MIRACULOUS ROSARY:
Pray the Rosary and change the World!
(This article is taken from the following Blogger page, This is NOT mine, I am only using it.)
http://miraculousrosary.blogspot.com/p/story-of-our-lady-of-fatima.html
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| Our Lady of Fatima |
Our Blessed Mother appeared to three simple shepherd
children six times in 1917 so they could warn the world of upcoming
trials and tribulations. The three children were, siblings Jacinta, age
7, and Francisco Marto, age 9, and their cousin Lucia Dos Santos, age
10. Since that time, many of the prophecies have come true, and there
is much debate about the happenings involving the Third Secret and Our
Lady’s request to consecrate Russia to Her Immaculate Heart.
It began in a small village of Portugal
called Fatima. The name of the village alone has an interesting history.
Centuries before the apparitions, from April, 711 to 1492 A.D., Muslims
conquered and occupied the lands of Spain and Portugal, forcing the
people to become Islam. During this time of Moorish occupation, the
small village in Portugal was named after a beloved 12th
century Muslim princess named Fatima. Due to a reconquering by the
defending Christian forces, Islamic Princess Fatima was captured.
Princess Fatima married the Spanish Count of Ourem and converted to
Catholicism. At baptism, she changed her name to Oureana. Her original
name was Fatima because, in the Islamic faith, many girls are named
after the daughter of Mohammed, the founder of Islam who lived from 570
to 632 A.D. When his daughter Fatima died, Mohammed expressed in his
grief, “She has the highest place in heaven after the Virgin Mary.”
On a sunny day in the year 1915, Lucia Dos
Santos was playing with three other girls when they took a break to sit
down for lunch. After lunch, as was their custom, they prayed the
rosary. While praying, they noticed a bright white cloud in the sky that
had taken on a human form. The vision appeared to them three times. All
four girls were filled with wonder. Lucia would later describe, “Like a
cloud, whiter than snow, slightly transparent, with a human outline.”
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| The young seers of Fatima, left to right: Lucia, Francisco, and Jacinta |
The Angel
A year later, Lucia was out tending her father’s sheep and was in
the company of her cousins Jacinta and Francisco. After having lunch and
praying the rosary, they proceeded to play jacks in a cave when a
brilliant Angel appeared to them and said, “Fear not! I am the Angel of
Peace. Pray with me!”
The Angel knelt on the ground and bowed very low. The children imitated
him and repeated his words, “My God, I believe, I adore, I hope, and I
love You. I beg pardon of You for those who do not believe, do not
adore, do not hope, and do not love you.” The Angel repeated this
prayer three times, then arose and said before he disappeared, “Pray
this way. The Hearts of Jesus and Mary are attentive to the voice of
your supplications.”
The Angel appeared again to them the following
summer and said, “What are you doing? Pray! Pray a great deal! The
Hearts of Jesus and Mary have designs of mercy for you! Offer
unceasingly to the Most High prayers and sacrifices!”
Lucia asked him, “But how are we to sacrifice ourselves?”
The Angel replied, “Offer up everything
within your power as a sacrifice to the Lord in an act of reparation for
the sins by which He is offended; and of supplication for the
conversion of sinners. Thus invoke peace upon your country. I am her
Guardian Angel; the Angel of Portugal. Above all, accept and bear with
submission the sufferings that the Lord may send you.”
When autumn came, the Angel appeared to
them again, this time holding a chalice in his hand. A host hovered
above it from which blood dropped into the chalice. The Angel left the
chalice and Host suspended in mid-air and prostrated himself on the
ground saying, "Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, I adore
Thee profoundly, and I offer Thee the Most Precious Body, Blood, Soul,
and Divinity of the same Son Jesus Christ, present in the Tabernacles of
the world, in reparation for all the sacrileges, outrages and
indifferences by which He Himself is offended. And by the infinite
merits of His Most Sacred Heart and through the Immaculate Heart of
Mary, I beg of Thee the conversion of poor sinners."
The angel then arose and, taking the
chalice and Host, he gave the Host to Lucia, and the contents of the
chalice to Jacinta and Francisco while saying, “Take and drink the Body
and Blood of Jesus Christ, horribly outraged by ungrateful men. Make
reparation for their crimes and console your God.”
Again, the Angel prostrated himself on the
ground and again repeated with the children three times the Most Holy
Trinity prayer before disappearing.
