I have rarely paid much attention to the apparitions in Fatima or in other places, but a recent conversation with a devoted priest and Fatima’s upcoming centennial has gotten me reconsidering some of the things said there by the Blessed Virgin. The transcription of her discourse on war by Sr. Lucia is of particular interest to many Fatima devotees:
If what I say to you is done, many souls will be saved and there will be peace. The [First World] war is going to end; if people do not cease offending God, a worse one will break out during the pontificate of Pius XI.... In the end, my Immaculate Heart will triumph. The Holy Father will consecrate Russia to me, and she will be converted, and a period of peace will be granted to the world.The “period of peace” has been interpreted many ways, some reaching absurd heights. Even though the context clearly refers to peace in terms of a rest from war and military aggression, many interpret it as a worldwide conversion of men to the True Faith. “So, the period of peace to be given to mankind can only mean the peace of Christ reigning in the hearts of men,” says one commentator.
This borders on the ancient error of Millenarianism or Chiliasm, which posited that Christ would return bodily to earth and reign gloriously but carnally from Jerusalem for one thousand years before the Resurrection and Final Judgment. While the Fatimite Millennials do not say that the Second Coming will come before the “period of peace,” some of them argue for the rise of the Great Catholic Monarch who will rule over this period. This monarch is a French figure predicted by a few saints, but never given much credence by Church authorities.
It is more reasonable to think that the prophesied “period of peace” will be a more worldly kind of peace: a cessation from war but probably without a revival of anything resembling Christendom. Russia will be converted—supposedly to the Catholic Faith, and not to Russian Orthodoxy—which will certainly be a miracle all of its own.
Will this actually happen? Is Fatima only a private revelation that can be ignored? Did the popes heavily edit all of the three shepherd children’s messages so that we don’t really know what all Mary said? Oh, these are all questions far above my paygrade.
I would, however, enjoy having an excuse to be rid of the “Oh my Jesus” prayer at the end of every Rosary decade. The church ladies are unable to pray it aloud without infusing the opening phrase with as much emotion as their mantilla-draped hearts can muster. (The Portuguese original begins with “Ó meu bom Jesus,” but the official Latin text starts with “Domine Iesu,” stripping out some of the latent sentimentality. Let’s fix the English according to the textum Latinum!) However, as long as I accept the longstanding tradition that the Second Eve bestowed the Rosary to the Church by means of a private revelation, I suppose must accept her right to amend it by the same means 700 years later.
 |
| St. Dominic, do your thing! |
Query: You state the "official" Latin text. Where did you find this official Latin text and what is the evidence of its officialness? I supposed that there may have been some response from Apostolic Penitentiary in the first half of the 20th century written in Latin responding to questions about indulgences and the rosary and the adding of that particular Fatima prayer; that seemed to me to be the closest that to "official" after I had searched more generally. I looked, but I did not find such text in the time that I had, and I have since given up on an official version, but I would be pleased to be corrected.
ReplyDeleteI never found one, since the prayer was originally in Portuguese. But, the version I pray starts “O mi Iesu.”
DeleteAlso, I think the text simply lends itself to a heavy accent on the opening....
I think you're right that there's no official Latin text. I have seen the Latin version referenced above in a few prayer books, and assumed it was official, but apparently there are a couple of different Latin translations out there. All the more reason to make an official translation that strips out some of the sappiness.
DeletePeople have been reciting the existing translation for so long, though, that most would resent any attempt to substitute a new one - especially in our age when so many other changes have been thrust at them.
DeleteI do not know of any universal Latin version either, but the original Portuguese is given here by Br. Alexis Bugnolo.
DeleteO meu Jesus, perdoai-nos e livrai-nos do fogo do inferno, levai as alminhas
todas para o Ceu, principalmente aquelas que mais precisarem.
http://www.holyromancatholicchurch.org/articles/FatimaPrayer.htm
He (going more than a little overboard IMHO) makes a big deal over the differences between the prayer as commonly said and as originally written. Nevertheless, the prayer begins with "O meu Jesus" in either case. Any Latin translation faithful to the original would have to start with "O mi Jesu."
Maybe worry less about what grannies do, and realize you don't have to do whatever you think the grannies are doing these days.
I've always been both somewhat interested and somewhat put off by Fatima. The whole message as mediated through publications like the late Father Gruner's " Fatima Crusader" come off to me as chiliastic, apocalyptic and cut from the same cloth as a Hal Lindsay book or the hysterics of a tent revival, only with an almost exclusively Marian focus.
ReplyDeleteFatima seems to be about this world, not the next, and about the Theotokos and not the Son. It's also bound up with a devotion that us Easterners do not pray ( the rosary). I also find the concept of making reparation to the Mother a bit off kilter. I've heard it explained many times but it seems just..off.
That being said there's something chilling and fascinating about Fatima,the message, the secret and this alledged cover up. I've read almost everything about it over the years and while I'm not a devotee or a champion of Fatima I do find it interesting. The " official" third secret put out in two thousand is chillingly like something ISIS could do in the Eternal City.
It's also an approved apparition, so it cannot be entirely dismissed. I still struggle intensely with feeling comfortable with anything more than reading about it.
I'm also surprised nobody else seems put off by the chiliastic exegesis that comes from so many Fatima devotees. I don't even see any reason to tie the Fatima prophecies into the eschaton, for that matter. Mary is warning us that God is ready to punish the world for its sins, a message that has always been true, and indeed God did punish us with a series of terrible wars.
