Out Saint of the Day commemorates Mary's apparition to three Portuguese children. 🕊️
May 13, 2024
Hello John,
As we commemorate the profound apparitions of Our Lady of Fatima, I am reminded of the transformative power of movement in our lives—physical, spiritual, emotional, and intellectual. The story of Francisco, Jacinta, and Lucia, and the messages they received from Mary, inspire us to embrace movement as a path to abundant life and spiritual renewal.
Mary's role is not to overshadow Jesus or the teachings of the Church but to lead us closer to Him through her example of faith and obedience. Her simple yet profound message resonates deeply with us today: pray.
Today, as we reflect on the significance of Fatima, let us also reflect on the importance of movement in our lives. In walking, we open ourselves to new experiences, new ideas, and new horizons of faithfulness and compassion. Let us embrace movement as a means of encountering God's mercies, which are new every morning.
In prayer and action, may we embody the spirit of movement, following in the footsteps of Our Lady of Fatima and the saints who have gone before us. Let us walk in faith, trusting in God's guidance and grace to lead us on the path of abundant life and spiritual growth.
With prayers and blessings,
Christopher Meyer Director of Development
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Between May 13 and October 13, 1917, three Portuguese children–Francisco and Jacinta Marto and their cousin Lucia dos Santos–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, for the end of World War I, for sinners, and for the conversion of Russia.
Mary gave the children three secrets. Following the deaths of Francisco and Jacinta in 1919 and 1920 respectively, Lucia revealed the first secret in 1927. It concerned devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The second secret was a vision of hell. When Lucia grew up she became a Carmelite nun and died in 2005 at the age of 97.
Pope John Paul II directed the Holy See’s Secretary of State to reveal the third secret in 2000; it spoke of a “bishop in white” who was shot by a group of soldiers who fired bullets and arrows into him. Many people linked this vision to the assassination attempt against Pope John Paul II in St. Peter’s Square on May 13, 1981.
The feast of Our Lady of Fatima was approved by the local bishop in 1930; it was added to the Church’s worldwide calendar in 2002.
Reflection
The message of Fatima is simple: Pray. Unfortunately, some people—not Sister Lucia—have distorted these revelations, making them into an apocalyptic event for which they are now the only reliable interpreters. They have, for example, claimed that Mary’s request that the world be consecrated to her has been ignored. Sister Lucia agreed that Pope John Paul II’s public consecration in St. Peter’s Square on March 25, 1984, fulfilled Mary’s request. The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith prepared a June 26, 2000, document explaining the “third secret.”
Mary is perfectly honored when people generously imitate her response “Let it be done to me as you say” (Luke 1:38). Mary can never be seen as a rival to Jesus or to the Church’s teaching authority, as exercised by the college of bishops united with the bishop of Rome.
Once again, the Scriptures connect us with our own human experience. Who of us has not agonized over decisions, actions, or omissions that caused pain to others and ourselves? Feelings of guilt are not necessarily harmful and can even be healthy because they can lead us to change and to deeper self-knowledge. And spiritually they can move us to repentance and the experience of God’s loving forgiveness.
People sometimes tell me, “I know God has forgiven me, but I can’t forgive myself.” I refer them to the prophet Micah, who says that God “will cast into the depths of the sea all our sins” (7:19). Once they are confessed and forgiven in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, they are gone. As I once heard a pastor say, “And God puts a sign there: No fishing!” Don’t keep going back into those waters.
Solvitur ambulando! It will be solved by walking! It will be solved in the walking! Where there is movement—whether physical, spiritual, emotional, or intellectual—there is abundant life. When we move, we are open to new ideas. Movement encourages openness to new vistas and enables us to experience God’s mercies, which are new every morning. Let go of unhelpful attitudes, and experience the world through the eyes of others.
Pray
Moving God, whose Son walked the paths of Judea, Inspire me to move in body, mind, and spirit. Guide my steps toward new horizons Of faithfulness and compassion. Open my mind and heart to empathy and transformation. Let me not be conformed to this world But transformed by Your renewing of my mind. Amen.
Act
If you are physically able, go out for a walk. Notice your environment. Give thanks for beauty. Delight in sight and sound. If movement is a challenge, take time to gaze out your window or go to an outdoor space to see the world from a different perspective.
Today's Pause+Pray was written by Bruce Epperly. Learn more here!
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