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4 MAY 13-26, 2017 | DENVER CATHOLIC FATIMA TIMELINE FATIMA FATIMA TIMELINE FATIMA In-Depth SPRING 1916 An angel appears to Lucia, Jacinta and Francisco, who teaches them this prayer: "My God, I believe, I adore, I hope and I love you. I ask pardon for those who do not believe, do not adore, do not hope, and do not love you." SUMMER 1916 The angel appears a second time and asks them to o¨ er sacrifi ces to God in reparation of sins. LATER 1916 The angel appears a third time, and he o¨ ers them Jesus in the host and chalice. He told them, "Eat and drink the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ terribly outraged by the ingratitude of men. O¨ er reparation for their sakes and console God." MAY 13, 1917 Our Lady appears the fi rst time. She asks them if they would o¨ er themselves to God and bear all their su¨ erings for the conver- sion of sinners, to which they agree. O ne hundred years ago this month, as the world sank deeper into the world war that would leave the continent devastated and millions dead, three shepherd chil- dren from the small, quiet Portuguese hamlet of Aljustrel met a "Lady more brilliant than the sun" in their fami- ly-owned fi eld outside town known as Cova da Iria. The "beautiful Lady" would appear six times to Francisco and Jacinta Marto, and their cousin Lucia de Jesus dos Santos, ranging in age from 7 to 10 years old, inviting these "privileged children of the Father," as St. John Paul II referred to them, to dedicate their young selves to a life of prayer and sac- rifi ce in reparation for the conversion of sinners. "You are going to have much to su› er," Our Lady of Fatima said on the occasion of the fi rst apparition, "but the grace of God will be your comfort." Our Lady was to be their tutor, as Pope John Paul II pointed out at the beatifi cation Mass for Jacinta and Fran- cisco in 2000. "Devoting themselves with total generosity to the direction of such a good Teacher [Our Lady], Jacinta and Francisco soon reached the heights of perfection," he said. Their path was one of prayer and stringent self-mortifi cation, a path they chose to follow more intensely after seeing a vision of hell on July 13, 1917. In an interview with Denver Cath- olic, Sister Angela of Fatima Coelho, postulator for the cause of canoniza- tion for Francisco and Jacinta, said that the vision moved all three, not to be traumatized, but to do something to alleviate the su› erings of others, and to console the heart of God. They were "children with a great sense of salvation history," and they knew that "with sacrifi ces they could change history," she said. Both Jacinta and Francisco con- tracted the fl u virus that had spread throughout Europe in 1918, and both died within three years of the last Marian apparition on Oct. 13, 1917, after having o› ered up their little lives for the conversion of sinners. On May 13, Pope Francis will canon- ize the youngest two shepherd children on the same day of the month and in the same spot where they fi rst encoun- tered Our Lady in 1917, and the Church will hold up before all the faithful two illiterate village children, barely past the age of reason, as spiritual giants of towering sanctity worthy of imitation. Francisco and Jacinta Marto: Great saints who changed history Jacinta Marto was aware of her role in salvation history and made a total gift of herself for the good of others. PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE SHRINE OF FATIMA OFFICIAL WEBPAGE Francisco Marto was "in love with God," seeking constantly to com- fort him and accompany him in the Blessed Sacrament. BY KARNA SWANSON karna.swanson@archden.org @KarnaSwanson