The Lady of the Rosary!

Wednesday, May 13, 2026

The Feast of Our Lady of Fatima

Is 61: 9-11; Lk 11: 27-28

Today the Church celebrates the feast of Our Lady of Fatima. 

The central message of Our Lady of Fatima is prayer and repentance. The six apparitions of Our Lady had just one central message. On each occasion, the Blessed Virgin invited the three children, namely Lucia, Jacinta, and Francisco, to pray the rosary for peace in the world. However, on the feast day of Our Lady of Fatima, we are called to realize that her invitation is not just for those three children but for the entire Church beyond the constraints of time. 

In this sense, we may find Our Lady’s call for prayer and repentance even appropriate for our times. Unfortunately, even the twenty-first century of ours has been subject to endless wars, armed conflicts, and violence, victimizing innocent people on a daily basis. To counter the world’s problems, Mary offered a spiritual weapon in the form of ‘rosary.’ The ‘Lady of the Rosary’ has promised that if people turn away from sin and put Jesus’ words into practice, her Immaculate Heart will triumph over forces of evil, and the world itself will be blessed with peace and prosperity. 

The transmission of Our Lady’s message into a daily devotion is truly inspirational as the World Apostolate of Fatima continues to promote a response to the Fatima message. One becomes a member by: (1) pledging to pray the rosary each day; (2) offering to God the sacrifices demanded by daily duty; and (3) wearing the brown scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel as an act and sign of consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. We understand that Mary has offered us a simple but powerful means of praying for world peace.

Pope Saint John Paul II was known for his lifelong devotion to Our Lady of Fatima. In a more special way, he experienced the miraculous intervention of Our Lady on May 13, 1981, when he survived an assassination attempt. On his second visit to Fatima, he said, ‘My Pilgrimage to Fatima this year had a particular purpose: to give thanks for saving the Pope’s life on May 13, 1981 – exactly ten years ago. I consider this entire decade to be a free gift, given to me in a special way by Divine Providence.’

Apart from his personal convictions, he also attributed the major political changes to Our Lady’s constant intercessions. He believed that the changing political scenario in Russia and Eastern Europe offered a path for ‘new evangelization,’ which he offered to the care of the Blessed Virgin. 

The Polish Pope also noted that we must not stifle our gaze from what Our Lady pointed to. For him, Our Lady’s message was an unambiguous call towards conversion and repentance. For this reason, she repeated Jesus’ call itself: ‘Repent, and believe in the Gospel.’ The Pope said, ‘The message of Fatima is, in its basic nucleus, a call to conversion and repentance, as is the Gospel.’

The fact that we have been encumbered by a world still caught up with systemic injustice, hatred, war, violence, poverty, discrimination, marginalization, etc., reminds us that we need prayer and conversion more than ever. 

Our Lady of Fatima has shown that faith in Jesus brings healing to the bruised world. Conversion from sin and deeper union with Christ are made possible through praying the rosary. 

Let us pray that we may be drawn to the powerful message of Our Lady of Fatima so that God’s peace fills the world. 

Fr. Dhinakaran Savariyar