The Appearance of the Holy Virgin in Fatima
The little village Fatima lies in the middle of Portugal, about 35 km from the Atlantic coast. Until 1917 hardly anybody had ever heard of this town, but in that year the Holy Virgin appeared to three farm children. Today, this little place is well known throughout the world because of the miracles which occurred there.
One can reach Fatima from Lisbon by taking a direct train, which leaves from the Apolonia station in the south of the city, not far from the great river Tage. En route, one passes through Santarem. About 110 km from Lisbon, the train stops at Fatima's little station. From here, one can take a bus or taxi to the place of worship. Fatima is situated between the villages Leiria and Ourem. The road from the station to the holy place passes through a flat, but nevertheless interesting landscape. Old windmills are to be seen everywhere, as depicted in illustrations of Don Quichot.
When we arrived, we walked down the long road, which is flanked by little shops and stalls selling mementos and religious articles. Initially we did not notice anything indicating the place of the appearance. After walking a bit further, we suddenly found ourselves on the enormous square in front of the huge basilica with its pointed roof. To the left and right of the basilica are big buildings arranged in an arc around it. Here one can find accommodation for pilgrims, a cloister and a prayer chapel. On the plain, a small chapel has also been erected where the appearance took place. One of the trees where the Holy Virgin appeared is still there. The original tree was stripped bare for relic purposes. As in Lourdes, the enormous plain is used for processions and church services. Here too, the Holy Virgin appeared to three plain children.
The oldest of the three children, a little girl named Lucia Abobora dos Santos, was only ten years old when the appearance occurred. She, in the company of her niece Jacinta and nephew Francisco Marto, went for walks every day to put their small flocks out to pasture. Lucia was born on the 20th of March 1907 and was the youngest daughter of Maria Rosa and Antonio dos Santos. Jacinta was the youngest of the three children and was born on the 10th of March 1910. Jacinta's little brother Francesco saw the light of day on the 11th of June 1908. The ages of the three children at the time of the appearances were therefore respectively 10, 7 and 9 years.
On a day in 1916, when they were herding their sheep in the vicinity of the Loca do Cabeço, an angel suddenly appeared to them and admonished them not to be frightened. The angel introduced himself as the "Angel of Peace" and started praying with the three children: "My God, I believe and I worship You, I hope and I adore You. I plead for forgiveness for all who do not believe in You, who do not worship You, who do not hope and who do not love You." The angel appeared to the children three times. On the last appearance, the angel served the communion. The appearances of the angel prepared the children for the huge event which was still to take place.
A year after the appearance of the angel, on the 13th May 1917, the children attended Mass in the morning and took their sheep out to the vicinity of Cova da Iria. After eating some food, they started praying. In accordance with the angel's instruction, they had to pray continuously. Suddenly, they saw a bolt of light which frightened them severely. They got up quickly and brought the sheep together in order to go home as quickly as possible. When they reached a may-thorn tree, they again witnessed a beam of light from the sky. Again, they were very frightened. In the tree they saw the form of a lady appearing in light, more intense than the sun. The children sensed that the mysterious light surrounded them, after which a clear voice consoled them with the words:
According to the children, the lady appeared to be about eighteen years old. She wore a white mantle and a robe decorated with gold. The clothes covered Her head, draped over Her shoulders and reached to Her feet. She held a rosary in Her hands, which were clasped together in a prayer position."Do not be afraid. I will not hurt you!"
After a few moments of amazement, little Lucia asked Her who She was. The lady replied as follows: -
"I come from heaven. I ask that you come back again six times, at the same time and always on the 13th of every month. In October, on the last appearance, I will tell you who I am and what I want you to do."
Lucia was the only one who spoke to Her. Jacinta said
nothing. Francisco saw the lady but could not hear anything. Lucia asked the
lady whether she could go to heaven. The answer was affirmative. In the case of
Jacinta and Francisco, She said they could go to heaven but they had to pray
often. Francisco died of pneumonia during a flu epidemic two years later, on
Back at home, Lucia said nothing of the incident. Jacinta, however, was so excited about the event that she recounted everything to her mother. The news went through the village like wildfire - and the attacks by the unbelievers on the children started. Even the parents of the children did not believe them. Lucia's mother even threatened her if she did not disclaim her story.
