May 13, 2025

In the year before the Virgin Mary appeared at Fatima, three young shepherds—Lucia, Francisco, and Jacinta—were visited by an angel who called himself the “Angel of Peace.” These visits were a kind of spiritual preparation, gently guiding the children toward the extraordinary mission they would soon receive.

During the first encounter, the angel taught them a simple but powerful prayer of faith, adoration, hope, and love, urging them to seek God’s mercy for those who do not believe or adore Him. In another visit, he spoke about the value of sacrifice, encouraging the children to offer their daily sufferings for the conversion of sinners. The final visit was deeply Eucharistic: the angel appeared with a chalice and host, and taught them a prayer offering the Body and Blood of Jesus to the Father in reparation for sin. He even gave them Holy Communion—an astonishing moment that revealed just how central the Eucharist was to the message they were being entrusted with.

When Mary appeared to them between May and October 1917, she repeatedly pointed them—and through them, the world—toward her Son, especially in the Eucharist. She called for daily prayer, penance, and acts of reparation. Her maternal plea was clear: console the Heart of Jesus, especially in the Blessed Sacrament.

Later, Pope St. Paul VI would call Fatima “the altar of the world,” a striking phrase that captures its deep connection to Eucharistic worship and prayer for the world. Even today, countless pilgrims travel to Fatima to attend Mass and adore the Blessed Sacrament, joining their prayers and sacrifices to Christ’s own offering.

The heart of the Fatima message remains profoundly Eucharistic. It’s a call to rediscover the Real Presence of Jesus, to offer our lives in reparation and intercession, and to center everything on the altar—where Heaven touches Earth.