“My Immaculate Heart will be your refuge, and the way that will lead you to God.” The Message of Our Lady of Fatima (Selections)
(Fatima, Portugal, 1917)
By Dom Augustine Marie, OSB
Edited and Notes by Br Sean, OSsS
“I am the Lady of the Rosary, I have come to warn the faithful to amend their lives and ask for pardon for their sins. They must not offend Our Lord any more, for He is already too grievously offended by the sins of men. People must say the Rosary. Let them continue saying it every day.”
Our Lady gravely said, “Sacrifice yourselves for sinners and say often, especially when you make some sacrifice, ‛O my Jesus, this is for love of You, for the conversion of sinners, and in reparation for the offenses committed against the Immaculate Heart of Mary.’ ”
On July 13, 1917 the Blessed Virgin unveiled a terrifying reality before the three children’s eyes. Lucia recounts: “Our Lady showed us a great sea of fire, which seemed to be under the earth. Plunged in this fire were demons and souls, in human form, like transparent burning embers, all blackened or burnished bronze, floating about in this conflagration in clouds of smoke, lifted by flames coming out of their bodies. They rose and fell on all sides, like sparks in roaring fires, without weight or direction, amid shrieks and groans of pain and despair that terrified us and made us tremble with fear. The demons could be distinguished by their terrifying and repellent likeness to frightful and unknown animals, black and transparent like burning coals. This vision lasted but a moment, thanks to our good Mother from Heaven who had warned us beforehand, and promised to take us to Heaven. Otherwise, I think we would have died of horror and fear. Then we raised our eyes to Our Lady, who said with kindness and sadness: ‘You have seen Hell, where the souls of poor sinners go. To save them, God wishes to establish in the world devotion to My Immaculate Heart. If people do what I am going to tell you, many souls will be saved and there will be peace.’ ” Our Lady further said, “Pray, pray a great deal and make many sacrifices, for many souls go to Hell because they have no one to make sacrifices and to pray for them.” (Fatima in Lucia’s Own Words)
One more proof
The existence of Hell arouses disputes. Sister Lucia wrote, a few years before her death on February 13, There is no shortage of unbelievers in the world who deny these truths, but they are no less true for being denied. Their disbelief does not save unbelievers from the horrors of Hell, should a life of sin lead them there. … At Fatima, (God) sent us His Message as one more proof of these truths. This Message recalls them to us, so that we do not let ourselves be fooled by the false doctrines of unbelievers who deny them, or of deceivers who distort them. To this end, the Message assures us that Hell is a fact, and that the souls of poor sinners end up there.” (Calls from the Message of Fatima, 2003, ch. 14) The Blessed Virgin told them to keep this vision secret. She did not permit Lucia to reveal it until 1941. Jacinta retained an impression of it which left a profound mark on her. From this day on, she was very preoccupied with the fate of poor souls who went to Hell. She often sat on the ground or on a rock, and, deep in thought, she would say, “Oh! Hell! How sorrowful I am for the souls who are going to Hell!” Yet she did not confine herself to futile pain but she prayed and sacrificed heroically for those who were in danger of being lost.
A painful reality
The vision of Hell which the three children were favored with is not an exaggeration of the reality it represented. It is a presentation of it within the grasp of the human mind. In 1992, Lucia, who had been a Carmelite in Coïmbra, Portugal since 1948, told a Cardinal who had come to visit her, “Hell is a reality… Continue to preach about Hell, for Our Lord Himself spoke of Hell and it is in the Holy Scriptures. God condemns no one to Hell. People condemn themselves to Hell. God has given mankind the freedom of choice, and He respects this human freedom.»
Our Lady appeared to Jacinta several times between December 1919 and February 1920.
Our Lady told her many things including:
“The sins of the world are very great … If men only knew what eternity is, they would do everything in their power to change their lives.” “Fly from riches and luxury; love poverty and silence; have charity, even for bad people.” “More souls go to Hell because of sins of the flesh than for any other reason.”[1] “Certain fashions will be introduced that will offend Our Lord very much.” “Woe to women lacking in modesty.”[2] “The Mother of God wants more virgin souls bound by the vow of chastity.” “Confession is a sacrament of mercy and we must confess with joy and trust.” “Many marriages are not of God and do not please Our Lord.” “Our Lady can no longer uphold the arm of Her Divine Son which will strike the world. If people amend their lives, Our Lord will even now save the world, but if they do not, punishment will come.” “People must renounce sin and not persist in it, as has been done until now. It is essential to repent greatly.” “Tell everybody that God gives graces through the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Tell them to ask graces from Her and that the Heart of Jesus wishes to be venerated together with the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Ask them to plead for peace from the Immaculate Heart of Mary, for the Lord has confided the peace of the world to Her.”
