Fatima Centenary.
I have followed Fatima since I was a child, but my focus was devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary and total consecration when I became an adult. Everything I have is hers and she can do with me as she wills. I've never viewed Fatima in a negative light.
Perhaps the only exception was in grade school, before 1960. Some of the school sisters who taught us, and early Blue Army devotes thought the final part of the secret would be revealed by the Pope in 1960 - so everyone expected WWIII at the very least. When the secret wasn't revealed, they said the Pope cried all day, and the fears increased and got even worse. John XXIII didn't weep, and simply had the secret stored away. The upshot is as everyone who follows sensationalized prophecy know, the secret was elaborated and speculated upon by mystics, locutionists, and purported 'follow up' apparitions around the world. And Fr. Gruner and his Fatima conspiracy show, which pretty much discredited all the Popes since John XXIII, accusing them of disobeying Our Lady and even conspiring to not reveal the secret.
That said, I always kept my distance from the fanatical element, always trying to understand the message from the perspective of a child, because all that is necessary for the faithful to know was revealed, and so simply revealed that even 3 little children could understand.
I've often pondered the meaning of the messages as well as the visions and the revelations concerning the consequences of sin, but I no longer can understand the 'end of the world' fears so many Catholics attribute to Our Lady's catechesis. The words of Sr. Lucia recognize the apocalyptic battle between the devil and the Immaculata, but Our Lady's sense of urgency is for repentance and conversion and spreading devotion - not the threats as so many seem to attribute to the message. I look forward to the Centenary as well as our Holy Father's visit to Fatima with great peace and joy. Our Lady has revealed the consequences for unrepentant sin, as well as the way to reconciliation. Her Immaculate Heart is our refuge and the way that will lead us to God.
The sensationalist, conspiracy-theorizing fear mongers cash in on the warning and chastisement stuff, frequently lifted from 'other' sources, then overlaying and connecting them to Fatima, or worse, placing these words on Our Lady's lips.
The sensationalist, conspiracy-theorizing fear mongers cash in on the warning and chastisement stuff, frequently lifted from 'other' sources, then overlaying and connecting them to Fatima, or worse, placing these words on Our Lady's lips.
The worst chastisement...
It seems to me the very worst chastisement is how the devil has distorted and imitated the message of Our Lady, adding to it, suggesting the Popes were/are in error, and so on. As we see chaos and division spreading around the globe, conspiracy theories and 'fake news' abounds. Trust is diminished, even extinguished, especially among Catholics who have distorted the Blessed Virgin's message.
Just read the headlines on sites like Canon 212 or Pewsitter. Filled with dissimulation and arousing morbid curiosity. How is a blog post or news story which attracts readers by suggestive questions implying the Pope is a heretic anything less than detraction? When you publish stories suggesting the Pope is fomenting a climate of fear in the Vatican, based upon hear-say from anonymous sources, how is that not gossip? Vox Nova headlines Canon 212 with a post about Ganswein - questioning his fidelity and loyalty. How are these conspiracy stories even Christian?
How did these people get like this?
Even the 'elect'? I'm thinking of Monsignor Pope, one of the very best Catholic priests online, just came out with a speculative essay concerning the Fatima Centenary, wondering what might happen. Monsignor associates it with the Leonine prophecy of 1884. The prophecy has never been verified, if you don't know about it, you can look it up on your own. It's about the devil supposedly having 100 years to test the Church. In 1984 interested Fatimists suggested the Leo XIII vision reached it's conclusion with JPII's consecration of the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, which Sr. Lucia assured everyone was accepted by heaven and satisfied Our Lady's request. Apparently, that wasn't good enough, so good people are thinking maybe the Fatima Centenary is the conclusion of the 100 years. Maybe it is, I don't know.
Misinformation, sensationalism, and factions within the Marian movement have corrupted the message.
If anything, the Centenary or Jubilee Year, which has been enriched with a Plenary Indulgence, needs to draw our attention to the call of Our Lady, the essential part needed to know is as follows: As I mentioned, Sr Lucia stated more than once that the essential part of the message for the faithful to know had been very revealed early on. Stating that the essential part of the secret, which has not been observed entails, penance, prayer, and true devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
As Our Lady insisted at Fatima: "Men must amend their lives, and ask pardon for their sins. . . . They must no longer offend Our Lord, Who is already so much offended." The Fatima message is a call for men to give up sinful practises which grieve God and draw down His chastisements on the world, and to make reparation for them. - More here.
There are credible sources on Fatima. I'll list a couple:
Vatican Archives: The Message of Fatima
Fatima For Today, Andrew Apostoli, CFR
I personally found Fr. Robert Fox to have been a faithful chronicler of Fatima. He also got sidetracked by at least one false mystic, which serves as a good warning not be taken in by every locutionist claiming stigmata who comes down the pike.
Our greatest mystical experience is the reception of Jesus in Holy Communion. We can see him face to face in the Blessed Sacrament. Don't go running here and there looking for signs.
