# Our Lady of the Rosary of Fátima

Our Lady of the Rosary of Fátima is a Marian title dedicated to the apparitions that occurred in 1917 in Cova da Iria, Portugal. In each of the six apparitions from May to October 1917, the Virgin revealed herself as “the Lady of the Rosary” and repeatedly requested daily prayer of the Rosary for world peace and the conversion of sinners. The basilica bearing her name, inaugurated in 1953 across from the apparition site, has become one of the most visited Marian pilgrimage centers globally.

## Our Lady of Fátima, Portugal

Fátima is a small town in central Portugal, north of Lisbon. The events described did not take place in the village itself at the time, but rather in the surrounding area, in a location known as Cova da Iria.

On May 13, 1917, the Virgin Mary appeared to three children—Lúcia dos Santos, Francisco, and Jacinta Marto, aged 10, 9, and 7 respectively. The families, dedicated to field work, were humble. Our Lady appeared six times until October, always on the 13th of each month (except in August when she appeared on the 19th due to an interrogation of the shepherd children). Along with the Virgin Mary, they witnessed celestial beings and a vision of hell. The visionaries received messages and secrets from Mary, which held global significance. Among her requests were prayer and penance for the conversion of sinners, particularly for Russia. The message was highly relevant and clearly linked to historical and political events of the time; each prophecy subsequently came to pass, sparking a spiritual movement among masses of faithful.

A remarkable impression was left by the grand solar eclipse witnessed on October 13, 1917, by many people present. After thorough examination, Bishop J. Correia da Silva recognized the supernatural nature of the Fátima apparitions as an authentic supernatural phenomenon on October 13, 1930.

Over the years, to accommodate the growing number of pilgrims, two basilicas and several convents and monasteries were constructed. Fátima has become one of the world’s most important shrines. Sister Lúcia of the Heart of Mary wrote her memoirs between 1935 and 1941. These, along with rigorous examinations of the Fátima events, have served as a source to understand the Secret of Fátima.

To better comprehend the Fátima apparitions, we will attempt to narrate the historical context.

Lucia was born on March 30, 1907, the youngest of seven children to Maria Rosa and Antonio. At age six, she made her First Communion and symbolically placed a heart in the hands of a statue of the Virgin. This gesture was repeated several times spontaneously with sincere joy, just before receiving the Sacrament. In 1915, Lucia, assisted by three friends, tended the family flock on Mount Cabeço. One day, the four friends began reciting the Rosary, and as they started their prayers, they suddenly saw a figure of light flickering in the air among the trees. At the end of the prayer, the figure disappeared. Lucia and her friends noticed the same presence twice in consecutive days. Her parents protested to the girls that it was merely their imagination and forbade them from going pasturing with Lucia. She then met up with Jacinta and Francisco on the same Mount Cabeço. One afternoon, the children vaguely saw a white and transparent figure approaching them. It was an angel. The cherubim appeared, and from that moment, three more times to prepare them for the Virgin’s visit. The heavenly creature introduced himself as ‘Angel of Peace’ and ‘Angel of Portugal’. He took on the appearance of a young man aged 14-15 and said to the children: “Do not be afraid, I am the Angel of Peace; pray with me.”

In the first apparition, he communicated to them his spirit of reparation, teaching them a prayer: “My God, I believe, adore, hope, and love You. I ask pardon for those who do not believe, do not adore, do not hope, and do not love You.” As the angel recited the prayer, he knelt down, placing his head towards the ground. Then, he stood up and said: “This is how you must pray. The hearts of Jesus and Mary are open to your prayers.”

In the second apparition, while the children were playing in the courtyard of the Santos family near the well, the angel appeared and taught them the practice of sacrifice, especially daily.

In the third apparition of the angel, the children were on the pastures with the flock nearby. This time, they saw him bathed in a strange light: he held in his left hand a chalice containing blood from a host suspended in mid-air. The angel floated the chalice through the air, then knelt down next to the three children and began praying thus: “Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, I adore You deeply and offer You the most precious Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Our Lord Jesus Christ present in all the altars on earth, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges, and indifference with which He is offended, and through the merits infinite of His Most Sacred Heart and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I ask for the conversion of poor sinners.”

Then, the children received a ‘mystical Communion’: he took the chalice and host from the air and gave them to Lucia, and the blood from the chalice to Jacinta and Francisco, while repeating these words: “Receive the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ who was so terribly offended by human ingratitude. Atone for your sins and console Your God.” He knelt down again and repeated with the children three times the prayer of the Most Holy Trinity. Finally, the angel disappeared into the air as the children were filled with inner peace and joy.