At last the date of the second appearance dawned; it was June 13th. Only a few people followed the children to the place of the appearance, possibly out of curiosity. Their parents did not come; neither did the chaplain who did not believe the children's story. The Holy Virgin again asked the children to return on the 13th of each month.
On the third appearance, almost 5000 spectators assembled at the place of the appearances. It was the 13th of July 1917. Again the Holy Virgin appeared in a beam of light and radiated light herself. Lucia asked the bystanders to kneel and asked the Holy Virgin what the command was. The answer was
"Pray with submission to bring the war to an end."
It was the time of the First World War, which lasted from 1914 to 1918. The appearances took place at a time when millions of soldiers died and when Europe was grief-stricken by the loss of life. Remarkably, Portugal remained completely neutral, as was the case during the Second World War.
Again the Holy Virgin asked Lucia to return on the 13th of each month. She also told Lucia that in October, at the last appearance, she would see a great miracle, as would the pilgrims who were present that day.
Still, most people, especially the church authorities, did not believe the children's encounters. They even thought the children were being manipulated by scam operators. As a result, the children were abducted and imprisoned shortly before the fourth appearance by the administrator of the management council of Villa Nova. Nevertheless, on the 13th of August, pilgrims assembled at the place of the appearances. When the three children were not there at the specified time, the crowd quickly learnt the reason for their absence.
Then something happened which bolstered their faith. Suddenly, thunder was heard and a bolt of lightning appeared next to the tree. Up in the sky a beautiful cloud appeared which stayed there for about 10 minutes before it slowly disappeared. The same thing had happened during the previous appearances, and that made the crowd realize that something remarkable was afoot. In a mood of swelling rage, they decided to go to the administrator. The apparition, however, caused their anger to abate.
The head of the arrondissement had the children locked up in his home and questioned them for three days with all sorts of clever and evil questions. But the children kept silent and did not deny what they had seen. When the interrogator did not get his way, he even started threatening to burn the children in oil. One for one, he took them to a separate chamber to scare them. On the 16th of August, however, the threesome was united with their parents again.
The children were understandably very disappointed that they did not see Our Dear Lady on the appointed date. On the 19th of August, while moving about the vicinity with their flock, the Holy Virgin suddenly appeared again. This time it was in the place called Os Valinhos. She complained about the way the children had been treated and told them that the miracle which She promised for October would not be as beautiful as intended. She implored the children as follows: -
"Pray, pray often for the sinners and bring offerings for them. Many souls are going to hell because nobody brings offerings for them."
She also asked that the collection for the coming Festival of Our Dear Lady of the Rosary be spent on two biers for the procession and which had to be carried by children dressed in white, with Lucia, Jacinta and Francesco among them.
The treatment the children had to endure caused even more pilgrims to go to the place of the appearances. The next appearance, as agreed, took place on the 13th September 1917. Early in the morning already the roads to Fatima were congested with black cars, vehicles and pedestrians. On the place of the appearances people kneeled and the men removed their hats. Precisely at 12 noon the sun paled slightly and the sky, as during the other appearances, received a yellowish tinge. Suddenly, a ball of light appeared which moved from the east to the west and was seen by all. A white cloud also covered the tree and the three children. At the same time, white flowers fell out of the sky like snow flakes. They never touched the ground but disappeared at a certain height.
The Holy Virgin asked the children to return in October. She gave Her permission that a part of the collection be spent on the building of a chapel. After that, She disappeared. There was another spectacle of white flowers before everything returned to normal.
At last the day of
The three children came with their mothers. Lucia, Jacinta and Francisco then knelt in front of the tree, which by this time was totally stripped. Lucia asked the onlookers to close their umbrellas. Exactly at twelve, Lucia jumped up and shouted that the light was there again. Suddenly the three children saw the Holy Virgin again and Lucia asked Her who She was. She replied: -
"I am Our Dear Lady of The Rosary. On this place a chapel should be erected in My honour."