The First Apparition
The following spring, on May 13, 1917, the three children took
their flocks out to pasture in the Cova da Iria when two bright flashes
of something like lightning from out of the clear blue sky startled
them. Lucia describes what the children saw next above a holmoak tree,
“A lady, clothed in white, brighter than the sun, radiating a light more
clear and intense than a crystal cup filled with sparkling water, lit
by burning sunlight."
The Lady smiled and said, “Do not be afraid, I will not harm you.”
Lucia asked from where she came and what she wanted.
The Lady pointed to the sky saying, “I come from heaven. I have come to
ask you to come here for six months on the 13th day of the month, at
this same hour. Later I shall say who I am and what I desire. And I
shall return here yet a seventh time.”
Lucia asked if they would go to heaven. The Lady told her that she and
Jacinta would go to heaven, but Francisco would need to say many
rosaries first. Then she said, “Are you willing to offer yourselves to
God and bear all the sufferings He wills to send you, as an act of
reparation for the conversion of sinners?” Lucia, with the approval of
the other two children, agreed, and the Lady continued, “Then you are
going to have much to suffer, but the grace of God will be your
comfort.” As she said this, the Lady opened her hands and a stream of
light on the children allowed them to see themselves in God. The Lady
finished, “Say the rosary every day, to bring peace to the world and the
end of the war.” The Lady then rose up into the air, moving east, until
she disappeared.
The Second Apparition
On June 13, 1917 the three seers were joined by about 50 people as they
awaited the Lady’s next promised visit. Again, the children saw a flash
of light followed by the apparition of Mary. She said to Lucia, "I want
you to come on the 13th of next month, to pray the Rosary every day, and
to learn to read. Later, I will tell you what I want."
When Lucia asked her to take them to heaven, Mary said, "I will take
Jacinta and Francisco shortly; but you will stay here for some time to
come. Jesus wants to use you to make Me known and loved. He wishes to
establish the devotion to My Immaculate Heart throughout the world. I
promise salvation to whoever embraces it; these souls will be dear to
God, like flowers put by Me to adorn his throne."
Sad upon hearing these words, Lucia replied, "Am I to stay here alone?"
Mary answered her before she departed to the east, "No, my daughter. Are
you suffering a great deal? Don't lose heart. I will never forsake you.
My Immaculate Heart will be your refuge and the way that will lead you
to God."
The Third Apparition
On July 13 1917 the beautiful Lady once again appeared to the children.
When Lucia asked what she wanted, she said, “I want you to come here on
the 13th of next month, to continue to pray the Rosary every day in
honor of Our Lady of the Rosary, in order to obtain peace for the world
and the end of the war, because only she can help you."
Lucia asked who she was, and if she could perform a miracle so that all
present would believe. The Lady replied, "Continue to come here every
month. In October, I will tell you who I am and what I want, and I will
perform a miracle for all to see and believe."
Lucia asked the lady to fulfill requests people had asked of her for
sick people, and Mary replied that some would be cured, but not others,
and that all must say the rosary to obtain such graces.
She added, "Sacrifice yourselves for sinners, and say many times,
especially when you make some sacrifice: O Jesus, it is for love of You,
for the conversion of sinners, and in reparation for the sins committed
against the Immaculate Heart of Mary."
When
Mary spoke these words, She opened her hands and rays of light from
them seemed to penetrate the earth so that they saw a terrifying vision
of hell, full of demons and lost souls amidst indescribable horrors.
This is the first of the Three Secrets of Fatima.
With a sad expression on Her face, the Blessed Mother said to them
kindly, "You have seen hell where the souls of poor sinners go. To save
them, God wishes to establish in the world devotion to my Immaculate
Heart. If what I say to you is done, many souls will be saved and there
will be peace. The war is going to end; but if people do not cease
offending God, a worse one will break out during the pontificate of Pius
XI. When you see a night illumined by an unknown light, know that this
is the great sign given you by God that he is about to punish the world
for its crimes, by means of war, famine, and persecutions of the Church
and of the Holy Father.”
The Second Secret begins, "To prevent this, I shall come to ask for the
consecration of Russia to my Immaculate Heart, and the Communion of
Reparation on the First Saturdays. If my requests are heeded, Russia
will be converted, and there will be peace; if not, she will spread her
errors throughout the world, causing wars and persecutions of the
Church. The good will be martyred, the Holy Father will have much to
suffer, various nations will be annihilated. In the end, my Immaculate
Heart will triumph. The Holy Father will consecrate Russia to me and she
will be converted, and a period of peace will be granted to the world."
