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Pope promotes prayers like medicine for heart; crowd in square gets 'pillboxes' of rosaries

Associated Press
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Pope Francis shows a box shaped like a pill box but which contains a rosary during his traditional Sunday appearance in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, Nov. 17, 2013. Pope Francis said that the rosary is like a medicine for the heart and small boxes containing rosaries were distributed to faithful at the end of Pope's traditional Angelus prayer in St. Peter's Square. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia) (The Associated Press)

Felipe Penna, of Brazil, holds a box shaped like a pill box but which contains a rosary that was distributed at the end of Pope's Francis traditional Sunday appearance in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, Nov. 17, 2013. Pope Francis said that the rosary is like a medicine for the heart. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia) (The Associated Press)

Pope Francis shows a rosary in a box designed to resemble a packets of pills, during his traditional Sunday's appearance from his studio overlooking St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, Nov. 17, 2013. Joking that he's like a pharmacist, Pope Francis is promoting prayer as medicine for the heart. Appearing on Sunday at his studio window, Francis held up a rosary in a box designed to resemble a packets of pills. Francis' down-to-earth way of speaking in a style ordinary people can readily understand apparently has helped draw huger than usual crowds to St. Peter's Square for the traditional weekly papal appearances. About 80,000 tourists and Romans packed the square on a warm Sunday day. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia) (The Associated Press)

Joking that he's like a pharmacist, Pope Francis is promoting prayer as medicine for the heart.

Appearing on Sunday at his studio window, Francis held up a rosary in a box designed to resemble a packets of pills, before volunteers distributed thousands of those boxes, which feature a design of a human heart.

Francis said he was recommending reciting the rosary prayer as a "spiritual medicine" that is "good for the heart."

Francis' down-to-earth way of speaking, in a style ordinary people can readily understand, is drawing larger than usual crowds to St. Peter's Square for his traditional weekly appearances. About 80,000 tourists and Romans packed the square on Sunday.