We celebrate a very special Mother’s Day this weekend. 100 years ago, on May 13, 1917, Our Blessed Mother began appearing to 3 little shepherd children near Fatima, a city 110 miles north of Lisbon, Portugal. In honor of the centennial anniversary this weekend, Pope Francis has traveled to Fatima to celebrate the canonization of two of those children, Francisco and Jacinta, who after their encounter with the Blessed Mother lived lives of great sanctity. An encounter with the Blessed Mother always changes you, and when you entrust yourself to her, she will help you to be as holy as God made you to be.
At Fatima, Mary tasked the children and all of us to pray the rosary for world peace, for the end of World War I, for the conversion of Russia, and to pray especially for sinners in danger of hell. She urged the children also to offer their lives in reparation for the sins and to make mortifications throughout the day for the conversion sinners.
You may have also heard of the three secrets of Fatima; the Blessed Mother delivered three secret messages to the children, two of which they were allowed to reveal soon after the apparitions. The first secret was actually a terrifying vision: Mary showed the children a vision of a multitude of souls languishing in hell. They saw blackened souls, surrounded by torturing demons, lakes of fire with souls screaming in torment.
Mothers seek to protect their children from harm. And Our Blessed Mother is concerned not only with the well-being of our bodies, but our souls. And this first vision is a warning, of what happens when souls separate themselves from God through serious sin, when they live godless lives, and persevere in error.
The second secret was a prophecy. The Blessed Mother told the children that World War One was about to end, but unless Russia converted to Catholicism and was consecrated to her Immaculate Heart, the godless errors of atheistic communism would spread throughout the world and another great war would follow the first; great destruction would be wrought upon earth the human evil and the Church would be persecuted. But in the end, her immaculate heart would triumph.
The first war did end, shortly after the apparition. And though Russia was consecrated to the Immaculate Heart by Pius XII, Russia did not embrace the Faith and a second war did follow, World War II. Atheism and communism have spread. The 20th century contained more death, destruction, and martyrdom than all of the previous centuries combined. The Church suffered terribly in the 20th century: 8000 priests in Spain alone were killed in the 1930s; 3000 priests in Mexico, 6000 priests were sent to the concentration camps of the Nazis. Countless souls turned away from the saving faith in the 20th century to the errors of atheism and the grave sins of the sexual revolution.
Our Mother’s promise will come to fulfillment at the end of time: her Immaculate Heart will triumph, when the love of God brings about the ultimate end of evil.
The third secret was made known to the world during the reign of Pope St. John Paul II. The children were shown a a vision of an angel with a flaming sword, who cried out “Penance, Penance, Penance” Bishops, Priests, men and women Religious climbed up a steep mountain and at the top of the mountain, an immense Cross. There they beheld a Bishop, dressed in white, shot by a group of soldiers who fired bullets and arrows at him. Two angels then gathered the blood of the martyrs in holy water buckets and sprinkled the souls that were making their way to God. A very strange vision.
Pope Benedict believed this vision of the Bishop dressed in white to refer to the Popes of the 20th century collectively, who shared in the suffering of the Church, and how the Church is strengthened by their Holy Witness. The Popes of the 20th Century were very holy men compared to some of the Popes of centuries past.
Pius X, John XXIII, John Paul II have been canonized. Paul VI has been beatified, and Pius XII is on his way to canonization. These holy men gave incredible witness and clarity of teaching, during one of the bloodiest and secular ages the Church has faced. And although the 21st century has seen the incredible leadership of Pope Benedict, who in my opinion is a living saint, and Pope Francis who has so impressively called us to embody the mercy of God, the errors of the 20th century continue to lead souls away from God and put them in danger of hell.
Yet, Our Lady promised, in the end, “Her Immaculate Heart would triumph.” Pope Benedict interpreted these words as well. He said, “The Heart open to God, purified by contemplation of God, is stronger than guns and weapons of every kind. The fiat of Mary, the word of her heart, has changed the history of the world, because it brought the Saviour into the world—because, thanks to her Yes, God could become man in our world and remains so for all time. The Evil One has power in this world, as we see and experience continually; he has power because our freedom continually lets itself be led away from God. But since God himself took a human heart and has thus steered human freedom towards what is good, the freedom to choose evil no longer has the last word.”
Mother’s day! How can we honor our mother’s this day? We honor our mother’s with cards and candy and flowers, taking them to their favorite places, or perhaps visiting the grave of the mother’s who have died. But I think the greatest honor we can show our mothers is by becoming the people God made us to be, people of faith and love, the people our mothers hoped we would be. That goes for our earthly mothers and also our Blessed Mother.
We show great honor to our Mother by taking up the rosary as she taught us, by turning to her example of love, and emulating the resounding Yes she made to God. Take seriously your Mother’s wishes, that her children pray the rosary, do penance for sinners, seek the purification of our own hearts from all resistance to God. Allow her immaculate heart to triumph over the evils that still linger in our world and hearts.
Make your mother smile today. Your earthly mother and the Blessed Mother. And may each of us entrust our fates, our souls to mother Mary, that we, with her “may further more effectively each day the reign of Christ” in the world and in our hearts, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
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