I received a sweet, and boldly challenging letter from a 103-year-old faithful Catholic woman in our diocese. The letter’s initial greeting was cordial and welcoming. “So glad you’re with us in Rhode Island.” What followed had the written tone of a slap on the wrist. “Why haven’t the Pope and bishops consecrated the world to our Blessed Mother’s Immaculate Heart? Hasn’t she waited long enough?” Actually, multiple popes have consecrated the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, with Pope Pius XII first doing so on October 31, 1942, during World War II. This was later repeated or renewed by Pope Paul VI in 1964, Pope John Paul II in 1982 and 1984, and Pope Francis in 2013 and 2022. She concluded her letter, “Our Blessed Mother is the only one who can stop all of these wars. Our Lady of Fatima, help us!”
In the spring of 1917, while World War I raged across Europe, three young shepherd children in the hills of Fatima, Portugal, received a series of divine visits that would change the course of modern Catholic history. Lucia dos Santos and her cousins, Francisco and Jacinta Marto, were tending their family’s sheep when they encountered a “Lady all in white, more brilliant than the sun.”
Between May 13 and October 13, 1917, Our Lady appeared six times, delivering a message of urgent spiritual necessity. Our Lady called for daily prayer. She asked everyone to pray the Rosary for world peace. She urged sacrifice and penance offered for the conversion of sinners and in reparation for offenses against God. As a refuge and a path leading souls to Christ she invited the three children and the world to embrace her Immaculate Heart. It is well known that the apparitions culminated in the Miracle of the Sun on October 13, where approximately 70,000 witnesses saw the sun “dance” and spin in the sky, confirming the authenticity of the children’s visions.
Though over a century has passed, the “Peace Plan from Heaven” remains profoundly relevant. In an era marked by global instability, societal discord, and spiritual apathy, the call to prayer and conversion resonates with a new urgency. Our Lady’s request to “pray the Rosary every day to obtain peace” was not just for the end of the Great War in 1917. Today, as we face new conflicts and the threat of global violence, the Rosary serves as a powerful spiritual remedy. It centers the heart on divine love and encourages the conversion of hearts, which is the only true foundation for lasting peace.
The power of “small” witnesses should never be underestimated. The shepherd children—Francisco and Jacinta, who were canonized in 2017—remind us that holiness is not reserved for a select few. Their simple, childlike faith and willingness to offer small daily sacrifices for others are models for how we can be “agents of peace” in our own families and parishes. Even the smallest efforts put forth by the most seemingly insignificant among us can make a world of difference.
Our Lady offers hope amidst trials. The message of Fatima is ultimately one of hope. Our Lady famously promised, “In the end, my Immaculate Heart will triumph.” This assurance provides comfort in “troubled times,” reminding us that even the greatest historical evils can be overcome through prayer and reliance on God’s saving grace. As we navigate the challenges of our times, we are invited to return to the simple beads of the Rosary, heeding the Motherly guidance first given in the Cova da Iria.
My new 103-year-old friend asked me and all of you to pray the Rosary everyday this May, Mary’s Month. Please pray for an end to all wars, that the Peace of Christ may reign in our world, our homes, and our hearts. She put it so simply in her letter, “Ask Mary’s help.”
May 13 in the Feast Day of Our Lady of Fatima.
