The world seems to be filled with chaos, confusion, anger and despair. The America Needs Fatima prayer group is hoping to turn some of that around Saturday as members fill the country with prayer during public recitations of the most holy rosary, including places in the Panther Valley-Tamaqua area. The public display of faith in God is seen as an answer to this turbulent world.

The local group is one of more than 14,000 prayer groups throughout the world that will take part in the annual event. Rosaries will be said at four different locations this year beginning at noon: Depot Square Park, intersection of routes 209 and 309 in Tamaqua; Ludlow Park in Summit Hill; St. John Byzantine Catholic Church, Bertsch Street in Lansford; and St. Patrick's Cemetery on Catawissa Street, next to Turkey Hill, in Nesquehoning."We believe Blessed Mother wants us to pray in public so other people can see us pray, and pray with us," said organizer Pat Rabayda of Summit Hill. "Especially at this time in America, we need prayers. We have, all around us, people who are trying to take God out of our nation. We need to put God back into our nation, into our government. We need to not be afraid to say the name of Jesus Christ. We are here in a free country, but our freedoms are being taken away from us. We need to pray for all of that."Father Petrus Pavlicek founded the Holy Rosary Crusade of Reparation in 1947 in the Austrian capitol of Vienna as the country was divided between the United States, France, the United Kingdom and the Soviet Republic. This Crusade consisted of a call to the faithful of Vienna to participate in public rosary processions in the streets of the city. The intention of the rosary was for the end of communism in their country and the world. At first, the processions were minuscule, but they gradually grew to staggering proportions.Oct. 15 was chosen as this year's date because it is close to Oct. 13, "the day God worked the miracle of the sun at Fatima, Portugal in 1917."