At this point the second part of the secret of Fatima ends and the third
part begins with the words, "In Portugal the dogma of the faith will
always be preserved ... " As of the writing of this blog article on
January 22, 2011, Lucia's description of the visual images in the
secret were revealed in the year 2000, but not the text itself. The
first two parts of the secret became publicly known in 1942.
After telling the children not to reveal the Secret yet, Mary said,
"When you pray the Rosary, say after each mystery: O my Jesus, forgive
us, save us from the fire of hell. Lead all souls to heaven, especially
those who are most in need."
The Fourth Apparition
On August 13 there was a large crowd assembled at the apparition site,
but the children were prevented from attending at the request of the
Mayor of Vila Nove de Ourem, Arturo Santos. In spite of intense
interrogations, the children held their ground and refused to reveal the
Secret, despite temptations of money and threats of painful deaths.
On August 19, the children saw Mary who said, “Go again to the Cova da
Iria on the 13th and continue to say the Rosary every day."
Mary also said she would perform a miracle so that all would believe,
but it would not be as grand as planned because the civil authorities
had wrongly kidnapped and interrogated the children.
Looking very sad, Mary added, "Pray, pray very much, and make sacrifices
for sinners; for many souls go to hell, because there are none to
sacrifice themselves and pray for them." With that she rose into the air
disappeared to the east.
The Fifth Apparition
On September 13 a very large crowd had gathered. Again, after the flash
of light, Mary appeared to the children and said, “Continue to pray the
Rosary in order to obtain the end of the war. In October Our Lord will
come, as well as Our Lady of Dolors and Our Lady of Carmel. Saint Joseph
will appear with the Child Jesus to bless the world. God is pleased
with your sacrifices. He does not want you to sleep with the rope on,
but only to wear it during the daytime."
Lucia spoke to Mary on behalf of people who had asked for cures and Mary
responded, "Yes, I will cure some, but not others. In October I will
perform a miracle so that all may believe." With that she rose, moved to
the east, and disappeared.
The Sixth and Final Public Apparition
On October 13, 1917, a crowd estimated at about 70,000 or more found
their way to the Cova da iria because of reports that a great miracle
would take place. The children had to be guided to the holmoak tree
because of the converging crowds.
They saw the flash of light and Mary appeared before them. Lucia asked
what she wanted and she responded, “I want to tell you that a chapel is
to be built here in my honor. I am the Lady of the Rosary. Continue
always to pray the Rosary every day. The war is going to end, and the
soldiers will soon return to their homes."
As before, Lucia told the Blessed Mother the petitions people had
requested of her, to which She responded, "Some, yes; others, no. People
must amend their lives and ask pardon for their sins." Then she grew
sadder and said, "They must not offend Our Lord any more, for He is
already too much offended." Lucia then asked, “Do you want anything
more?” to which Mary responded, “Nothing more.”
Rising into the air and opening her hands towards the sun, she
pointed towards the sun with light emanating from Her hands. Later,
Lucia did not remember shouting, “There she goes! There she goes!” At
the same time, the clouds parted and the sun appeared as a dull grey
disk, pale as the moon.
To the left of the sun, the children saw Saint Joseph from the chest up,
holding the Child Jesus. Together they made the Sign of the Cross three
times over the world. To the right of the sun, Our Lady was dressed in
the blue and white robes of Our Lady of the Rosary. Lucia was given the
privilege of seeing Our Lord dressed in red as the Divine Redeemer, from
the chest up, blessing the world. Beside Him stood Our Lady dressed now
in the purple robes of Our Lady of Sorrows. Finally, She appeared
clothed in the simple brown robes of Mount Carmel.
The Miracle of the Sun
As the crowd watched, they did not see all the visions to which the
children were favored, but they were able to gaze directly at the sun as
it faded and glowed in different ways. It gave off amazing shafts of
colorful light in various directions as it appeared to spin and dance.
Suddenly, it appeared to zig-zag downward, hurtling toward the people.
Many screamed out in terror, many begging for mercy, others praying the
Act of Contrition. As suddenly as it had appeared to be falling toward
them, the sun swerved back into its orbit and took its normal place. The
rain had stopped and everything, including the muddy ground, was dry.
The promised miracle had indeed occurred as promised.
