibeho, Rwanda, and the National Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes at Carfin, Scotland.
The intentions included the rediscovery of the value of community life, relief from unemployment, an end to domestic violence, recovery from illness, and the resumption of daily pastoral ministry.
After the recitation of the Litany of Loreto, the pope prayed: “O Mary, you always give light on our path as a sign of salvation and hope. We entrust ourselves to you, Health of the Sick, who at the cross were associated with the pain of Jesus, firmly keeping your faith.”
“You, who know how to untie the knots of our existence, and know the desires of our hearts, come to our aid. We are certain that, as in Cana of Galilee, you will ensure that joy and celebration will return to our homes after this time of trial.”
“Help us, Mother of Divine Love, to conform ourselves to the will of the Father and to do what Jesus will tell us, who took upon Himself our sufferings and took upon Himself our sorrows to lead us, through the cross, to the joy of the resurrection. Amen.”