Today is the feast day of Our Lady of Fatima. She is the patroness of our Parish, what a wonderful patroness she is.
Our Lady appeared to three peasant children
(Lucia, Jacinta, and Francisco) on a hillside in Fatima, Portugal, and gave instructions.
They were not anything different from
what the church teaches. None of her instructions contradicted the teachings of
the word of God that came to us as Jesus Christ. The message she gave was for
the times they lived in and times to come.
Mary instructed them to pray the
Rosary to bring peace to the world and an end to war; pray for the conversion
of Russia; and do penance. And that God wanted the world to have a devotion to
Her Immaculate Heart.
The message of Fatima is important
now as it was then. Pray the rosary, pray for peace, pray for the conversion of
sinners, and do penance. And, have devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
On the 100th anniversary
of Fatima, P. Francis said ‘the children’s
encounter with Our Lady was an experience of grace that inspired their love for
Jesus. Mary led them to savor God as the most beautiful reality of human
existence.”
That is the promise found in Jesus words,
"Blessed are those who
hear the word of God and observe it." Simple children heard the
message and lived it. They lived lives of unwavering faith.
Great things can come from people
of simple unwavering faith.
Today, in these trying times, listen
to the words of Jesus and the message of Our Lady.
"Blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it." Pray the
rosary, pray for peace, pray for the conversion of sinners, and do penance. And
have devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
Don’t just listen the words, contemplate
them, gnaw on them, consume them, make them part of us, and then act on them.
Pope Benedict wrote “The heart open to God, purified by
contemplation of God, is stronger than anything that can come against us.”
(Friends) strong is the Immaculate
Heart of Mary? She must be the example for our hearts open to God.
At Fatima, Our Lady declared “My
Immaculate Heart will triumph!” In that have unwavering faith. The heart open
to God is stronger than any disease or pestilence; pandemic or plague; violence
or war.
Our Lady taught the children to
pray. One prayer was this: My God, I
believe, I adore, I hope and I love You! I ask pardon of You for those who do
not believe, do not adore, do not hope and do not love You! Amen.
A heart that savors God is a most
beautiful reality of human existence.
Be good, be holy, and pray for each other. Amen.
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