She commanded them to pray the Rosary repeatedly and to ask that the war in Europe be ended and that soldiers may return home unhurt. After Lucia asked more, she received the message: -
"People should better themselves. They should ask forgiveness for their sins. Let them cease insulting Our Dear Lord. He, who has been insulted so much."
It was the last message the children received in Fatima. Jacinta this time understood everything. Francisco could only see the Holy Virgin.
Lucia also saw St. Joseph and the child Jesus. Joseph was carrying Him in his arms and He was about one year old. The children saw Mary in the image of Our Dear Lady of Sorrows and afterwards as Our Dear Lady of Carmel with the scapular in Her hands.
After the Holy Virgin disappeared in the direction of the sun, Lucia suddenly told the people to look at the sun. This was the start of the so-called sun-miracle of Fatima, which was announced earlier by the Holy Virgin. The rain stopped and the clouds disappeared. The sun stood high in the heavens. It was as if they looked through a silver disc with a ring around it. The sun started to shake and vibrate and turn around as if it were a wheel of fire. The light it emanated changed colour continuously. Everything, the trees, the earth and also the people were illuminated in the colours of the rainbow. Three times did the sun do this dance, the one more impressive than the other. As to be expected, the spectacle made such an impression that some believers fell to their knees to pray, while others just stood dumbstruck and watched. The crowd shouted exclamations such as "My God have pity on me", "I believe in God", and "Hail Mary".
Kneeling in the mud, people sang the Credo. The most amazing of all was that when they got up, their clothes were dry and without a trace of mud on their knees. The miracle wasn't only visible in Fatima, but also from nearby villages. Now the unbelievers which doubted the appearance were compelled to believe.
After the last appearance people often still saw Lucia at the place of the appearances until, in 1920, she suddenly disappeared. Much was made of this. The rumours got so bad that the principal of the district of Villa Nova investigated. When they asked Lucia's mother where she was, she answered that it was at a place of her own choosing.
In the middle of June 1991 Lucia went to Vilar, a suburb of Porto, to live with the Sisters of the Holy Dorothea. It was a simple boarding school. Before she left, the bishop told her that she should never speak about the appearances and that nobody should know that she was Lucia. Her alias was now Maria das Dores, or Mary of the Seven Sorrows. After spending four years at the boarding school, she joined the Sisters of Tuy. Tuy is an old Spanish city on the banks of the Minho which forms the border between Spain and northern Portugal. Lucia was compelled to go and live there as a result of the 1910 revolution, on which all congregations and cloister orders in Portugal were banned.
Thus Lucia went into banishment in another country. She maintained her silence and never returned to the place of the appearances. In 1935 she was transferred to Ponteverda, not far from Tuy, higher up in Spain. Here she worked in the old age home of Our Lady of the Seven Sorrows. Unfortunately, her later life is unknown. We know that she committed herself fully to her duties and to her faith.
Die Derde Profesie van Fatima
[Gegee aan Lucia dos Santos, en aan die Pous oorgedra, wat volgens gerugte daarna drie dae lank gehuil het]
"'n Groot ramp sal die wêreld tref. Nêrens sal daar meer rus en orde heers en Satan neem die heerskappy van die wêreld oor.
Satan sal homself aan die hoof van die wêreldkerk plaas.
Hy sal die geeste van alle groot geleerdes opeis om wapens te bedink waarmee in 'n paar minute se tyd die grootste deel van die beskawing verwoes kan word.
Satan hou die heersers van die aarde volkome in sy duistere mag en hulle sal hom gehoorsaam in die uitvoer van wapenproduksie.
God sal die mense hewiger straf as tydens die sondvloed. Die tyd van tye sal aanbreek en daarmee ook die einde van die einde. Die grotes en magtiges smelt saam met die armes en swakkes.
Selfs vir die kerk sal die finale afrekening en ineenstorting aanbreek. Kardinale sal kardinale en biskoppe sal biskoppe beveg.
