Catholic Fire

Queen of the Rosary, sweet Virgin of Fatima, who hast deigned to appear in the land of Portugal and hast brought peace, both interior and exterior, to that once so troubled country, we beg of thee to watch over our dear homeland and to assure its moral and spiritual revival. Bring back peace to all nations of the world, so that all, and our own nation in particular, may be happy to call thee their Queen and the Queen of Peace. Our Lady of the Rosary, pray for our country. Our Lady of Fatima, obtain for all humanity a durable peace. Amen.

May 13, 2016 is the 99th anniversary of the apparition of Our Lady to three shepherd children in the small village of Fatima in Portugal in 1917.  She appeared six times to Lucia, 9, and her cousins Francisco, 8, and his sister Jacinta, 6, between May 13, 1917 and October 13, 1917. The story of Fatima begins in 1916, when, against the milieu of the First World War, which had introduced Europe to the most horrific and powerful forms of combat ever seen, and a year before the Communist revolution would plunge Russia and later Eastern Europe into six decades of oppression under militant atheistic governments, a resplendent figure appeared to the three children who were in the field tending the family sheep. “I am the Angel of Peace,” said the dazzling figure, who appeared to them two more times that year urging them to accept the sufferings that the Lord allowed them to undergo as an act of reparation for sins and to pray constantly for the conversion of sinners. Then, on the ...

By Jean M. Heimann On June 28, the Church celebrates the feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary the day – one day after the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus . The proximity of both celebrations reflects the deep connection between the Heart of Jesus and the Heart of His Mother. The connection between the Hearts of Jesus and Mary was prophesied by Simeon at the Presentation in the Temple of Jerusalem. In Luke 2:35, we read: “and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted (and you yourself a sword will pierce) so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.” The fulfillment of this prophesy is found in John 33-34: “But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs, but one soldier thrust his lance into his side, and immediately blood and water flowed out.” It was at the piercing of Christ’s Heart at His de...

May 13th is the anniversary of the apparition of Our Lady to three shepherd children in the small village of Fatima in Portugal in 1917.  She appeared six times to Lucia, 9, and her cousins Francisco, 8, and his sister Jacinta, 6, between May 13, 1917 and October 13, 1917. The story of Fatima begins in 1916, when, against the milieu of the First World War, which had introduced Europe to the most horrific and powerful forms of combat ever seen, and a year before the Communist revolution would plunge Russia and later Eastern Europe into six decades of oppression under militant atheistic governments, a resplendent figure appeared to the three children who were in the field tending the family sheep. “I am the Angel of Peace,” said the dazzling figure, who appeared to them two more times that year urging them to accept the sufferings that the Lord allowed them to undergo as an act of reparation for sins and to pray constantly for the conversion of sinners. Then, on the 13th day ...

Our Lady of Fatima is a title of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Between May 13 and October 13, 1917, three Portuguese children received apparitions of Our Lady at Cova da Iria, near Fatima. The three children were Lucia Santos, Blessed Jacinta Marto and Blessed Francisco Marto. Our Lady asked the children to pray the rosary for world peace, for the end of World War I, for sinners and for the conversion of Russia  This Marian Apparition was approved by the Holy See in 1930. Today, the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Fatima in Portugal is a popular Marian Pilgrimage site. Around 4 million pilgrims visit the Basilica every year. The Feast of Our Lady of Fatima is celebrated on May 13th. Here is a novena to Our Lady of Fatima in preparation for her feast. Let us pray to Our Lady for the conversion of sinners and for all our special intentions. Novena Prayer Most Holy Virgin, who deigned to come to Fatima to reveal to the three little shepherds the treasures of graces hidden in the recitatio...

By Jean M. Heimann The Church has never required the faithful to believe in any apparitions, except those described in Scripture. Belief in credible apparitions such as Fatima in 1917, is not necessary for salvation. However, these apparitions are valuable because they lead us to greater devotion, increase our awareness of our beliefs, and promote growth in holiness. Why should we believe in the apparitions at Fatima? 1. The local bishop and the then Cardinal of Lisbon conducted a comprehensive canonical inquiry, which led to a decision on May 13, 1930, that the claims were worthy of human faith, and official devotion to our Lady of the Rosary of Fatima was approved. 2. Pope Pius XII promoted devotion to Our Lady of Fatima and consecrated the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. He renewed that consecration in Rome the following feast of the Immaculate Conception, December 8, 1942, to chose to close the Holy Year at Fatima on October 13, 1951. 3. Pope Paul VI went to ...