**First Appearance** (May 13, 1917). After Sunday Mass, the children took their flocks to graze in the Iria Valley, which later became famous for the angelic apparitions. After eating and reciting the Rosary, they began playing. Around noon, a strange flash of light crossed the serene sky, which the children interpreted as thunder and, anticipating a storm, they gathered the flock and headed back home. Passing near some bushes, in particular one over a meter tall, they were illuminated by a very bright white light at their center, in which they saw the figure of a very beautiful Lady who called them. It is Our Lady. The dress of the Mother of God has the purity of snow; her hands are joined at chest height, from which hangs a graceful rosary ending in a golden cross. Our Lady bears on her face signs of profound sorrow. With a friendly gesture she draws near the children and begins to speak.

Sister Lúcia writes in her Memories that the children had no fear of this apparition but of a possible storm. Only later did they understand that the thunder was a reflection of the light surrounding the Blessed Virgin, who since then learned that when that light appeared, the appearance of their beloved Lady was near.

**Second Appearance** took place on June 13, the feast day of Saint Anthony of Lisbon, the parish patron of Fátima. After Mass, the children, accompanied by approximately forty people who had heard about the apparitions, went to the site of the divine grace. Upon their return, they were mistreated and whipped by their parents who did not believe them.

With profound sadness and bitterness, Sister Carmelite later recalled in her Memories that the evil caused to her by this behavior of the family was similar to the tears of a sacrificial expiation before God Our Lord.

**Third Appearance** took place on July 13 where they witnessed a vision of Hell and received communication of the first two parts of the famous “Secret of Fátima.” Our Lady taught the little shepherds the following prayer: “O my good Jesus, forgive our sins, deliver us from Hell, take all souls to Heaven, especially those who most need Your mercy.” On this occasion, over two thousand people witnessed the apparition, including relatives of the visionaries. Shortly after the appearance, Mother Lúcia took her daughter to the parish priest, who was skeptical about the supernatural Marian manifestations, considering them possibly a deception by the devil.

In the fourth apparition on August 19th, despite anti-Catholic press, we remember that Portugal had suffered a coup d’état years prior, imposing a Republican regime clearly against the Catholic Church and controlling national media. Therefore, on August 13th, over fifteen thousand people gathered. The crowd did not see Mary or even the shepherd children; they only heard thunder and saw a lightning flash. Later, when they looked up at the sky, they marveled at the clouds radiating the luminous colors of a rainbow. The reason why the shepherd children did not attend is that the Mayor of Vila Nova de Ourém had kidnapped the three visionaries to return them to their parents three days later, not without first threatening them with death and torture if they did not reveal the Secret. This fourth apparition did not take place on August 13th but on August 19th. On this day, Lúcia and Francisco were grazing in a meadow when they saw thunder twice and Mary appeared to them. Our Lady asked the children to pray for sinners going to hell because they had no one praying for them. She also foretold a miracle and several healings to confirm the faith of those present. Then she disappeared, always heading towards the East.

The fifth apparition on September 13th already had thousands of people, with a collective vision seeing a luminous sphere on the horizon heading towards the East, and we also saw a white cloud enveloping the children, causing small flakes to fall like white flowers that dissolved upon touching the ground.

The sixth and final apparition on October 13th is the most well-known. On this day, we had already entered autumn, heavy rains, Our Lady’s promise of a miracle, and an estimated fifty thousand people waiting for it, along with numerous sick individuals imploring for healing. Many people knelt in reverence, and Our Lady presented herself to the shepherd children with these words: “I am the Lady of the Rosary. I want you to build a chapel here in my honor. If you continue to pray the Holy Rosary every day, the war will soon end, and soldiers will return home.” Lúcia then asked Our Lady to heal some of the sick, to which She replied: “Some will be healed, others not, for they must improve and pray for the expiation of their sins.” With a sad expression, She added: “One should no longer offend the Lord who has already been so much offended.” After the vision disappeared, the children saw around the sun other indistinct visions. Suddenly, the sun began to spin wildly. It was the prodigy announced by Mary months before. In this movement, the sun projected rainbow colors in all directions onto the people.

Beyond these well-known and reported apparitions, we must add the appearance of Mary Most Holy before Jacinta’s death. The youngest of the shepherd children in October 1918 falls gravely ill, and soon after, Francis also becomes sick. Our Lady appears to Jacinta, who tells Lúcia that both her cousins will suffer in the hospital for the conversion of sinners and thereby wash away sins against the Immaculate Heart of Mary and Jesus, going to Heaven shortly afterward. In reality, Francis died on April 4, 1919, and Jacinta on February 20, 1920.

The apparitions of Our Lady of Fátima and her message of prayer through the Rosary are framed within Pope John Paul II’s encyclical *Redemptoris Mater*, which exalted Mary as a mother who guides humanity towards peace and conversion through filial prayer.

**Deepen your studies:** Explore Mariology, Marian Theology, Marian Apparitions, and a Post-Graduate program in Mariology.

View the complete list of recognized Marian apparitions by the Church.

Learn how to pray the Rosary in our guide: *How to Pray the Rosary, step by step*.