What is Fatima?

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What is Fatima?
Our Lady of Fatima the Third Secret the children of Fatima Miracle of the Sun Chances are, youve heard something about the events at Fatima, the village in Portugal where the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to three shepherd children in the year 1917. To most people, the word Fatima is simply a memory of a story about something that happened over 90 years ago. But to people living in the 21st Century, the events that took place at Fatima are just as important now even more so than they were back in 1917.

The Three Shepherd Children

Our story begins in the year 1916 in the small village of Fatima, Portugal. Three shepherd children Lucia dos Santos, age 9, and her two cousins Francisco Marto, age 8, and Jacinta Marto, age 6 were visited three times by the Angel of Peace. It was during these visits to the children that the angel admonished them to pray and make sacrifices to God who was already very offended by the sins of mankind throughout the world. They were to pray for the conversion of sinners through the merits of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary. These three visits from the angel in 1916 prepared the children for what was to become one of the most spectacular events in the history of the world the following year.

The Appearances of the Blessed Virgin

In 1917, the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to the three children six times between May 13 and October 13. She had been sent by God with a very special message for every man, woman, and child on earth. The heavenly Lady explained to the children that war is a punishment for sin and warned that if men did not amend their lives, then God would further punish the world for its disobedience to His Will by means of war,
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famine, and the persecution of the Church, the Holy Father, and the Catholic Faithful. Our Lady then prophesied that Russia would be God's chosen instrument of chastisement, spreading its errors throughout the world. Errors such as: Abortion Destruction of the family Atheism Secularism Anti-Christian ideas Policies paving the way to the coming of Antichrist

It would be responsible for starting and conducting wars leading to the annihilation of nations as well as causing the persecution of Catholic and Christian faithful everywhere. But Our Ladys message was not without hope. On the contrary, Her message is full of hope our only hope. For She promised that Heaven would grant peace to the entire world if Her requests for prayer, reparation, and consecration were heard and obeyed. To confirm all that She had said and to prove that it was indeed the Mother of God who was appearing, God performed what has become known as The Miracle of the Sun on October 13, 1917. It was witnessed by over 70,000 people who had gathered to see the miracle first-hand as well as by numerous others from the surrounding towns and villages.

The Message of Our Lady of Fatima

In all Her appearances at Fatima, the Blessed Mother repeatedly emphasized the necessity of praying the daily Rosary. She also reminded us to wear the Brown Scapular of Mount Carmel and to perform acts of reparation and sacrifice. Our Lady requested the solemn public consecration of Russia to Her Immaculate Heart by the Pope and all the Catholic bishops of the world. In return, She promised the conversion of Russia and peace for all mankind all over the world. She also entrusted to the children a secret in three parts:

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The first was a vision of hell where the children were shown a vision of the suffering of the poor souls of sinners accompanied by Our Ladys urgent plea for acts of prayer and sacrifice to save souls. The second was a prediction that World War I would soon end (which it did), but that a more terrible war (World War II) would come unless the world repented of its sins. It was this second secret that contained the promise of the Mother of God to return to ask for the solemn Consecration of Russia as a condition for world peace. It also predicted the inevitable triumph of Her Immaculate Heart following Russia's consecration and the conversion "of that poor nation" to the Catholic Faith. The last part of the Secret often called the "Third Secret has not yet fully been made public, but was written down by Lucia (better known as Sister Lucy), the last living Fatima seer. She wrote the Secret down in 1944 and it has been in the possession of the Holy See since 1957. Most informed sources have it on good account that this portion of the Secret foretold the chaos in the Catholic Church (predicting widespread apostasy and a loss of faith beginning by 1960) as well as the necessary means to overcome this present crisis in the Church and in the world.

In the year 2000, Vatican officials released what was purported to be the Third Secret of Fatima, stating that the Secret was fulfilled in 1981 by the assassination attempt on the life of Pope John Paul II. According to these officials, Russia had already been consecrated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary and thus, we are now living in the time of peace promised by Our Lady. But to even the most casual observer, the world is living in anything but peace. So has the Mother of God been obeyed as some would have us believe? Or is Her secret kept locked away in hopes that the world never discovers what tragedies await? We encourage you to decide for yourself as you become more familiar with the story of Our Lady of Fatima and all that is at stake for you and the world. For more information, visit us at the Fatima Center or visit the Fatima Center Facebook page.

The Fatima Center / http://www.fatima.org / 1-800-263-8160 or 1-905-871-8041

The Fatima Center / http://www.fatima.org / 1-800-263-8160 or 1-905-871-8041