Denver Catholic

6 MAY 13-26, 2017 | DENVER CATHOLIC Around the Archdiocese T he apparitions and miracles that occurred at Fatima, Portugal in 1916 and 1917 rocked the coun- try at the time and the rest of the world soon after. This year, in the 100th anni- versary of the first appearance of Our Lady, is the perfect time to reflect on the events of Fatima — in Servant of God Lucia dos Santos' own words. AN ANGEL VISITS Lucia dos Santos and Francisco and Jacinta Marto were ordinary children, poor shepherds who were well loved by their community and families, each very pious in their own way. In the spring of 1916, an angel appeared to them in the Cova da Iria. Lucia wrote, "We began to play a game with pebbles. We had only been at it a few moments when a strong wind began to shake the trees and we looked up to see what was happening, since it was such a calm day. And then we began to see, in the distance, above the trees that stretched to the east, a light whiter than snow in the form of a young man, quite transparent, and as brilliant as crystal in the rays of the sun." He taught them to pray these words: "Oh My God, I believe, I adore, I hope, and I love you. And I beg pardon for all those who do not believe, do not adore, do not hope, and do not love you." In her memoirs, Lucia noted that the presence of the angel was di›erent from Our Lady's: "I don't know why, but the apparitions of our Lady produced in us e›ects quite di›erent from the angel's visitations. We felt in both instances the same intimate happiness, peace and joy, but instead of the physical prostration the angel imposed, our Lady brought a feeling of expansion and freedom… There was no di¯culty of speech when Our Lady appeared; there was rather on my part a desire to communicate." That summer, the angel appeared a second time, renewing the same feeling in the children. While Lucia and Jacinta could both see and hear him, Francisco could see, but not hear. "The Angels' words sank deeply into our souls like a gleaming torch, showing us Who God is, what is His love for us, and how he wants us to love Him too; the value of sacrifice and how it pleases Him; how He receives it for the conver- sion of sinners," Lucia said. "That is why from that moment we began to o›er Him whatever mortified us." Later that year, the angel appeared a third time, this time holding a chalice and bleeding host and o›ered them the Eucharist. OUR LADY'S FIRST VISIT Much of the world was su›ering in 1917 when Our Lady appeared, eight months after the last appearance of the angel. World War I was wreaking havoc across Europe, and in Russia, turbulent revolution would later give rise to the Soviet Union. The apparitions, safe to say, were just what the world needed. On May 13, when Lucia was 10, Fran- cisco, nine, and Jacinta, seven, Our Lady appeared to the children with a flash of lightning. She asked them, "Will you o›er yourselves to God, and bear all the suf- ferings He sends you? In atonement for all the sins that o›end him? And for the conversion of sinners?" They replied that they would. She then asked them to return to this spot every month. Lucia describes the encounter, "We were bathed in a heavenly light that appeared to come directly from her hands. The light's reality cut into our hearts and our souls, and we knew somehow that this light was God, and we could see ourselves embraced in it. By an interior impulse of grace we fell to our knees, repeating in our hearts: 'Oh, Holy Trinity, we adore You. My God, my God, I love You in the Blessed Sacrament.'" Following the visit, the children told their families; the Marto parents were the first believers of Fatima, but Lucia's parents would prove more di¯cult. Her mother believed her to be lying, while her father was not religious at all and was indi›erent. SECRETS AND SUFFERINGS Between the second and fourth apparitions, the children su›ered much at the hands of their families and the local authorities, who believed them to be lying. But the children remained steadfast, and with encouragement from Francisco and Jacinta, Lucia overcame her own doubts caused by her family's disbelief. Fatima in Lucia's own words Sister Lucia dos Santos was one of the three young shepherds to whom Our Lady appeared at Fatima in 1917. While Jacinta and Francisco Marto contracted influenza and died at a young age, Sister Lucia died in 2005 at the age of 97. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE SHRINE OF FATIMA OFFICIAL WEBPAGE BY THERESE AAKER therese.aaker@archden.org @ThereseAaker

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