FATIMA in Lucia’s own words 16th edition, July 2007 Front Cover: Sister Maria Lucia of Jesus and of the Immaculate Heart on a visit to the Loca do Cabeço (16 May 2000) Back Cover: Fatima Basilica with the portraits of the two Little Shepherds, after their Beatification on 13 May 2000 FATIMA IN LUCIA’S OWN WORDS SISTER LUCIA’S MEMOIRS Edited by FR. LOUIS KONDOR, SVD. Introduced by DR. JOAQUIN M. ALONSO, CMF. (†1981) Translated by Dominican Nuns of Perpetual Rosary SECRETARIADO DOS PASTORINHOS, FATIMA, PORTUGAL Imprimatur, Fatimæ, Julii 2007 ? Antonius, Episc. Leir.-Fatimensis 4 EDITOR’S PREFACE The publication of this 13th edition of the first volume of Sister Lucia’s Memoirs in the English language is complete, including the text of Appendix III as presented in the 11th edition. To the first four Memoirs, written by the command of the Bishop of Leiria, Jose Alves Correira da Silva, and to the Appendices I and II, accounts of the apparitions in Pontevedra and Tuy – in fulfillment of the promise of 13 July 1917: “... I will come to ask for the Conse- cration of Russia to my Immaculate Heart and the Communion of Reparation on the first Saturdays” are now joined the text of the important document entitled “The Message of Fatima”, with the third part of the “secret”, which John Paul II entrusted to the Sa- cred Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith with the charge of making it public after preparing a suitable commentary. Thus, with the publication of the third part of the “secret” re- ceived from Our Lady by the three Little Shepherds on 13 July 1917 (see Appendix III), the entire Message of Fatima is now con- tained in this first volume. These first four “Memoirs”, besides the Apparitions of the An- gel and Our Lady, also describe how the Little Shepherds corre- sponded heroically to the requests of Our Lady, and in them they point out to everyone, and in a special way to the children, a sure way to reach holiness. Those entitled Fifth Memoir” (about her father) and “Sixth Memoir” (about her mother) written by Sister Lucia, in the Carmel of Coimbra, are published in a separate volume “Sister Lucia’s Memoirs II”. The Beatification of Francisco and Jacinta Marto (13 May 2000) should mark a new era for the Church. “‘Father, to You I offer praise, for you have revealed these things to the merest children.’ Today Jesus’praise takes the solemn form of the beatification of the Little Shepherds, Francisco and Jacinta. With this rite the Church wishes to place on the candelabrum these two candles which God lit to illumine humanity in its dark and anx- 5 ious hours ... May the message of their lives remain always alive to shine on the path of humanity” (Sermon of Pope John Paul II, in Fatima, during the Mass of Beatification) The contents of these Memoirs well justifies the great effort spent in the preparation of this new edition. With the kind permission of the Bishop of Leiria-Fatima, Serafim de Sousa Ferreira e Silva, we have used the original manuscripts of the first four Memoirs. We have, therefore, entrusted the work of this translation to the care of the English speaking community of Dominican Nuns of the Perpetual Rosary of the Monastery Pius XII, Fatima. We availed also of the works of the Claretian, Fr. Dr. Joaquin Maria Alonso, (†1981) and we relied on the help of Fr. Dr. Luciano Cristino, Director of the Fatima Sanctuary Services for Study and Expansion. Herewith, we offer them, in our name and that of all the read- ers of this volume, the expression of our gratitude for their precious help. Thus, in this new edition, is given you, dear reader, the cer- tainty possible of the words of Sister Lucia, though corrected in orthography and in the presentation of the dialogues, hoping that they penetrate the very depths of your being and there take root in laborious docility to the Spirit. We give thanks to the Lord for the grace of being able to have available today in our hands the complete work about the Mes- sage of Fatima, which will help so much to know and to love – more and more – the Holy Mother of God and our Mother. Fr. Louis Kondor, SVD. Vice-Postulator for the Causes of Canonization of BIesseds Francisco and Jacinta 6 INTRODUCTION TO SISTER LUCIA’S MEMOIRS Before a proper introduction to the entire publication of the Memoirs, the reader will appreciate a short presentation of our in- tentions, the limits we have established for ourselves, and the work- ing procedure adopted by us. This edition of the Memoirs of Sister Lucia is a true and faithful translation of the Portuguese text of the original letters, which are kept in the