Day Three: Exploring Fatima - Basilica, Chapel, Museum, Modern Church

Today we took a leisurely walk to explore the chapel a little more in-depth, to celebrate Mass, to visit the graves of Jacinta, Lucia and Francisco, to visit the museum, and to visit the modern church.  After that we had the entire afternoon to explore on our own.  

The chapel is considered the “Heart of Fatima.”  This is the place called the miracle of the sun.  Mary appeared in a very large tree to the 3 children.  This chapel was where we prayed the rosary last night and where it is prayed every evening - rain our shine - no matter what the weather.  It is a protected space.  The statue of our Lady of Fatima is only removed here on the days commemorated Mary’s appearances.  

We had Mass in a chapel behind this one - within the building behind it.  It has a beautiful mosaic of the Blessed Mother behind the altar.  

Then we visited the graves of Jacinta, Lucia and Francisco.  When Mary appeared to the 3 children - Lucia and Francisco were told by the Blessed Mother that they would soon be in heaven.  Both children died of the Spanish flu and died in their childhood.  Jacinta would live into her 90’s.  She would be the one who would live long enough to tell the stories well into her adulthood.  She became a nun.  All 3 are buried together in the Basilica.  These are their tombs:

The basilica church depicts the decades of the rosary and is very beautiful.  Its seating is limited however and not nearly large enough to hold the throngs of people who visit Fatima every year.  A much larger, modern church was built recently (2009) to accommodate 9,000 pilgrims.  We visited it later in the day.

The newer church was very interesting.  The artist wanted to depict a scene of heaven in the mosaics.in the sanctuary.  Mary is depicted, as well as angels, saints, John the Baptist and there is even a depiction of a smaller number in hell (a theme of Fatima).  

The red colors depicting the gate opening up to heaven

The little blob of persons from hell (depicted as very different from the light 

colors of mosaics for those in heaven)

The depiction of Christ on the cross is both the living Christ and the dead Christ.

Prior to the visit to the basilica we visited the Fatima museum.  Here is housed the many gifts to Fatima including gifts of thanksgiving for the many miracles experienced here including (probably the most memorable) the bullet that pierced the side of St. John Paul II on May 13, 1981, the very day of one of the Fatima apparitions.  He credited the help of Our Lady of Fatima in his recovery and donated that bullet to the shrine.  It fit perfectly into the center of the crown and it now is housed in this museum and only used in the processions on the anniversary of the apparitions.  

Other items in the museum include a bicycle that an 80 some year old man from Germany rode from there to Fatima in thanksgiving for prayers answered, jewelry from Portuguese women in thanksgiving, many religious liturgical items and gifts from all over the world donated in thanksgiving for prayers answered. 

Many of our pilgrims will return again this evening to pray the rosary and some of our pilgrims will have the opportunity to lead a decade of the rosary (in English) for the thousands of pilgrims who will gather to pray and process tonight.