Our Lady of Fatima: A Messenger of Her Son for Us Not to Forfeit the Salvation

May 13 is the Memorial Feast of Our Lady of Fatima, who is Mary, the Mother of Jesus. It is to commemorate that Mary, as Our Lady of Fatima, began appearing to three children, Lucia Santos, Jacinta and Francisco Marto, in Fatima, Portugal on May 13, 1917, for six times, until October 13 of that year. So why are her apparitions in Fatima so important?

Namely, it is because of her messages call us not to offend her Son but to please him by repenting and praying the Rosary daily for peace. Jesus began preaching for penance to prepare for the coming of his Kingdom (Matthew 4:17) and it is his expressed desire that we have his peace (John 14:27). Her messages warn us against our tendency to forget our need of penance and not to take the Rosary seriously, contributing to perpetual sinfulness and preventing peace from prevailing in the world.

During her last apparition on October 17, 1917, Our Lady of Fatima specifically told Lucia Santos that we need to amend our lives and ask for forgiveness as we have offended her Son, Our Lord, so much – so that he may no longer be offended.

Echoing this message of Our Lady of Fatima, St. John Paul II sees Mary, Our Lady of Fatima as her Son’s messenger:

At Fatima She echoed a specific word pronounced by her Son at the outset of his public mission: "The time is fulfilled...; repent and believe in the Gospel" (Mk 1:15). The insistent invitation of Mary Most Holy to penance is nothing but the manifestation of her maternal concern for the fate of the human family, in need of conversion and forgiveness.    For the Fifth World Day of the Sick, February 11, 1997

With this in mind, let us reflect on the Scripture Readings of the Feast of Our Lady of Fatima.

In the terse Gospel Reading of the feast of Our Lady of Fatima (Luke 11:27-28), we see a woman giving a benediction to the mother of Jesus, saying, “Blessed is the womb that carried you and the breasts at which you nursed" (v. 27). We also see Jesus responding to this, saying, “Rather, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it"(v. 28).

The woman in the Gospel narrative honors Mary, the mother of Jesus, for bringing a man, who can exorcise like no other and dispute a false accusation against him with sound reasoning (Luke 11:14-27). In reply, Jesus simply emphasizes the importance of the word of God for us to hear and observe (Luke 11:28). It is like telling, “If you honor my mother, then, know her desire, and it is to listen to me and do what I tell (i.e. John 2:5), and my words are the words of God (i.e. John 12:49)”.

In reading this Gospel narrative to honor Mary, the mother of Jesus, as Our Lady of Fatima, commemorating her apparitions in Fatima, from May 13 to October 13, 1917, we are reminded how important it is to be serious about listening to and observing the word of God spoken by her son.

During that period of time, Mary sent very important messages to us, warning us against our tendency to drift away from her Son and his words, our habit of not observing the word of God even we hear it, letting it pass from one ear to the other. In such a condition, what is the point in honoring Mary, saying, “Hail Mary”, if we do not honor her Son and listen to and observe his words? As his mother, Mary, Our Lady of Fatima, wants us to repent and pray the Rosary daily and find peace in her Son’s Sacred Heart through her Immaculate Heart.

If we truly say, Blessed is the womb that carried you and the breasts at which you nursed", we listen to her, her messages in Fatima, which direct us to listen to her Son and his words, bringing us into her Son’s Sacred Heart through her Immaculate Heart. So, listening to and observing the word of God spoken by Jesus is our way to honor Mary, in whose womb the Word was incarnated by the Holy Spirit, as Our Lady of Fatima, whose messages are basically a warning against forfeiting the salvation because of our failure to listen to and observe her Son’s words.

