A Vatican conference at the Pontifical Gregorian University honors St. Rose of Lima’s enduring missionary spirit ahead of her statue’s unveiling on January 31.
Newsroom (28/01/2026 Gaudium Press) In Rome, the figure of St. Rose of Lima once again united continents and cultures as scholars, clergy, and diplomats gathered at the Pontifical Gregorian University. The conference, organized by the Embassy of Peru to the Holy See with the support of the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru (PUCP), marked a renewed reflection on the life and legacy of the 17th-century Peruvian saint ahead of the installation of her statue in the Vatican Gardens on January 31.
A Patroness Who Crossed Oceans
Cardinal Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle, pro-prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization, opened the gathering with a meditation on St. Rose, the patroness of Peru and one of the patrons of the Philippines—Tagle’s own homeland.
He recalled how devotion to her sanctity crossed the Pacific, reaching Asia through early Spanish Dominican missionaries. “Her holiness traveled beyond time and geography,” the cardinal said, noting that one of the six façades of Manila Cathedral is dedicated to her.
Canonized by Pope Clement X in 1671, St. Rose remains, in Tagle’s words, a “perpetual missionary”—a model who communicates faith not through instruction but through witness. The cardinal expressed the hope that the academic encounter might become “a seed for a new missionary movement,” particularly meaningful for younger generations who learn best by example.
A Saint Forever Young
Sister Raffaella Petrini, President of the Governatorate of Vatican City State, called St. Rose a figure who “remains forever young,” one who evokes affection and inspires empathy across cultures. Her image, she said, radiates the freshness of holiness lived with authenticity.
That vitality will soon be immortalized in stone. On January 31, Pope Leo XIV will inaugurate a statue of St. Rose of Lima and a Marian mosaic in the Vatican Gardens. Crafted entirely from Peruvian materials, the artworks depict the moment when the saint, in contemplation of the Virgin of the Rosary, experienced an apparition of Jesus offering her a ring and flowers.
Anchors and roses in the statue’s design symbolize her steadfast faith and divine encounter, presenting what organizers describe as the “radiant and smiling face of one who chose to follow Christ.”
The Saint of Service
In a recorded message, Bishop Carlos Enrique García Camader, President of the Peruvian Episcopal Conference, underscored St. Rose’s continuing relevance for the Church in Latin America. Her life, he said, demonstrates that the “search for truth” must be accompanied by “charity and service.”
Reflecting on her theological depth, Cardinal Carlos Castillo Mattasoglio, Archbishop of Lima, described St. Rose’s spirituality as rooted in the inner life. Prayer infused her every task, captured in her supplication, “My beloved spouse, help me to work.” For her, labor became grace in action. Castillo warned that when grace is treated as a personal “conquest” rather than a divine gift, “it ceases to be grace and becomes disgrace.”
Fr. Mark Andrew Lewis, Rector of the Pontifical Gregorian University, linked her holiness to Pope Francis’s own vision of creation and service. He recalled that in 2017, on the fourth centenary of her death, the Pope likened St. Rose to “a lily among thorns,” a biblical image that speaks of purity amid struggle. Lewis also noted that florists and gardeners continue to invoke her patronage—a fitting tribute to one who tended her community as lovingly as she did her flowers.
A Legacy Renewed
Peru’s Ambassador to the Holy See, Jorge Ponce San Román, closed the event with words of gratitude and with remembrance of “Una Rosa per il Mondo” (“A Rose for the World”), a documentary by Peruvian filmmaker Luis Enrique Cam recently screened at the Vatican Film Library. The film recounts how, in a time “before the internet,” three-quarters of Lima’s population joined the procession accompanying St. Rose’s coffin—a testament to the depth of her impact.
As her new statue rises in the Vatican Gardens, St. Rose of Lima’s life continues to bloom as a symbol of faith rooted in humility, love, and perseverance. For Cardinal Tagle, she is not merely a saint of the past but a living call—an invitation for today’s believers to become missionaries of hope in an ever‑changing world.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from Vatican News
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