Fátima’s saints – Fransisco and Jacinta canonised

Pope Francis made a pilgrimage to Fátima on Saturday to canonise two of the three shepherd children Our Lady appeared to 100 years ago.

Jacinta and Francisco Marto, who died in 1919 are now “Saint Jacinta and Saint Francisco”. (The third “child”, their cousin Lucia, died in 2005.)

Thousands of pilgrims lined Francis’s route and tossed petals as his motorcade drove past. Up to a million visitors were expected.

Francis told the people of Portugal that he regarded his visit to Fátima as a pilgrimage of “hope and peace” where he would “present himself to Mary”.

He asked for their support in this, saying “I need to feel you close, physically and spiritually, so that we are one heart and one mind”.

He also said he hoped Catholics would continue to take notice of the message of peace the children reported 100 years ago

Last Saturday 13 May was the 100th anniversary of the first of our Lady’s appearances to Saint Jacinta, Saint Francisco and their cousin Lucia. She was to appear five more times in the following months.

They said she revealed to them three secrets.

Later Lucia wrote these messages down. They foreshadowed the Second World War, hell, the rise and fall of communism and the death of a pope.

Our Lady also urged the children to pray for peace and turn away from sin.

Pope St John Paul II credited Our Lady with saving his life when an assassination attempt was made on him on 13 May 1981.

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