By Easter Almuena
Special to the Herald
Honolulu’s Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of Peace on June 23 will join more than 120 churches in 50 countries in the eighth Annual Global Rosary Relay for Priests, a continuous, around-the-world, 24-hour recitation of the rosary.
The purpose of the world-wide event is to pray for the sanctification of all priests and to implore Our Lady, Mother of all priests, for her protection and loving care.
The rosary relay uses the Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). Each church has 30 minutes to pray a full mystery. This year, at GMT midnight, Shinnaedong Church in Ioongrang-Gu in Seoul, Korea, will start the relay with the recitation of the Joyful Mysteries followed by Our Lady of Magadan Church in Siberia.
The schedule of churches can be found at worldpriest.com.
The cathedral in Honolulu will recite the Glorious Mysteries 11:30-11:55 a.m. on June 23. The diocesan Office of Worship is organizing a “living rosary,” where a person will lead each bead. Everyone is invited.
Hawaii’s Catholic Television and Media (hictv.com) will provide live streaming, which will be picked up for live broadcasting by five countries including the United States via Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN), a major partner with the global rosary relay.
The rosary relay is the brainchild of Marion Mulhall, an Irish advertising and marketing professional, who, in 1994, heard the call to pray for all priests.
She created the website worldpriest.com in 2003 to “affirm the dignity, beauty and gift of the Priesthood of Jesus Christ to Humanity.” In 2009, she and her team organized the first global rosary.
Mulhall invited Bishop Larry Silva and Msgr. Gary Secor, rector of the cathedral, to participate. The bishop accepted. The Office of Worship is coordinating the event in Hawaii.
Anyone and everyone in the diocese, wherever one might be at the time, is invited to join in praying the Glorious Mysteries at 11:30 a.m. on Friday, June 23, to pray for all priests, especially our own.
For more information contact diocesan coordinator Easter Almuena at the Office of Worship at ealmuena@rcchawaii.org or 585-3342.
