The center of Fatima spirituality is Jesus Christ himself, and, through him, the Most Holy Trinity. This is also the form of all authentic Christian spirituality. Therefore, we can be assured that the Fatima program is a legitimate way to God. The Church’s approval of these apparitions validates this assurance.
The spirituality of Fatima is most obviously expressed in the prayers of Fatima. Praying the Rosary for peace was Our Lady’s most frequent request during the apparitions. In the Rosary, we meditate on the salvific events in the life of Jesus Christ and learn to make him the center of our life. The “decade prayer,” which Mary taught the children after the vision of hell, highlights this process and encourages zeal for the salvation of souls, a strong sign of true holiness. It is to be said after each decade of the rosary.
“O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, lead all souls to heaven, especially those in most need of thy Mercy.” July 13, 1917.
In the fall of 1916, the Angel of Peace introduced the children to the “pardon” prayer:
“My God, I believe, I adore, I hope [in] and I love You! I beg pardon for those who do not believe, do not adore, do not hope [in], and do not love you.”
The first part of the prayer is a simple expression of the classic acts of faith, hope, and love joined with an act of adoration. The second part is intercession for those in need of mercy because of unbelief, idolatry, despair, and hatred, due to their lack of a relationship with God. This prayer, known as the “decade prayer,” is concerned with the salvation of all sinners. Again, this concern is a strong sign of true holiness.
Another prayer taught to the children by the Angel of Peace in the Fall of 1916 expresses the essence of Christian prayer and life insofar as it is Christ-centered and Trinitarian:
“O Most holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, I adore you profoundly. I offer you the most precious Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ, present in all the tabernacles of the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges, and indifferences by which he is offended. By the infinite merits of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I beg the conversion of sinners.”
This prayer also expresses the doctrine of the Eucharist. It handily invokes the Eucharist to accomplish Eucharistic reparation. And the long-established Catholic devotions to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary are encouraged. Again, like the two prayers above, it is focused on the salvation of others.
During the July 13 apparitions, Mary told the children to sacrifice themselves for sinners. The Angel told Lucia, “Make a sacrifice of everything you can,” while repeating:
“O Jesus, it is for love of you, for the conversion of sinners, and in reparation for sins committed against the Immaculate Heart of Mary.”
Classic Catholic spirituality would have everything we do be done for love of Jesus. The repetition of this prayer places us securely within this tradition. Not enough can be said about the importance of this simple prayer in Fatima spirituality. Besides loving God above all things by loving Jesus, the prayer again expresses the now-familiar concern for the salvation of all sinners. Reparation for sins against the Immaculate Heart, while not a new devotion in the Church, is greatly emphasized at Fatima. When making this reparation, the children are making acts of love to Mary and being merciful to sinners.
May 13, 191,7 was the first apparition of Mary to the children. Mary initially secured a resolve from the children to suffer for sinners, then she succinctly laid out the rest of Fatima’s spirituality in prayer:
“Most Holy Trinity, I adore You! My God, My God, I love you in the Most Blessed Sacrament.”
The First Saturday devotion was revealed to Lucia on December 10, 1925. It involves:
- Going to confession
- Receiving communion
- Saying 5 decades of the Rosary
- And meditating for 15 minutes on the mysteries of the rosary in the company of the Blessed Mother.
These four first Saturday practices should be done, each and all, with the intention of making reparation to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The Blessed Mother promised that those who carry out these exercises for five consecutive first Saturdays will receive at their death, all the graces necessary for salvation. This is not to be understood as a guarantee of salvation but as Mary’s own powerful assistance at the moment of death.
In the First Saturday Devotion, prayer is combined with the sacraments. Requiring participation in the sacraments puts the apparitions on solid catholic ground and further confirms their validity. The rosary is again requested. On keeping company with Mary, #4 above, is a placing of oneself in her presence and a gentle conversing with her about the mysteries upon which you are meditating. And all this is done in reparation, which expresses love of our neighbor (those who offended Mary) and for Mary herself.
Finally, how are we to place confidence in Fatima besides the overwhelmingly classic catholic nature of the prayers? The first issue that arises when one attempts to discuss Fatima or any other apparition is how the Church views it. The Church has to approve an apparition for it to be “worthy of belief.” According to Pope Benedict XVI (Verbum Domini), apparitions or “private” revelations are “judged by their orientation to Christ himself. If it leads us away from him, then it certainly does not come from the Holy Spirit, who guides us more deeply into the gospel and not away from it…Ecclesiastical approval of a private revelation essentially means that its message contains nothing contrary to faith and morals, it is licit to make it public, and the faithful are authorized to give it adhesion…A private revelation can have a prophetic character and be a valuable aid in better understanding and living the Gospel at a given time. Consequently, it should not be treated lightly. It is a help which is offered, but its use is not obligatory.” Such is Fatima.
Love and adoration of the Most Holy Trinity, love of the Eucharist, making many sacrifices for love of Jesus, reparation, deep concern for the salvation of others, and constant devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary; this sums up the spirituality of Fatima: simple, straightforward, and elegant.
For more reading on Fatima, I recommend Father Andrew Apostoli’s Book Fatima For Today (2010), Ignatius Press.
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