Vatican Archives: The Message of Fatima
Fatima For Today, Andrew Apostoli, CFR
I personally found Fr. Robert Fox to have been a faithful chronicler of Fatima. He also got sidetracked by at least one false mystic, which serves as a good warning not be taken in by every locutionist claiming stigmata who comes down the pike.
Our greatest mystical experience is the reception of Jesus in Holy Communion. We can see him face to face in the Blessed Sacrament. Don't go running here and there looking for signs.
As for the first Saturday request, forget it. If I had to survey my own archdiocese, only about 1/2 of the parishes I see even have First Friday Devotions. Even fewer, say maybe 10% and I am being generous purposely host First Saturday, with any additional offerings being due to laity who choose to say the rosary and do the meditations after the Saturday Morning Mass, usually little old ladies and fewer men. This is in an archdiocese of over 250+ parishes. Likely, the situation in other dioceses is MUCH worse, even zeroes for First Friday/intentional First Saturday offerings.
ReplyDeleteTerry don't count on Her Lady's message being heeded when the institutional Church doesnt give a damn.
Maybe this is what Monsignor Pope wishes to do?
DeleteWhen I was young the Fatima statute traveled the country. Each parish got its turn. Parishoniers hosted it in their home for a day and night. The scheduled was published in the bulletin neighbors would pray the rosary with neighbor. My family hosted every year for many years. Then it just stopped. The statue did not come around anymore. It still exists and still travels the country but is present in church not private homes. How sad. Neighbors do not know neighbors never mind invite each other to pray together. As for prediction; they are a minor part of the whole revelation. Repentance and forgiveness of sin with Mary's assistance is the real point of it all.
ReplyDelete"Repentance and forgiveness of sin with Mary's assistance is the real point of it all."
DeleteAmen!
I still recall after all of these years beloved St. JPII's call to personal conversion. With that alone and family matters in disarray, (not all is bad but ...) I have my plate full.
No longer is there time to follow every apparition under the sun nor to listen to every so-called locutionist. I am grateful for that since the distraction would lead to nowhere.
The official Pilgrim Virgin statue still exists: http://www.pilgrimvirginstatue.com/history
DeleteThere was also an offshoot Pilgrim Virgin effort where replicas visited individuals homes as you mentioned.
Did your family host the John Haffert image - he had custody of one of the original statues from Fatima. The link I copied above gives that history.
Yes Terry that looks like the one we had. It was enclosed in a black suitcas with velvet interior. I grew up in Buffalo and the article specifically refers to that city and the enthusiasm for the statue. It is a beautiful sacramental. I remember one Christmas Eve by mother gave on to my sisters tears to take her in. My sister said no one wants her tonight and we must do it. With four kids, presents, Church, dinner it was a real burden for my mother to add to her work. But she did! Bless her heart!
DeleteHow blessed you are to have had her stay at your house. I recall years ago that enclosed religious would keep her company through the night while she stayed in the enclosure. I envy your beautiful family life - your mom must be a saint.
DeleteNo one to take her in. Boy, that sounds familiar. What a beautiful Christmas memory.
DeleteThe Leonine prophecy isn't binding. I like the St Michael prayer, and say it often - but as far as the prophecy goes, it's private revelation.
ReplyDeleteThe Fatimistas are going to be the bane of the Catholic blogosphere on 2017, I fear, especially if they focus on the chastisement aspects and totally disregard Our Mother's message of prayer, repentance, and reparation.
I totally agree.
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DeleteToo many typos; I'll try again. The only reason to focus on the chastisement aspects is to encourage people to pay attention to Mary's message of prayer, repentance, and reparation. When we say the Act of Contrition we pray that I "detest all my sins because I dread the loss of heaven and the pains of hell...." Many people are moved to repent out of fear. It isn't the best motive, but it's a motive. If they start there, perhaps they will grow into the "but most of all because I love Thee, my God, who art all good and worthy of all my love." The Blessed Mother was the source of the miracle of the sun dancing and then plunging toward the earth which terrified everybody. Many sank to their knees and publicly confessed their sins praying for God's mercy. Focusing on chastisement is not an evil, but stresses the warning for those in foxhole who up till then have not believed. As they say, "there are no atheists in a foxhole." I expect there will be few at ground zero of the chastisement as well.
DeleteThat's a very good point. The only problem with it is the messengers repeating the warnings and embellishing them with false narratives and speculation about what Our Lady really meant and so on. Like suggesting there is more to the secret than what was revealed, when Pope Benedict himself explicitly said that is not true. Then we get into the accusations of papal lies and cover-ups and all the impostor stories and so on. The crackpot theories and skirt-length/no-women-in-pants stuff turns the whole thing into a British sit-com/farce.