Satan wandel in hulle midde, en in Rome breek groot veranderinge aan. Die kerk verloor haar ewigdurende glans, en die wêreld word gehul in 'n sinistere mantel van duister en kwaad.
Vernietigende oorloë sal uitbreek. Vuur en rook daal neer uit die hemel.
Die water van die oseaan verander in 'n dik mis, en die skuim stapel op tot onvoorspelbare hoogtes en oorspoel die lewendes.
Ieder uur sal miljoene en miljoene mense sterf. Wie bly lewe sal verlang na die genadige dood.
Orals op aarde heers bittere armoede en eens welvarende nasies verander in rokende puinhope.
Niks kan die verderf en vernietiging meer terughou nie. Die goeies gaan saam met die slegtes ten onder, die grotes met die kleines, die herders met hulle kuddes, die heersers met hull onderdane.
Die dood is dan orals, veroorsaak deur die wandade en verraad van die volgelinge van Satan, wat homself dan, op 'n onsalige oomblik, as heerser oor die wêreld proklameer.
Uiteindelik sal die uitverkorenes wat nog oorleef opnuut hulle weg na God en Sy Glorie soek en vind, en te midde van die kwaad sal hulle Hom dien."
The Secret of Fatima
The number of children the Holy Virgin appeared to in Fatima was the holy number three. The number three is also symbolic of the Holy Trinity: the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Fatima extends to the highest heavens. In Fatima, the Heavenly Mother built a bridge right up to heaven. It was a difficult task for three young children. They were even threatened by the churchly authorities because they were suspected of lying. The authorities wanted to know if a secret was entrusted to them. Poor humanity, if only we could all communicate with the Heavenly Family as they could, plain and filled with faith. All of us would experience miracles.
But people who live in darkness will never experience the miracles of Godly appearances and messages. It happens to this day, and I speak through experience. People who testify to His Light are spiritually tortured and nobody realizes how painful it is for a person who truly endeavours to live according to Christ's teachings. How the three children suffered under human judgement. Lucia, Jacinta and Francisco carried part of the suffering. If their Spiritual Mother didn't promise them heaven, they would probably never have been able to stand up to the suffering caused by the unbelief. But as the life containing carbon atom changes into a diamond under pressure, so will their souls contain and radiate Godly Light in heaven; the light their Spiritual Mother revealed to them. They will be spiritual diamonds.
At other places, the Heavenly Mother descended in a ball of Light, the children of Fatima first saw Her in a beam of light. The event was preceded by an Angel of Peace, the angel of Portugal, who prayed this compelling prayer:
The angel instructed them to pray this prayer, especially for the sinners of Portugal."My God, I believe and I worship You, I hope and I adore You. I plead for forgiveness for all who do not believe in You, who do not worship You, who do not hope and who do not love You."
This prayer of Fatima is very powerful. We can personally testify to that. My friend May and I prayed this prayer at a time of crisis in South Africa. We stood in front of the Union Buildings. Suddenly we were engulfed in beams of golden light. It made us look up to the sky. A gigantic dome of light which almost blinded us formed above the Union Buildings. The cupola was built up in four levels, just as the prayer consists of a repeated pattern of four verses each - the number eight. The figure 8 always symbolizes the new. Try to visualize the dome of light above the Union Buildings and see the angels which descended to the four levels.
If everybody in the country believed in the Godly Light and prayed for light where there is darkness, God will also send us a special angel of peace. Then war, violence and riots will simply be impossible. God's peace will make South Africa the promised country which He created. However, if we do not understand God's will and we rule through our own will, we create darkness again. That is why mother earth grieves if we change her into a dark planet, rather than the sparkling spiritual diamond she ought to be. That is why, like the dark carbon atom, we have to undergo the difficult process of suffering in order to become spiritual diamonds. Our planet has the same percentage of minerals and water we have. It also has a soul, as we do. Everything we think and live is taken up in the soul of the planet, just as in our own souls.