Our Lady of Fatima calls us for penance and peace by heeding to her Son’s words and observing the Word of God in his teaching because she wants us to enjoy the salvation, for which her Son suffered and died and rose from the dead. She is not pleased with our superficial “Hail Mary” devotion. Our Marian devotion only makes sense with our commitment to her Son’s words. And this is for us to the bridegroom of her Son, as reflected in the First Reading (Isaiah 61:9-11) and Responsorial Psalm (Psalm 45:11-12, 14-15, 16-17). And this is reflected in John’s eschatological image:

I also saw the holy city, a new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband (Revelation 21:2).

As the salvation prevails because of our faithfulness to the Son and the Word through his teaching, finding peace in his Sacred Heart through Mary’s Immaculate Heart, heeding to Our Lady of Fatima, we, as the bride of her Son, are together with him by the river of life:

“I, Jesus, sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the root and offspring of David, the bright morning star.” The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” Let the hearer say, “Come.” Let the one who thirsts come forward, and the one who wants it receive the gift of life-giving water (Revelation 22:16-17).

As the mother of the bridegroom, Our Lady of Fatima has sent us the message of penance and peace so that we may be with him, enjoying the full benefits of the salvation, by the river of life. So, St. John Paul II said:

Mary became the spokeswoman for other words of Christ at Fatima. Christ's invitation especially resounded in the Cave of Iria: "Come to me, all you that labor and are overburdened, and I will give you rest" (Mt 11:28). Are the throngs of pilgrims who hasten to that blessed land from all over the world not perhaps eloquent testimony of the need for relief and comfort which numberless persons experience in their lives?  Fifth World Day of the Sick, February 11, 1997

Our Lady of Fatima made six apparitions from May 13 to October 13, 1917, to ensure that we may not forfeit the full benefits of the salvation, for which her Son suffered, died, and resurrected. For this, she reminded us of his teaching on our need for penance and forgiveness - so that we may enjoy the prevailing salvation, which is represented with the water of life (John 7:37-39; Revelation 21:6) together with him as his bride. 

St. Athanasius, the Apologist of the Genuine Christology against the Arian Heresy

Because some priests and even bishops seem to be too lax about the Church’s doctrines and the Apostolic tradition, for the sake of “ecumenical unity”, or “tolerance”, weighing far more on “aggiornamento” over “ad fontes”, the theological orthodoxy has been threatened by so-called progressive theological views, if they are not necessarily called heretical. This appeared to have been more evident since the Vatican II Council. In such a troublesome climate of the Church today, reflecting and pondering upon the significance of St. Athanasius of Alexandria, Bishop and Doctor of the Church, born around 296, died on May 2, 373, on his memorial feast, May 2, is ever more important.

So, why St. Athanasius and why he is so important in regard to the orthodoxy of the Church’s doctrine and theological authenticity?

To put it simply, St. Athanasius vigorously fought against the Arian heresy, which denies that Christ is the only begotten Son of the Father (John 3:16; cf. John 1:14, 18; 3:18; 20:31; 1 John 4:9) but argued that Christ was created by God. The Arians heresy misinterprets the Greek word in John 3:16, μονογενής (monogenes), as “created”, instead of “begotten”. The Arian heresy also denies the ὁμοούσιος (homoousios) of Christ with the Father, which is the essence of their hypostatic union as one (John 10:30). Therefore, the Arians do not believe in the Trinity.

This heresy originally taught by Arius, a priest of Alexandria, and became influential. Even some bishops and was a spiritual cancer in the Church of the time of Athanasius. Like aggressive malignant tumor, it spread in the Church and the Roman Empire. Even some bishops succumbed to the Arian heresy. The most notorious Arian bishop was Eusebius of Nicomedia. And he became the archenemy of Athanasius.