DeleteI often repeat this, but John of the Cross tells us that one may know chastisement is coming without supernatural revelation - it can be known naturally - cause and effect. Warnings of chastisement had no effect on people at the time of Noah or before the destruction of Sodom. It's a bit late in our time to yell 'run' when there is no place to go. Especially when some of the loudmouths making all the noise are telling people they can neither trust the Pope or the Church.
Look how well faithful Catholics responded to the Year of Mercy. So many mocked it and what the Holy Father did and said throughout the Holy Year. Now, in his reform efforts, he is condemned for being mean and critical for eliminating jobs in the curia. If that is perceived as chastisement, then even 'the elect' are rejecting the very idea of chastisement.
Don't delude yourself.
Thanks for clarification, Terry. It helps to be reminded.
DeleteThe chastisement is upon us in the person of Pope Francis and the great confusion he bringoes. It is only going to get worse.
ReplyDeleteI hope you repent in that case.
DeleteI repent every day when I make my examen, and when I pray the confiteor at Holy Mass. I'm convinced by what I see coming out of Rome, out of the Holy Father's mouth, and out of his Cardinal crony's mouths, that he is very dangerous. He has done nothing but cause confusion and tear down good priests and deacons. I have discussed the Holy Father at length with holy monks, cloistered nuns, priests, bishops and even cardinals. Almost all of them are all convinced he is dangerous, and that he is quite possibly a chastisement for the Church. I agree with them.
DeleteI do too. Repent every day, that is.
DeleteI don't know what to say other than that.
Aloysius, that just cracked me up, "even cardinals."
DeleteI think the 4 Cardinals should challenge him to a duel. Rosaries at dawn!
Even though we have a large Portuguese population in my parish, a beautiful statue of OLOF graces our church, and am devoted to Our Lady, I have never felt any attraction to anything about Fatima until now. I am trying to keep my interest low key and childlike. She will show me what she needs me know.
ReplyDeleteIt's a wonderful and most important revelation - Fatima continues to be very relevant in our time. One of the most awesome parts we have seen unfolding is that "Russia will spread her errors, the good will be martyred, the Holy Father will have much to suffer..." These things have their own trajectory, because the consecration was late - as Our Lord told Lucia. It has been done - no doubt - but the effects of the delay happen. It is true devotion to Our Lady which will save us - and you have already made that total consecration - so we have great hope and confidence in God's mercy.
DeleteThanks for your post, Terry. Most of the sensationalist stuff that you point out was added by by fanatics and had nothing to do with the pronouncements made by Our Lady. Certainly as you say the main message is to repent, turn to God and, of course, to pray for sinners, many of whom, as she said, go to hell because they have no one to pray for them.
ReplyDeleteBut she most definitely warned about the errors of Russia. The children didn't know who or what Russia was, they thought Russia was a prostitute.
One warning that Our Lady gave was that there would be a light in the sky signaling the start of a terrible war. There is actually an article from the New York Times in 1938, shortly before the start of WWII, in which it states "Aurora Borealis Startles Europe." It was seen in many, many different places. This is a link to one of the more sensationalist websites, but no nonetheless does contain accurate information.
http://www.defendingthebride.com/ss/day/1938.html
I have a subscription to the Times and therefore have access to every article they ever printed, and this is a real article. You must have a subscription to actually read the article, but here is a link showing that it does exist.
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?login=email&res=9F02E6DA1E3EE03ABC4E51DFB7668383629EDE&legacy=true
And all of that nonsense about the consecration being late is just that. Our Lady actually puts herself, when it comes to earthly matters, under the authority of the church. That is why she always had those she appeared to go to church authorities and get their permission to do anything, such as building churches. Pope John XXIII made the decision not to reveal the secret and that was totally his perogative. And the Church tells us that the secret has been completely revealed. I accept the authority of the church and I accept this.
http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20000626_message-fatima_en.html
Also, in this official Vatican document, this statement is made:
"Fatima is undoubtedly the most prophetic of modern apparitions.". Saying that 2017 will be a special year because it it the centennial is purely speculative, and I know you think I'm crazy for saying this, but Donald Trump's love affair with Putin and Our Lady's warnings about the errors of Russia have me very concerned. We just finished the Year of Mercy. Christ told St. Faustina that after mercy comes the judgment. And most certainly our nation and our entire world has done much to deserve a very harsh judgment.
As I have written, no Catholic is under any obligation to accept the message of Fatima, but I would think twice before rejecting it.
I don't think the link to the Times article worked. Here is the link:
Deletehttp://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?login=email&res=9F02E6DA1E3EE03ABC4E51DFB7668383629EDE&legacy=true
The whole thing regarding the whole chastisement and Vatican conspiracy sent me into a really bad depression a while back. It took me a while before I came to realize it was all hogwash.
ReplyDeleteAnd unlike a lot of these blasted Fatimist nutcases, I actually HAVE done the First Five Saturdays.
I've just had enough of this end-of-the-world voodoo. The Fatimist ideology ruined my life for a period and I thank God I was able to come back from it.
ReplyDelete