5/13/2015 – Our Lady of Fatima – Wednesday of the 6th week of Easter – Psalm 148: 1-2, 11-14

       We have such a wonderful, joyful psalm today, the refrain of which declares that heaven and earth are full of God’s glory. The psalm talks about the different people and entities who are to praise God, from the angels to the kings and princes and the people of Israel.  I cannot think of anyone who praises God more than our Blessed Mother Mary does.  Today we celebrate Mary in a special way in the feast of our Lady of Fatima.  On this day in the year 1917, the Blessed Mother appeared to three humble shepherd children in Fatima, Portugal.  The children, aged 7 to 10, were named Jacinta, Francisco, and Lucia.  The Blessed Mother appeared to them once a month from May through October.  Mary asked these children to pray the rosary for world peace, for an end to WWI, for sinners, & for the conversion of Russia.  The feast of Our Lady of Fatima was approved by the local bishop in Portugal in 1930 to mark the date of the first appearance to these children.  The feast has been at part of our Church's worldwide calendar since 2002.  The main message of Fatima is for us to constantly pray.  

       It is so amazing how Mary has appeared in different forms throughout history.  Each time, she has brought converts to the faith, has brought a message of reconciliation and love, and has tried to bring the faithful ever closer to her son.  We celebrate Mary, Our Lady of Fatima, in a special way today, and together with her, may we praise the name of the Lord.

5/13/2014 – Tuesday of 4th week of Easter – Our Lady of Fatima – John 19:25-27

      As we just celebrated Mothers Day this past weekend, we also celebrate the entire month May as the month of Mary.  As the Gospel tells us, Jesus gave as Mary as our Mother, as a special component of our faith.  I am currently reading a book written by different priests, talking about the special relationship priests have with Mary and how she supports us in our vocation as pastors in the Church. 

       As we celebrate May as the month of Mary, today we celebrate the memorial of Our Lady of Fatima, commemorating the appearance of the Virgin Mary to three Portuguese peasant children in 1917.  Mary asked the children to pray the rosary for world peace, for an end to WWI, for sinners, and for the conversion of Russia.  The local bishop in Portugal approved this day to commemorate Our Lady of Fatima in 1930 to mark the date of the first appearance of the Virgin Mary to these children.  This date has been celebrated as a part of our Church's worldwide calendar since 2002. 

         The main message of Fatima is for us to constantly pray. And through praying with Mary through the rosary and other Marian devotions, she always points us closer & closer to her Son.  Our Prayers connect us to God, to his real presence with us, just as we are connected to his Son through the Eucharist meal we share each time we celebrate mass together. May we feel this strong connection to Jesus & his mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary, & may we celebrate today the many ways that Jesus & the Blessed Virgin appear to us in our lives.