Fulton Sheen designed this multi-colored Mission Rosary

The Mission Rosary, which looks like a rosary in rainbow colors, was first designed by Venerable Fulton Sheen in 1951.

There is no set rule what color rosary beads should be, and designers have created rosaries in every possible combination of colors.

One unique color combination was designed by Venerable Fulton Sheen.

The Pontifical Mission Societies in Los Angeles provides the following description of the Rosary.

In February of 1951, Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen (national director of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith from 1950 to 1966), in a radio address (The Catholic Hour), inaugurated a World Mission Rosary. “We must pray, and not for ourselves, but for the world. To this end, I have designed the World Mission Rosary. Each of the five decades is of a different color to represent the continents.”

What do the colors signify?

Each decade of that World Mission Rosary calls to mind an area where the Church continues her evangelizing mission: GREEN for the forests and grasslands of AFRICA; BLUE for the ocean surrounding the ISLANDS OF THE PACIFIC; WHITE symbolizing EUROPE, the seat of the Holy Father, shepherd of the world; RED calling to mind the fire of faith that brought missionaries to the AMERICAS, and YELLOW, the morning light of the East, for ASIA.

The Diocese of Harrisburg provides the following quote from Fulton Sheen that communicates his hope and desire with the Mission Rosary.

Peace will come only when the hearts of the world have changed. When the World Mission Rosary is completed, one has embraced all continents, all people in prayer.

The Mission Rosary is a great way to pray for peace in the world, asking Mary to surround all people with her protecting mantle.