At this Wednesday’s general audience, held in the Paul VI Hall, Pope Leo XIV, as part of his catechesis series titled Jesus Christ, Our Hope, announced that on August 22, the liturgical feast of Mary, Queen, the universal Church will observe a day of prayer and fasting for peace.
The Holy Father invited the faithful to invoke the Virgin as the “Queen of Peace,” asking for her intercession to end the armed conflicts affecting various parts of the world, especially in the Holy Land, Ukraine, and other regions plagued by violence.
Words of Pope Leo XIV at the audience:
“Our world remains wounded by wars. I invite all the faithful to observe August 22 as a day of prayer and fasting, pleading with the Lord to grant us peace and justice, and to wipe away the tears of those who suffer from armed conflicts. May Mary, Queen of Peace, intercede so that peoples may find the path to concord.”
The Pope’s appeal has been received with gratitude by numerous congregations and ecclesial associations. The International Union of Superiors General (UISG), for example, has encouraged religious communities to join this initiative, reinforcing the dimension of prayer, reconciliation, and hope demanded by the current international situation.
Liturgical context
The memorial of Mary, Queen, was instituted in 1954 by Pope Pius XII through the encyclical Ad Caeli Reginam. Initially celebrated on May 31, it was moved to August 22 following the 1969 liturgical reform, coinciding with the octave of the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Virgin, thereby emphasizing the link between Mary’s glorification and her queenship in heaven.
This day proposed by Pope Leo XIV is presented as an opportunity for the Church in Spain and throughout the world to unite in prayer and penance, trusting in the intercession of the Virgin Mary as a mediator of peace in times of suffering and division.
