Shoulder to shoulder, they prayed for intervention.

They sought healing for a divided church — and a divided country.

For the hundreds of Catholics who gathered on the Detroit Riverwalk Sunday, no request seemed out of reach given the powerful spiritual tool they clutched in their hands: the rosary. The string of beads was more than a symbol of their faith, many said. It was a direct connection to God through prayers to the Virgin Mary, who, they believe, listens to their prayers and intercedes on their behalf.

And no request is too big, they stressed.

"The world is in such turmoil -- only God is going to get us out of this mess," said 57-year-old Marlene Prusky of Detroit, one of 200-plus metro Detroiters who attended Rosary Coast to Coast, a series of prayer rallies happening simultaneously in 50 countries.

At exactly 4 p.m., along the Detroit River, American and Canadian Catholics united in praying the Rosary at exactly the same time. Before praying, they waived their nation's flags to one another across the river and sang songs.

The Americans sang "God Bless America." The Canadians sang "O Canada."

And then they bowed their heads, closed their eyes and prayed, calling on the Holy Spirit to drown out the negative noise of the world and replace it with peace and love.

"The Rosary is a very calming prayer. When I get worked up, praying the Rosary is a way to settle me down," said the Rev. Stephen Pullis, director of the Department of Evangelization, Catechesis and Schools for the Archdiocese of Detroit.

For Pullis, the prayer event was a chance to ask Mary to "bring peace to our country" and the Catholic church — both of which are struggling with divisive issues, he said.

"During this painful time for our church and her people, it has become even more important that the faithful turn their eyes to Christ and his healing graces," Pullis said.Joe VanAssche, 34, of Belleville, who attended the prayer rally with his wife and six children, understands that message well.

"We still support the Catholic church," VanAssche said, noting he attended the event in part to show he hasn't abandoned the faith amidst the controversy. "Man may be flawed, but we still support the church."

Around 1,000 Catholic groups nationwide registered to participate in the rallies, including a large-scale event in front the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. The rallies were held outside public buildings, in parks, on beaches, along busy streets as well as inside and outside churches and shrines.

The Detroit event had a special element to it in that it occurred on an international border.

“We met with the Windsor event organizers and decided since we share a peaceful border and our countries have a unique friendship, we should celebrate this relationship,” said Leonard St. Pierre, a Detroit organizer and president of the World Apostolate of Fatima’s Detroit Archdiocesan Division.

John Azzopardi, Windsor’s event captain, said his country was equally grateful to pray with its American neighbors and ask for "holiness and peace for both of our countries and the world.”

For 22-year-old teacher Shannon Grady, the Rosary prayer has been a source of comfort, peace and healing over the years. As she put it, "it's gotten me through a lot of stuff." Her message to the world is simple:

When life gets hard, she said, "cling to your rosary harder."

Tresa Baldas: tbaldas@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @Tbaldas.

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