Episcopal archives in Leiria. We are indebted to His Excellency the Bishop, Most Reverend Dom Serafim Ferreira e Silva, for his permission for its publication. This is, of course, not a critical edition in the real sense of the word. We are translating the original texts, and reproducing the words of the authoress herself, with every possible accuracy and reliability. The final and critical edition is being published in Portuguese as a detailed work. The present work is, therefore, a popular and simple edition of a valuable text, which will astonish the world. We are not calling it «popular» in order to be exempted from the demands of literary criticism, even though we do not wish to meet all of these demands here; for instance, it is not necessary to draw our readers’ attention to all the references and sources supporting our statements. They can rest assured that, in this introduction and in the notes, we shall not make any assertions which we shall not substantiate in the critical work which we hope to publish before long. Such a «popular» work, however, must have certain limits. It is not necessary to multiply references and notes. In order that the reader may understand the text without difficulty, we are giving the necessary explanations wherever we feel that the choice of words or the train of thought of the authoress require elucidation. This is also the basis of our working procedure. We did not think it advis- able to edit such texts as those of Lucia – which in themselves are 7 exceptionally transparent and unpretentious – without making the normal divisions originating from the text itself. We have, therefore, divided the Memoirs into sections, chapters and paragraphs, as suggested by the very text itself or its logical structure. In order to make it clear to the reader that the headings have been chosen by us and not by Sister Lucia, we have had them printed in italics. We hope in this way to provide the reader with a brief pause where the descriptions are lengthy, and that the headings will at the same time prepare the mind for the contents of what is to come. The notes at the end of the respective page are to assist the reader in overcoming certain difficulties, i.e. to explain various cir- cumstances that appear strange at first, or other points without which some aspects of the original text cannot be understood. In the first place, we are presenting a brief biography of Sister Lucia, followed by a description of her literary abilities, and finally a general introduction to her Memoirs. A BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF LUCIA «On the 30th day of March, 1907, a female child was bap- tised, of the name Lucia, born at Aljustrel... on the 22nd day of March of the same year, at 7 o’clock in the evening.» This is the wording shown in the Parish Register. Her parents were António dos Santos and Maria Rosa, residents of Aljustrel, a hamlet be- longing to the parish of Fatima. As the youngest of seven children, six girls and one boy, Lucia was the family favourite and was surrounded with affection from her earliest childhood. Although the family met with many troubles and misfortunes, Lucia’s mother bore them all in an exemplary Christian spirit. At the age of six, Lucia received her first Holy Com- munion, the account of which will move our readers to joy and won- der. Family circumstances obliged her to start out in life straight away as a shepherdess. At first, in 1915, her companions were the girls and boys of Aljustrel and its surroundings. As from 1917, her cousins Jacinta and Francisco Marto were her sole companions. That was the year in which the Blessed Virgin appeared. Lucia had a special role during the apparitions, as the Vision spoke only to her, and gave her a message which was only to be revealed at a 8 future date. She lived and suffered, together with Francisco and Jacinta, on account of the apparitions. She alone has remained on earth for a longer period, in order to fulfil her mission. The Blessed Virgin actually requested her to learn to read... She started attending school, however, only after the apparitions; but with her talents and her good memory she learned to read and write very quickly. As soon as the apparitions were over, of course, Lucia found herself in the position of a “visionary”, with all the dangers resulting therefrom. Something, therefore, had to be done about her. One of the primary interests of the new Bishop of the re-established Dio- cese of Leiria was her education; he tried to keep her away from the dangers threatening her in an atmosphere so permeated with the extraordinary.