For the very first time, the manuscript that's believed to reveal the third secret of Our Lady of Fatima, has been uploaded online. With the approval of Pope Francis, the Sanctuary of Fatima, posted the document on its website-intact and original, as part of the 'Secret and Revelation' exhibit. The manuscript was written by Carmelite nun Lucia dos Santos, who is believed to have witnessed the apparitions. Based on the document, in the year 2000, the Vatican published what it believed to be the so called 'third secret' of Fatima. It sheds light on issues like faith, the premature death of children and world wars. It was back in 1917, when three children, say they witnessed the apparition of Our Lady, in the area of Fatima, about 75 miles from Lisbon. Portuguese Carmelite nun Lucia dos Santos was ten years old at the time. She assured Our Lady revealed a series of prophecies that came true. In fact, Pope John Paul II believed one of the predictions was ...

May 13th is the anniversary of the apparition of Our Lady to three shepherd children in the small village of Fatima in Portugal in 1917.  She appeared six times to Lucia, 9, and her cousins Francisco, 8, and his sister Jacinta, 6, between May 13, 1917 and October 13, 1917. The story of Fatima begins in 1916, when, against the backdrop of the First World War which had introduced Europe to the most horrific and powerful forms of warfare yet seen, and a year before the Communist revolution would plunge Russia and later Eastern Europe into six decades of oppression under militant atheistic governments, a resplendent figure appeared to the three children who were in the field tending the family sheep. “I am the Angel of Peace,” said the figure, who appeared to them two more times that year exhorting them to accept the sufferings that the Lord allowed them to undergo as an act of reparation for the sins which offend Him, and to pray constantly for the conversion of sinners. Then, ...

August 14, 2013. (Romereports.com) The statue of Our Lady of the Rosary of Fatima will travel all the way from Portugal to the Vatican, where Pope Francis is planning on consecrating the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.   The 'Marian Day' ceremony, which is scheduled to take place at the Vatican on Sunday, October 13th, will be attended by hundreds of religious movements and institutions that have a special Marian devotion. This Mass is one of the last main events scheduled for the 'Year of Faith.' Even before that Mass, things will be busy at the Vatican. On Saturday October 12th, different prayer events are scheduled along with a pilgrimage to the tomb of St. Peter. Then on the 13th, Pope Francis will celebrate Mass in St. Peter's Square before thousands of faithful. The Statue of Our Lady will make its way to Rome, at the request of Pope Francis, who has shown a great devotion to Mary, since the very first day of his pontificate. The Statue will ...

Via CWN: At the request of Pope Francis, Cardinal José da Cruz Policarpo of Lisbon dedicated this pontificate to Our Lady of Fatima, in a ceremony on May 13—the feast of Our Lady of Fatima—at the Marian shrine in Portugal. Cardinal Policarpo said that the Pontiff had twice asked him to make the dedication. The Portuguese prelate wrote his own prayer for the occasion, saying it at the end of a Mass concluding an international pilgrimage to the Fatima shrine. “Give him the gift of discernment to know how to identify the ways of renewal of the Church,” the cardinal prayed. “Give him the courage not to hesitate to follow the ways suggested by the Holy Spirit; support him in the hard hours of suffering to overcome with the charity the trials that the renewal of the church will bring.” During the same pilgrimage Archbishop Orani J0ao Tempesta of Rio de Janeiro dedicated this year’s World Youth Day celebration, which will be held in the Brazilian city in July, to Our Lady of Fatima a...

May 13th is the anniversary of the apparition of Our Lady to three shepherd children in the small village of Fatima in Portugal in 1917.  She appeared six times to Lucia, 9, and her cousins Francisco, 8, and his sister Jacinta, 6, between May 13, 1917 and October 13, 1917. The story of Fatima begins in 1916, when, against the backdrop of the First World War which had introduced Europe to the most horrific and powerful forms of warfare yet seen, and a year before the Communist revolution would plunge Russia and later Eastern Europe into six decades of oppression under militant atheistic governments, a resplendent figure appeared to the three children who were in the field tending the family sheep. “I am the Angel of Peace,” said the figure, who appeared to them two more times that year exhorting them to accept the sufferings that the Lord allowed them to undergo as an act of reparation for the sins which offend Him, and to pray constantly for the conversion of sinners. Then...