As Bishop of Alexandria, Athanasius staunchly and persistently rejected the Arianism, the Arians, spearheaded by Eusebius, Bishop of Nicomedia, waged retaliation against him, by tactfully manipulating the Roman political power to persecute him. Eusebius took advantage of his personal connection with Emperor Constantine to persecute Athanasius. Because of this, Athanasius had to suffer greatly but endured it all. The Arian enemies also set up a false testimony against Athanasius for the Roman authorities to keep him from teaching the true Christology – so that heretical Arian Christology would prevail throughout the Church and the empire. Despite the Arians’ efforts to silence him, God remained with St. Athanasius, and he was eventually vindicated, Again, the Arian heresy had to go, and the orthodoxy of Christology in the Trinitarian context is recovered and reaffirmed.

What does St. Athanasius of Alexandria have anything to do with St. Stephen, who is featured in the First Reading (Acts 6:8-15)? And how can we related St. Athanasius to the Gospel Reading (John 6:22-29)?

Obviously, like St. Stephen, St. Athanasius was filled with grace and power, through the Holy Spirit. Because of this, anyone who debated with him could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with the authentic Christology against the Arian heresy. But, as Stephen was persecuted for speaking of Christ, even setting up false testimonies to charge him with blasphemy, Athanasius was alleged to have disturbed the peace of the Roman Empire for stirring a war against those who subscribe to the Arian Christology, which Emperor Constantine asked the bishops to accept for the sake of the Church unity. He was also falsely accused of murdering Arsenius, Meletian bishop, by his Arian enemies. As none of the efforts to silence against Stephen stopped him from preaching on Christ, none of the Arian efforts to keep Athanasius from speaking against their heresy succeeded.

In the Gospel Reading (John 6:22-29), Jesus was correcting the misconception of him of those whom he fed miraculously out of five loaves of bread and two fish. They seemed to have thought of Jesus as merely a miracle worker, who brings a plenty of food supernaturally but had not believe in him as the Son of God. In other words, Jesus was guiding them to the correct Christology from their false conception of who Jesus was. And the true Christology is what St. Athanasius preached and defended against the Arian heretical Christology.

 

In the Gospel Reading, we recognize Jesus’ expressed desire for us not only to believe in him but also to believe in the Father, who sent him (John 6:29). Why so? It is because God the Father has set His seal on Christ the Son so that we may enjoy eternal life through Christ the Son (John 6:26-27). And this is possible because he is not created but begotten by the Father, as St. Athanasius taught and incorporated in the Nicene Creed:

I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, born of the Father before all ages. God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father; through him all things were made. For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man.

In his Apology (defense) against the Arians, St. Athanasius said:

Now if anyone wishes to become acquainted with my case, and the falsehood of Eusebius and his fellows, let him read what has been written in my behalf, and let him hear the witnesses, not one, or two, or three, but that great number of Bishops; and again let him attend to the witnesses of these proceedings, Liberius and Hosius, and their fellows, who when they saw the attempts made against us, chose rather to endure all manner of sufferings than to give up the truth, and the judgment which had been pronounced in our favour. And this they did with an honourable and righteous intention, for what they suffered proves to what straits the other Bishops were reduced. And they are memorials and records against the Arian heresy, and the wickedness of false accusers, and afford a pattern and model for those who come after, to contend for the truth unto death, and to abominate the Arian heresy which fights against Christ, and is a forerunner of Antichrist, and not to believe those who attempt to speak against me. For the defence put forth, and the sentence given, by so many Bishops of high character, are a trustworthy and sufficient testimony in our behalf.

In reflecting the life of St. Athanasius of Alexandria, the defender of the orthodoxy of Christology against heretical Arianism, we shall ask ourselves:

Is our Christological understanding is Trinitarian?

Do we truly understand the Nicene Creed, as well as the Apostle’s Creed?

Are we willing and ready to defend the Church’s doctrine, including the Christology, against any heresies, even it may result in persecution?

St. Athanasius, as Jesus does, entrusts us to do so, given the above words of his. And being able to defend the Church's doctrine and its orthodoxy against heretical theological teaching is of critical importance today as relativism and new age thoughts are often inserted into Christian theology in this post-modernistic age. 

Let us fight against heresies, as St. Athanasius did!