Diocese celebrates centennial of Our Lady of Fatima
SALT LAKE CITY — To commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Our Lady of Fatima apparitions, the Diocese of Salt Lake City celebrated a Mass followed by a procession at the Cathedral of the Madeleine on Oct. 12.
Bishop Oscar A. Solis, the main celebrant of the Mass, welcomed the hundreds of people and, during his homily, described the appearances of Our Lady to the three shepherd children in Fatima. She instructed them “to tell the people to pray for the end of war,” Bishop Solis said, adding that Fatima is considered one of the most meaningful apparitions of Our Mother. Pope Saint John Paul added the celebration to Our Lady of Fatima to the liturgical celebration year in 2002, and “in 1981, Saint John Paul II survived an assassination attempt in St Peter’s Square through the intercession of Our Lady of Fatima,” the bishop said.
At the anniversary Mass, “we are gathered here to celebrate her and to ask her to intercede for all of us,” he said.
The Mass included the congregation reciting together the prayer of consecration to Our Lady of Fatima. (See the prayer on p. 3.)
After the Mass, Bishop Solis carried the Blessed Sacrament in procession, walking from the outside steps of the cathedral to the plaza and back.
Reciting the Luminous Mysteries of the rosary, people followed Bishop Solis around the cathedral.
Among those who participated was Chong Aguayo, a Saint Francis of Assisi parishioner.
“Today we had to come here to celebrate [Our Lady] and to be consecrated to her by our bishop,” she said, adding that she was touched by the ceremony.
The same feeling was shared by Juana Decasa, a cathedral parishioner who attended the celebration with her mother, daughter and son, who was an altar boy.
“Getting her blessing is something marvelous. … Praying the rosary here today together was very powerful,” Decasa said.
Saying that she knows many stories about Our Lady, Decasa added that Fatima has a special meaning for her.
“Besides believing in her, thinking of her makes me remember my father, my family, and that warms my heart,” Decasa said. “People need to believe in her. She does miracles, and we need to put our lives in her hands.”
Bishop Solis said that “the celebration of the anniversary of the apparitions of Our Lady responds to the call of faith. It’s a warning for all of us that we must obey God, that we must have Him as the center of our lives.”
He added that the message of Our Lady is a message that is in line with Church teachings.
“The importance and necessity of prayer as the road to our salvation is our power for salvation,” Bishop Solis concluded.
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