April 18, 2013. (Romereports.com) Just hours after being elected, Pope Francis asked Portuguese Cardinal José Policarpo for a special request. The Pope asked the patriarch of Lisbon to consecrate his pontificate to Our Lady of Fatima.   In the month of April, Portuguese bishops held their annual meeting, where they all agreed to carry out the consecration ceremony together.   The celebration will held on May 13th and it will be led by Cardinal Policarpo, who also serves as the president of Portugal's Episcopal Conference. The bishops have also invited pilgrims to take part in the ceremony to honor the 'Pope's pastoral service.'

Today the Church commemorates Blessed Francisco and Jacinto Marto , the visionaries at Fatima. Francisco, 11, and Jacinta, 10, are the youngest non-martyrs to be beatified in the history of the Church. The brother and sister, who tended to their families’ sheep with their cousin Lucia Santo in the fields of Fatima, Portugal, witnessed the apparitions of Mary, now commonly known as Our Lady of Fatima . During the first apparition, which took place May 13, 1917, Our Lady asked the three children to say the Rosary and to make sacrifices, offering them for the conversion of sinners. The children did, praying often, giving their lunch to beggars and going without food themselves. They offered up their daily crosses and even refrained from drinking water on hot days. In October 1918, Francisco and Jacinta became seriously ill with the Spanish flu. Our Lady appeared to them and said she would to take them to heaven soon. Bed-ridden, Francisco requested his first Communion. The fo...

Our Lady of Fatima "There is no problem, I tell you, no matter how difficult it is, that we cannot solve by the prayer of the Holy Rosary." ~ Sister Lucia , the last survivor at Fatima

Today is the 92nd anniversary of the first appearance of the Blessed Virgin Mary to the three shepherd children Lucia, Jacinta, and Francisco in Portugal in 1917. The visions occurred on the 13th day of each month from May to October, and by October huge crowds were gathering at the site of the visions and reporting visions and miraculous occurrences themselves. Today is also the 28th anniversary of the near fatal attempt on the life of Pope John Paul II. Pope John Paul II was devoted to Our Lady of Fátima and attributed his survival of an assassin’s bullet on 13 May 1981 to her intervention. The Vatican has laid a marble plaque on the cobblestone floor of St. Peter's Square at the exact spot where John Paul was shot as he traveled in his open-top 'pope-mobile' on May 13, 1981, by Turkish gunman Mehmet Ali Agca. What is the Message of Fatima? The public message of Fatima recalls that of Lourdes. Through the children Mary urges prayer for sinners, recitation of the Rosary, a...

Today is the 91st anniversary of the first appearance of the Blessed Virgin Mary to the three shepherd children Lucia, Jacinta, and Francisco in 1917. Between May 13 and October 13, 1917, the three children received apparitions of Our Lady at Cova da Iria, near Fatima, a city 110 miles north of Lisbon. Mary asked the children to pray the rosary for: world peace, the end of World War I, for sinners, and for the conversion of Russia. Here is a description of that event in Lucia's own words: High up on the slope in the Cova da Ira, I was playing with Jacinta and Francisco at building a little stone wall around a clump of furze. Suddenly we saw what seemed to be a flash of lightning. "We'd better go home," I said to my cousins, "that's lightning, we may have a thunderstorm." "Yes, indeed!" they answered. We began to go down the slope, hurrying the sheep towards the road. We were more or less halfway down the slope, and almost level with a large hol...

LISBON, Portugal, January 29, 2007 ( LifeSiteNews.com ) - Thousands of pro-life demonstrators marched through the capital city of Portugal yesterday, in anticipation of a national referendum on legalizing abortion scheduled in two weeks’ time. A coalition of 40 pro-life associations participated in the protest, with organizers estimating more than 18,000 people attended the march. The demonstrators carried flags and banners representing all stages of life, from conception to old age. The route led from a maternity center in the center of Lisbon to the western section of the city, the Associated Press reported Sunday. [More] My Comment: May Our Lady of Fatima be with you to spur on in all your pro-life efforts and lead you to victory!