Hundreds of faithful await the arrival of Pope Francis at the sanctuary of Our Lady of Fatima, in Fatima, central Portugal, on August 5, 2023. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco) Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
Pope Francis arrives at the sanctuary of Fatima, in central Portugal, to pray the rosary with sick young people, on August 5, 2023. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia) Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
A Portuguese security guard, next to the Chapel of Apparitions, inside the sanctuary of Our Lady of Fatima, in Fatima, central Portugal, where Pope Francis is expected to pray the rosary alongside sick youngsters, on February 5. August 2023. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia) Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
Faithful, next to an image of the Virgin of Fatima, await the arrival of Pope Francis at the sanctuary of Fatima, in Fatima, central Portugal, on August 5, 2023. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco) Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
The Argentine pontiff spent the morning in Fatima, praying with the sick and inmates, as well as with the pilgrims who began to fill the central esplanade of the compound long before dawn. As Francis prayed before a statue of the Virgin, nearby forest fires stained the sky with black smoke, spewing ash onto the crowd.
The visit is a short jaunt from Lisbon, where Francis has been presiding over World Youth Day celebrations, which have brought together nearly a million young Catholics. He will return to the Portuguese capital to participate in a vigil on Saturday night and on Sunday he will attend the final mass, where the venue for the next edition of WYD will be announced.
The history of Fatima dates back to 1917, when, according to tradition, the Portuguese brothers Francisco and Jacinta Marto and their cousin Lucía said that the Virgin Mary appeared to them six times and entrusted them with three secrets. The first two depicted an apocalyptic image of hell, predicted the end of World War I and the start of World War II, and foreshadowed the rise and fall of Soviet Communism. The children were between 7 and 10 years old.
At the time of the apparitions, Europe was still immersed in the IGM and the Portuguese Catholic Church was in crisis since the country’s conversion into a republic in 1910. The republican government passed a series of anticlerical laws, including the prohibition of religious teaching in the schools. In this context, in which priests and bishops went into exile, the visions helped to revitalize a persecuted institution.
In 2000, the Vatican revealed the long-awaited third secret, which it described as a prediction of the attack on Pope Saint John Paul II on May 13, 1981 in Saint Peter’s Square, which coincided with the anniversary of the original vision.
According to later writings by Lucia, who became a nun and died in 2005, Russia would convert and peace would reign if the pope and all the world’s bishops consecrated Russia to the “Immaculate Heart of Mary.” Lucía later claimed that John Paul had fulfilled the prophecy during a mass in 1984, although the pontiff never mentioned Russia in the prayer.
Last year, in a prayer for peace after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Francis corrected the 1984 omission and consecrated both Russia and Ukraine to Mary.
Francis has made repeated calls to end the Russian war, frequently expressing solidarity with the “martyred” Ukrainian people while refraining from criticizing Russia by name. Recently, he sent an envoy to kyiv, Moscow and Washington on a mission to try to facilitate the return of Ukrainian children taken to Russia.
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FOUNTAIN: Associated Press