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| The day of the miracle was rainy and many came carrying umbrellas. |
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| People in the
crowd stare in awe at the sun after the miracle. Notice how dry
everything appears, in spite of all the rain falling just minutes
before. |
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| The promised miracle drew a crowd that many estimated to be at least 70,000. |
Interesting Facts
Our Holy Mother had told the children that the
two younger ones would be in heaven soon. True to Her word, Francisco
died on April 4, 1919 at age 11, and Jacinta died on February 20, 1920
at age 9. Lucia entered the Dorothean convent to learn to read and write
as instructed by Our Lady, and later became a Carmelite nun. She died
at age 97 in the year 2005.
Before she died, little Jacinta revealed little-known but remarkable statements made by Our Lady. Here are just some of them:
More souls go to hell because of sins of
the flesh than for any other reason. Certain fashions will be introduced
that will offend Our Lord very much. Many marriages are not good; they
do not please Our Lord and are not of God. Priests must be pure, very
pure. They should not busy themselves with anything except what concerns
the Church and souls. The disobedience of priests to their superiors
and to the Holy Father is very displeasing to Our Lord. The Blessed
Mother can no longer restrain the hand of her Divine Son from striking
the world with just punishment for its many crimes.
Tell everybody that God gives graces through the Immaculate Heart of
Mary. Tell them to ask graces from her, and that the Heart of Jesus
wishes to be venerated together with the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
Private Apparitions and Messages to Lucia
On December 10, 1925, in her cell at the
convent in Pontevedra, Spain, Sister Lucia saw an apparition of Mary
with the Child Jesus and a heart encircled with thorns. Mary told Lucia,
"See, my daughter, My heart surrounded by thorns which ungrateful men
pierce at every moment by their blasphemies and ingratitude.” Mary
instructed that she would assist at the hour of their death with all the
graces necessary for the salvation of their souls, all those who, on
the first Saturday for five consecutive months, make a good confession,
receive Holy Communion, recite five decades of the rosary, keep Her
company by meditating on the fifteen mysteries of the rosary, all with
the intention of making reparation for the sins committed against Her
Immaculate Heart.
On June 13, 1929, Sister Lucia saw another apparition while alone
in Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament in the convent chapel at Tuy. She
was given an amazing understanding of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament
with a vision of the representation of the Holy Trinity. As Lucia tells
it, “I had sought and obtained permission from my superiors and
confessor to make a Holy Hour from the eleven o'clock until midnight,
every Thursday to Friday night. Being alone one night, I knelt near the
altar rails in the middle of the chapel and, prostrate, I prayed the
prayers of the Angel. Feeling tired, I then stood up and continued to
say the prayers with my arms in the form of a cross. The only light was
that of the sanctuary lamp. Suddenly the whole chapel was illumined by a
supernatural light, and above the altar appeared a cross of light,
reaching to the ceiling. In a brighter light on the upper part of the
cross, could be seen the face of a man and his body as far as the waist;
upon his breast was a dove of light; nailed to the cross was the body
of another man. A little below the waist, I could see a chalice and a
large host suspended in the air, on to which drops of blood were falling
from the face of Jesus Crucified and from the wound in His side. These
drops ran down on the host and fell into the chalice. Beneath the right
arm of the cross was Our Lady and in her hand was her Immaculate Heart.
Under the left arm of the cross, large letters, as if crystal clear
water which ran down upon the altar, formed these words, "Grace and
Mercy." I understood that it was the Mystery of the Most Holy Trinity
which was shown to me, and I received lights about this mystery which I
am not permitted to reveal."
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| Lucia's Vision in the convent chapel at Tuy |
The Fulfillment Begins
Our Lady then said to me: "The moment has come in which God asks the
Holy Father, in union with all the Bishops of the world, to make the
consecration of Russia to my Immaculate Heart, promising to save it by
this means. There are so many souls whom the justice of God condemns for
sins committed against me, that I have come to ask reparation:
sacrifice yourself for this intention and pray."
The Fatima apparitions were approved by the Church in 1930.
On January 25, 1938, a strange light filled the skies of northern
Europe. Scientists described it as a particularly brilliant display of
the Aurora Borealis, but Sister Lucia, now age 31, knew it was the
"night illumined by an unknown light," of which Mary had spoken in the
July 13, 1917 apparition. Mary had said, “Know that this is the great
sign given you by God that he is about to punish the world for its
crimes, by means of war, famine, and persecutions of the Church and of
the Holy Father.” The Second World War began almost 18 months later, on
September 1, 1939 when Germany invaded Poland.
