On October 13, 1917, a miracle took place. Witnessed by more than 70,000 people at the place of its occurrence, as well as many thousands more within a 25 mile radius, the crowds included devout Catholics, nominal Catholics, agnostics and atheists – regardless of their belief or lack of it, all present witnessed what took place.
Now that May is here, here are five Marian feast days you should know about.
Behind the scenes - between lights and shadows - of the renunciation of Patriarch Laham. An emblematic story of the “inner” malaise that crosses many Christian Middle Eastern communities. Potential candidates to succession and the - spiritual and pastoral - emergencies that they will have to face
Over the past 10 years the Fatima shrine has seen an uptick in the number of pilgrims who visit from all over the world, particularly from Asia.
The increase is credited to the relevance of Our Lady’s message as the centenary of her apparitions approaches.
“The last few years the number of pilgrims has increased,” Dr. Pedro Valinho Gomes, director of pilgrim services at the Fatima shrine, told CNA in an interview.
Atheists love to mock miracles, and the miracle of the sun at Fatima is one of their favorite objects of derision.
The high priest of the atheists, Richard Dawkins dismisses the miracle of the sun as a mass hallucination.
He writes in The God Delusion:
The incredible drama of Fatima — supernatural events that occurred 100 years ago — summons us to prayer, conversion, reparation and penance. The young visionaries, Servant of God Lucia dos Santos and soon-to-be saints Francisco and Jacinta Marto, decided to change their lives completely by heeding Mary’s messages. Our lives should change, as well. The Marto children will be canonized during Pope Francis’ May 13 Mass in Fatima.
Catholics are renewing Mary’s Rosary devotion as the Church commemorates the 100th anniversary of the Fatima apparitions.
“Say the Rosary every day to bring peace to the world and the end of the war.”
One hundred years ago at a field in Fatima, Portugal, the Blessed Virgin Mary spoke those words to three shepherd children. One thousand miles away, in the bloodstained fields of France, Europe’s proud empires counted hundreds of thousands of their youth killed and wounded in another battle vainly promised as the way to end the “war to end all wars.”
In 1917, meaning, purpose, value, along with transcendence, dignity, and benevolence were rapidly being shed, and this interior emptiness was fueling humanity’s ungodly rage and desire for annihilation. It was into that environment that Mary injected herself in Fatima, bringing a message of light and hope.
It’s always interesting to look at a date or a period of time and ask, “What happened on this day ten years ago? Or fifty or a hundred years ago?” Sometimes we can be surprised how quickly time has passed from a momentous event.
In 1982, the Marian shrine that St. John Paul II wanted to visit was the Black Madonna of Czestochowa, the Queen of Poland. Instead, he went to Fatima.
Burma has a long way to go. But the Church will now be an even stronger voice for justice and peace