The vision of hell was shown at the beginning of this century to impress upon men and to confirm the doctrine of Hell; thereby influencing man to stop offending God by sin. Of the three children who saw hell, Jacinta was the most affected by this vision. The following are some of her words on hell.
“Oh, Hell! Oh, Hell!” “Mother of God have pity on those who do not amend their lives.” “If men only know what awaits them in eternity, they would do everything in their power to change their lives.”
Often she would say to her brother, “Francisco, are you praying with me? We must pray very much to save souls from hell, so many go there. So many!”
At times she would ask of Lucia, “Why doesn’t Our Lady show Hell to sinners? If only they saw it, they would never commit sins again.”
Finally she said, “Look, I am going to heaven soon but you are to stay here. If Our Lady lets you, tell everyone what hell is like so that they won’t sin anymore and not go there.”
Later Interview with Sr. Lucia on Hell
The following is a rare interview with Sister Lucia [the Fatima visionary who died in 2005], by Father Lombardi. It was recorded in the Vatican weekly “Osservatore della Domenica” February 7, 1954.
Fr. Lombardi: “Tell me, is the ‘Better World Movement’ a response of the Church to the words spoken to Our Lady?”
Lucia: “Father, there is certainly a great need for this renewal. If it is not done, and taking into account the present development of humanity, only a limited number of the human race will be saved.”
Fr. Lombardi: “Do you really believe that many will go to Hell? I hope that God will save the greater part of humanity.” [He had just written a book entitled: Salvation for Those Without Faith.]
Lucia: “Father, many will be lost.”
Fr. Lombardi: “It is true that the world is full of evil, but there is always a hope of salvation.”
Lucia: “No Father, many will be lost.”
Father Lombardi remembered that Lucia had seen Hell and added: “Her words disturbed me. I returned to Italy with that grave warning impressed on my heart.”[3]
The vision of hell was shown at the beginning of this century to impress upon men and to confirm the doctrine of Hell; thereby urging man to stop offending God by sin. Of the three children who saw hell, Jacinta was the most affected by this vision. The following are some of her words on hell:
“Oh, Hell! Oh, Hell!” “Mother of God have pity on those who do not amend their lives.” “If men only know what awaits them in eternity, they would do everything in their power to change their lives.”
Often she would say to her brother, “Francisco, are you praying with me? We must pray very much to save souls from hell, so many go there. So many!”
At times she would ask of Lucia, “Why doesn’t Our Lady show Hell to sinners? If only they saw it, they would never commit sins again.”
Finally she said, “Look, I am going to heaven soon but you are to stay here. If Our Lady lets you, tell everyone what hell is like so that they won’t sin anymore and not go there.”
The vision of hell was not revealed until 1941. Our Lady at Fatima, during all six of her apparitions told the children they must pray, especially the rosary. The three children responded generously to Our Lady’s requests. What is keeping you from doing the same thing? Do not say, “I do not have the time!” Because if you are too busy to spend time with God in prayer, then you are busier than God intends you to be! Meditate upon the following words of Our Lord. “What does it profit a man if he gain the whole world and suffer the loss of his own soul?”(Matt. 16:26)
Fatima Prayers (Prayers revealed to the Fatima visionaries by an angel and Our Lady)
“O my God, I believe, I adore, I hope and I love You. I ask pardon for those who do not
believe, do not adore, do not hope and do not love You.”
“O Most Holy Trinity I adore You. My God, my God, I love You in the Most Blessed Sacrament.”
“Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, I adore Thee profoundly. I offer Thee the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ, present in all the Tabernacles of the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges and indifferences by which He is offended. And by the infinite merits of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I beg the conversion of poor sinners.”
Our Lady gravely said, Sacrifice yourselves for sinners and say often, especially when you make some sacrifice, ‛Jesus, this is for love of You, for the conversion of sinners, and in reparation for the offenses committed against the Immaculate Heart of Mary.’ ”
“When you say the Rosary, say after each mystery: ‘O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of Hell; and lead all souls to Heaven, especially those in most need of Thy mercy’.”
Prayer to St. Michael
“St Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of
the Devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray, and do thou O Prince of the Heavenly Host, by the
power of God, cast into hell Satan and all the evil spirits who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of
souls. Amen.”