Controversy
There is much debate over whether or not the
consecration of Russia as requested by Our Holy Mother has been
accomplished. Peter Miller from www.catholicapologetics.info provides a
concise summary about the controversy:
“There have
been a number of gestures that have come close to fulfilling the
requests of the Queen of Heaven. In 1952, Pope Pius XII consecrated
Russia without the participation of the world's bishops. On May 13,
1982, Pope John Paul II consecrated the world without the world's bishops. On March 25, 1984 at the Vatican, Pope John Paul II consecrated the world
with some of the world's bishops. Obviously, none of these gestures
fulfilled heaven's requests as reinforced repeatedly by Sister Lucy. In
1982, after Pope John Paul's first almost consecration, she repeated
what she had said since at least 1946 that Russia needed to be mentioned
and the bishops of the world needed to participate.2 Prior to the 1984 consecration, Lucy read the Holy Father's prepared text and remarked to Maria Eugenia Pestana that:
‘This act of consecration cannot be decisive because Russia does not appear in it as the sole object of the consecration.’
“In a 1985
interview, Sister Lucy was asked if the Pope fulfilled the request of
Our Lady when he consecrated the world in 1984. Sister Lucy replied:
‘There was no participation of all the bishops, and there was no mention
of Russia.’
“’She was then asked, ‘So the consecration was not done as requested by Our Lady?’ to which she replied:
‘No. Many bishops attached no importance to this act.’
“Again on
July 20, 1987, Sister Lucy told Enrique Romero in an interview that the
consecration of Russia has not been done as requested. Our Holy Father
seems to agree. At the end of the consecration formula, he added an
impromptu prayer for those whose consecration Mary is still awaiting.
‘Enlighten especially the peoples of which You Yourself are awaiting our consecration and confiding.’
“Interestingly,
this was the only addition to a text that had been finalized and set
for months. It has also been omitted from some news accounts covering
the consecration. This statement would not make sense if the
consecration of the world (and everyone in it) was already just
completed. Who else was left and who else would heaven be particularly
‘awaiting’ consecration? The only possible answer is the nation specifically requested: Russia.”
“After the
‘almost consecrations’, the Catholic faithful were in the same position
as they'd been for years — praying, sacrificing and petitioning for
Russia's consecration. Sister Lucy had repeatedly and explicitly stated
the "almost consecrations" were not sufficient and Our Holy Father had
echoed this sentiment.
“The problems started years later when certain Vatican officials started claiming that the consecration had been done in 1984. Wait a minute. What about the requirements for consecration set forth by Sister Lucy and restated as recently as 1987?
According to the revisionists, she had changed her mind. In a typed
letter dated November 8, 1989, Sister Lucy supposedly reversed her
position and said the 1984 consecration was sufficient.
“There are a
number of problems with this letter and reasons to question its
authenticity — least of which is the fact that after a lifetime of
hand-written letters, it's hard to believe she suddenly started using a
word processor. This letter also contains factual errors that Sister
Lucy would not have made and a signature that that does not match her
handwriting. Numerous objections to the authenticity of the letter have
gone unanswered. An easy way to clear this up would be asking Sister
Lucy to clarify her supposed statements or verify the contents of the
letter, but such a thing has never happened. In fact, Sister Lucy is
still to this day bound to silence on the subject of Fatima — a silence
that can only be released by Cardinal Ratzinger. What are they afraid of
her saying?
On June 26, 2000, at the Vatican press conference concerning the Third Secret, Msgr. Bertone declared that
‘Any further discussion or request [for the Consecration] is without basis.’
“As proof of
this, they refer to this questionable decade-old letter rather than ask
Sister Lucy herself who was available to answer questions regarding the
consecration.”
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| Pope John Paul II visiting Fatima after recovering from the assassination attempt on his life. |
The Beatifications of the Seers
In 1935, Jacinta’s body was exhumed and found to be incorrupt. Pope John
Paul beatified Jacinta and Francisco on May 13, 2000 during the Jubilee
Year. At the same time he has announced that details of the third part
of the Fatima secret will be revealed, while also entrusting the third
millennium to Our Lady of Fatima. As already mentioned in this article, a
description of the visual images of the third part of the secret was
publicly divulged in June 2000 with the text omitted.
On February 14, 2008, Pope Benedict XVI authorized the cause of the
beatification for Sister Lucia who died on February 13, 2005.
The shrine of Our Lady of Fatima in Portugal sees thousands of faithful
pilgrims each year. Now more than ever, our world needs the rosary. Pray
the rosary daily!