Where Lourdes is a pillar of Light where human souls are washed, Fatima is a pillar of God's light for the world. Our Heavenly Mother tells the children how worried she is about man and his planet. She knows that one day Her Son will appear in the clouds, the soul of the earth, and will open the book of life of the earth and man, as written in Revelation 9. He will then judge us, as written in Revelation 20. It will be the final judgement.
Our Spiritual Mother came to prepare us and warn us of the big day on which Her Son will judge earth and its people. She revealed that day to the children of Fatima as in a motion picture. It is the day Gods light will shine on earth and where the chambers of hell will be opened. Souls believing in darkness instead of God's Light will undergo the terrible judgment described in Revelation. That is why, before the sun dance, she asks the children to pray that sinners repent, that they believe in Her immaculate heart and Godly Light and experience Her love. Then she can bring the souls to Her Son so that He with His great love will forgive them and save them from the terrible fire of hell. "Let the sinners repent", is Her command.>
She is the saving, spiritual mother symbol. In cooperation with all higher angel forces, she prepares the heavens for the coming of Her Son. The angels sing "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty who was, who IS and who will be." Sing together with the angels. Raise your eyes to the heavens. Help prepare heaven and earth for the second coming of Her Son. May we make the day of God's fury lighter. See what it says in Revelation 6:17: -
"For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand before it?"
Fatima reveals the heavens and uncovers hell. Fatima shows what can happen to man after his life on earth. It is like a road sign for a road which you have to choose: the heavenly road or the road to hell. Through your life on earth you form your soul; you give it direction and values. Read Revelation, because it is a perfect direction pointer and road map. Do you choose the woman clothed with the sun with the earth at Her feet, or do you choose the sign of the dragon and the snake from the hell-world, the self-will world?
In the Rue du Bac church in Paris, the Heavenly Mother stands on top of the world, crushing the snake with Her right foot. Together with the angel Michael and his angels she wages war on the dragon and his angels in an intense battle. Look at the earth in which we live. Look at the violence, murders and darkness at all levels of society. Darkness covers the entire world. The Heavenly Mother's summons resounds over the entire earth: "Children, repent and let the sinners repent. Pray for them. Do not judge them, but help them." Our Heavenly Mother can see further than we can. She knows the heavens, Her home, but she also knows the cellar, the dark cellar, the hell where souls are purified, a heavy conflict. Her heart is still pierced with the suffering they inflicted upon Her Son. Her heart aches for Her children on earth. Most churches do not love Her any more. Most churches reject Her. She is like the Holy Spirit, our consoler, our mediator, the right hand of Her Son.
The three children of Fatima teach us how a Christ-person suffers under the attack of people still living in darkness. These people do not realize what a privilege it is to have a Heavenly Mother who teaches you to come to Her Son when you have lost the road to Him in this dark world in which we find ourselves. The Mother-figure is always there to bring you to Him, the Great Physician. Jesus Christ is the Great Physician for the soul and spirit of man. He taught us to store our treasures in heaven. Fatima reinforces the message of treasures in heaven, the love for our Father-Mother God of the beginning.
The rosary which the Heavenly Mother wears in Fatima is the symbol of the universe where the Father-Mother principle reigns. Look at a rose and look at the Milky Way. The same spiral form is found in both. The Milky Way spirals all the way to heaven. Although we cannot see this, God's eternity is above the temporal Milky Way. The heart of the Milky Way, the so-called black hole, spirals into God's light-world. It is here, in the black hole, where dust stars are broken down and are changed into spiritual stars.
That is the secret of the garland of stars which the Heavenly Mother wears in Fatima. It depicts the stars spiralling to God's light. On God's earth, a tiny part of the universe, you can follow His gospel of love and learn to love your neighbour and not to kill. Love, symbolized by the rosary, spirals to heaven. The power of destruction and murder spirals downwards. The thousands of people witnessing the dancing sun symbolize man attuned to the Father's Godly Light, who will be taken up in His Light again. Your soul is indeed like a spiral of light which returns to its source, God's Light. In Fatima, the Heavenly Mother descends in a beam of light to give our people here on earth another chance to become light-children of God.