Quotes on the Rosary and the Hail Mary:
One day through the Rosary and Scapular I will save the world. (Mary to St Dominic)
The Most Holy Virgin in these last times in which we live has given a new efficacy to the recitation of the Rosary to such an extent that there is no problem, no matter how difficult it is, whether temporal or above all spiritual, in the personal life of each one of us, of our families…that cannot be solved by the prayer of the Holy Rosary. With the Holy Rosary we will save ourselves. We will sanctify ourselves. We will console Our Lord, and obtain the salvation of many souls. (Sr Lucia, in “Calls” from Our Lady of Fatima)
The Rosary will be of great assistance in the last hour of life. (Cf. Leo XIII, Diuturni Temporis, n. 7, 5 Sept. 1898)
If I had an army reciting the Rosary, I would conquer the world. (Pius XI)
Love the Madonna and pray the Rosary, for her Rosary is the weapon against the evils of
the world today. (St Padre Pio)
(The Hail Mary) Just as almighty God chose the angelical salutation [Hail Mary] to bring about the Incarnation of His Word and the Redemption of mankind [Lk 1:28, 42], in the same way those who want to bring about moral reforms and who want people reborn in Jesus Christ must honor me and greet me with the same salutation. I am the channel by which God came to men, and so, next to my Son Jesus Christ, it is through me that men must obtain grace and virtue. (Mary to Blessed Alan de la Roche, in Secret of the Rosary, 84); Cf. True Devotion to Mary, 156-59)
Know, my son, and make all others know, that it is a probable and proximate sign of eternal damnation to have an aversion, a lukewarmness, or a negligence in saying the angelical salutation, which has repaired the whole world. (Mary to Blessed Alan de la Roche, in True Devotion to Mary, 157)
NOTES1. “More souls go to Hell because of sins of the flesh than for any other reason.” Sr Lucia, the last living Fatima seer, said this refers primarily to sins against chastity, also called sins of impurity. The reason for this statement is not because sins against chastity are the most grievous sins, but the most common and, as Sr Lucia stated, “because of conscience,” since sins of impurity are less likely to be repented of than other sins. Why? 1) because the sense of injustice committed, which is the primary stimulus to repent of one’s sins, is not strongly felt when engaging in them, with the exception of adultery; 2) there is a greater sense of shame when committing certain impure acts and hence greater difficulty confessing them in the sacrament of confession, or even repenting of them in one’s heart; 3) sexual activity of all kinds is presented by our post-Christian — even anti-Christian — popular culture as natural and good, and sexual abstinence is even taught to be unhealthy. The sixth commandment, relating to chastity, has always been called “the difficult commandment.” Today, with pornography everywhere and women and girls dressing more immodestly than ever, it can almost be called “the impossible commandment.” However, Jesus assures us: “What is impossible with men is possible with God.” (Lk 18:27) We may add that all who invoke the Blessed Virgin Mary for help in overcoming sins of impurity, will receive the grace to do so, as she herself has revealed to St Bridget of Sweden and various other saints. And those who strive to live chaste lives know from experience, when sins of impurity are humbly repented of and confessed, a great burden is removed from our consciences, and we experience that peace of soul that the world and carnal indulgence cannot give.
- Jacinta, before she died, said Our Lady had told her that certain fashions would be introduced that would greatly offend Our Lord, who had said in the gospel, “every one who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Mt 5.28). Saint John Chrysostom instructed women of all times about dress when in the fourth century he declared: “You carry your snare everywhere and spread your nets in all places. You allege that you never invited others to sin. You did not, indeed, by your words, but you have done so by your dress and your deportment. … When you have made another
sin in his heart, how can you be innocent? Tell me, whom does this world condemn? Whom do judges punish? Those who drink poison or those who prepare it and administer the fatal potion? You have prepared the abominable cup, you have given the death dealing drink, and you are more criminal than are those who poison the body; you murder not the body but the soul. And it is not to enemies you do this, nor are you urged on by any imaginary necessity, nor provoked by injury, but out of foolish vanity and pride.” The late Father Bernard A. Kunkel, a great defender of modesty and decency, said concerning the words of Our Lady of Fatima: “She knew that…forces of evil would design these fashions, together with the filthy literature…movies and television shows…all as part of their program to break down morality, especially among the young people. Our Lady was only exposing this plan.”
- Francis Johnston, Fatima, The Great Sign (Rockford, IL:Tan Publishers, Inc., 1980) p. 36. For more information see www.wafusa.org