During the month of May, the Church around the world is joining in a daily Rosary for the intention of the end of the pandemic, as well as a specific intention related to the various victims of the virus.
Each day of the month, a different shrine will lead the daily Rosary, according to local practice.
The beginning and the end of the Rosary Marathon (May 1 and May 31) are led by Pope Francis.
See below to follow the list of the Shrines.
Watch the Rosary live at 6 p.m. Rome time (12 noon EDT) by clicking here. The video screen at the top will go live at the designated time.
Day 16 intention: For all victims of violence and human trafficking
Today’s Rosary will be led at St. Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney, Australia. The English-style Gothic revival cathedral is Australia’s largest, and regarded as the Mother Church for the Catholics of Australia.
It is constructed of honey-colored Sydney sandstone and is in the center of Australia’s largest city. The architect of the current cathedral was William Wardell. He was charged to rebuild the structure after the original was destroyed by fire in 1865. While the style is European, he used Australian native flora in decorating it, linking the building to where it stands.
The original building was constructed in 1821, to serve the Catholics among the British convicts and soldiers who were Sydney’s first European settlers.
Its interesting history continues to today.
In 2008, Pope Benedict XVI blessed a new altar stone, when he was in Sydney for World Youth Day.
Learn more about the cathedral here.