In Fatima, the Heavenly Mother admonishes against sin, which turns people into children of darkness. Darkness is a symbol of destruction. Her manifestation in light is in contrast to darkness: the symbol of the light of the beginning which darkness could not overcome. The apostle John teaches us that God IS Light. Ihose that do not wander in the light have no communion with Him. Children can still see and experience this Godly Light; that is why they are so important in the eyes of Jesus Christ. We must become like children again to inherit the Kingdom. The gospel teach us further that Jesus Christ came as a light into the world, and that every one who believes in Him will not remain in the darkness but will have eternal life.
It is difficult for me to testify to my own experiences. I testify not of myself, but to the works our Heavenly Father-Mother God can do through a plain child of man if one makes oneself available as His instrument.
Each person is attuned differently, as a each diamond has different faces and reflects light differently. All colours originate from white light. That is why people will experience the different pilgrim centres differently. Looked at in this light, our own experiences in Fatima are probably different too. We brought some earth and water from South Africa with us to make it one with the holy soil and water of Fatima. We were led to a small chapel in a cloister where all the nuns were praying. After a short prayer, our Holy God's power was so strong that I was heaving to and fro like a strong tree in a storm. I was scared of disturbing the nuns in their prayer, and consequently left as soon as possible. But I will always remember the radiating Light. Everywhere the heavens had to open, the strong Fatima-radiation was with me to open the heavens so that God's Light could take over.
From Fatima we went to London. In the apartment of one of South Africa's delegates, I prayed "Father, Oh Heavenly Father, London is so dark. May I pray that Your Godly Light will take over?" The strong force was with us immediately, and the sky above London opened. It was evening already and the sky was dark and heavy. Above the apartment an opening appeared which became bigger and bigger. A blue part of the sky appeared and Godly light radiated through it. The beam of light that preceded the coming of the Heavenly Mother at Fatima also came to London. This sounds impossible for a plain child of man, but God's light really lit up London spiritually. The light which our Spiritual Mother brought to Fatima also radiated over London through His will, because without God's will man cannot and may not do anything.
When we left London the next day, the taxi driver's comments were "I cannot understand why it is so light above London. What a beautiful day!", he exclaimed. We could not explain the miracle of the previous evening to him. From there we went to the Netherlands. The atmosphere there was so dark that I almost started crying. It felt as if God had forsaken Holland.
Then we went to Munich, Germany. Again, we stayed with a South African delegate. When we entered the house an even greater sorrow took hold of me. It is difficult for me to describe what happened there. The erstwhile events which occurred in the house are very sensitive. But as God's carriers of light we do find ourselves in dark situations. As God in the beginning gave our planet light, and the darkness did not prevail.
Through God's mediation I sensed that the previous events which occurred here were revolting. It felt as if I had landed in hell itself. But, girded with God's light, I went into battle the next day. This had nothing to do with South Africa, but with Germany itself. Although nobody knew it, the corpses of Nazi-leaders were kept there after the Nuremberg trials. While I prayed in the cellar, the Fatima-beam took over and I was surrounded by God's light. On God's instruction I then went to the garden in order to pray further. Again I was rocked to and fro by His power, as if by a strong wind. The Godly power was tremendous. The sky, which was dark, opened and a golden disk appeared in the sky. Angels descended and the house was full of light. My prayer in the garden where first the German Gestapo and then the American Secret Service were located, was "Father, may Your love-light radiate all nations and remain with them in eternity, and forgive them for what happened in that house." Three weeks later, God's light was still visible above Munich.
Fatima carries God's love-light for all nations. Our Heavenly Mother asked three children to pray for Portugal and give the country over in Her hands. She would then see to it that Portugal would not take part in the world wars. Our Heavenly Mother has much more peace-power than man thinks. May we love Her, listen to Her and work with Her for a world which will become God's world again.
May the sun miracle of Fatima symbolically be God's light for our world, which will illuminate the new heaven and the new earth as described in the Bible.