DeleteThe importance of the consecration of Russia might be exaggerated by the Fatimaniacs, but it's such a simple and easy thing to do that I have to wonder why the Vatican has been dragging its feet about wrapping that up. Just get it done, and shut everybody up.
I know the fellow who was Sr. Lucia's english translator. According to him she believed that the Consecration had been done. But then, she was also in favour of the Novus Ordo, so her judgements are what they are.
DeleteAs for me, I'm not bothered by this whole consecration business and it annoys me to no end when I hear trads speaking as if it would cure all that ails the world. Personally, I believe that urgency of the consecration of Russia had to do with the rising of the Communist state. Also, Portugal was consecrated to the Immaculate Heart several times and that has not impeded the Portuguese from following the rest of Europe on its suicidal mission.
I too am leery of "Fatimania" among trads (and others), and I generally have a skepticism about "private revelations." And like JD I am suspicious of an independent over-emphasis of our Blessed Mother that does not point explicitly to the Lord Christ.
ReplyDelete("Revelations" that say something to the effect of, "say X number of prayers to Our Lady, or she will no longer be able to hold back Christ's crushing us in his divine wrath" are a particular pet peeve and seem to have absolutely nothing to do with our true catholic and apostolic faith.)
Also, the very important point was made on this blog before about how unfortunately too many people get obsessed with silly and borderline superstitious devotions based on such apparitions, while our liturgy and worship (e.g., communal Evensong in choir) sadly fall by the wayside. Glad I'm not the only Catholic who feels this way.
However, regarding the "O my Jesus" prayer, J. doth protest too much, methinks. Lord knows any prayer that prays for those in most need of His mercy (which is too often ourselves), not to mention a prayer that acknowledges the fires of Hell, is needed as much as ever today.
The content of the decade prayer—we're all heading to Hell, and we all need grace to escape it—is fine. I just get twitchy when the church ladies get all sappy with that opening phrase.
DeleteI've only experienced a little bit of Fatimania first hand, although I did get to hear a few very serious sermons about why we ought to take Fatima very seriously a year or two ago. The miracle of the sun is enough to make me perk up and pay attention. I certainly wouldn't judge an apparition like this by the excesses of some of its promoters. This isn't a New Gospel or anything like that, just a warning that God is displeased with the world. Nothing new there.
I think the personalization comes across as sappy given the environment of early 20th century Catholicism but the prayer itself is objectively fine. St Philip Neri used to say things like "Oh my Jesus be a Jesus to me" and similar ejaculatory prayers.
DeleteRad Trad, what happens to the many people who asked Mary for help? They received and lived a blessed life. What happened to the children who presumably had a encounter with Mary and were presumably not deceived by the devil? They had a severe depression and wanted to die and "go play with Mary" in Heaven.
ReplyDeleteThis sums up who it was that they were really talking to, signs all. The pope of the time had many attempts to diminish the event, then let it pass, all the time lacked strength is denouncing it.
What about the prophets who claim they are such?(I'm thinking St. Therese of Lisieux and since I'm Orthodox so let's be fair, I'll pick the Russian kid of today also who claims to have prophetic powers) What is the sign that all the Apostles did, following Christ? They performed miracles - aka heal. Call any of these prophets to heal someone obviously sick, without the possibility of messing around with medical analysis in cases of cancer for example. If Christ wants these prophets He will send them the gift of healing. If not it's best to advise anyone you meet not to believe and not to take their trinkets and superstitions because they come from another place, not Heaven.
May God keep you safe!
Maria, I think that if you look at the prophets in the scriptures, you will find that they are frequently depressed and often perform no miracles, much less miracles of healing. Maybe the prophetic gifts are more sanguine and wonder-working in Mother Russia, but I would remind our readers that "a wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign."
DeleteSorry, double post. And look at all the promises made at Fatima, the ones towards the priests. How much success was Catholicism promised under Rome? And how much success happened til 19th century to today? How secularized and apostasia-ed is society and how many churches are being torn to pieces in countries known as Catholic by communities for economical reasons? Over 50 churches transformed in shops in Berlin alone!
ReplyDeleteIs that success? And those who will see they were deceived will mostly get angry at God and Jesus, why didn't they help them through when they weren't even looking at Him, proud in their hearts with the attention they received face all lit in tears, give up Christ, complete apostasia and then the sad conclusion.
God forgive us!
Even king David was afraid of God and did not believe he shall receive the Ark of the Lord, even Elisabeth, mother of St. John the Baptist, the second most important birth of all time after Christ, did not believe the attention she received, and all of these people just leap forward and make a fuss and a show, write books, sing songs, show new secret prayers, the younger the more sinless and worthy they feel for the attention. The devil preys on the weak in spirit, it's true, we must not envy or hate these people, but the deception can still be called out, clearly, loudly, for those who may still wake up.
What's the down point miracle pilgrims feel in those places? They feel protected, they feel watched over, do they also feel chased? Because that would be the case, because that's what's happening to these poor souls. I suggest we go back to hunting instead of worshiping beasts for ecology so we can tell a hunt when it's being done, the methods of luring are the same in all hunts.
One only hears the dogs when it's too late. Is it too late? It's not because the show of magic and light is still big. Under the prophecy of the Apocalypse lucipher will be bound to be fair until the one day when he will be set loose, the horrible day. If we can still see the deception, is not that day.
Now lecture us about St. Francis the Antichrist please.
DeleteWhat are you talking about????
DeleteAlso, don't you think that you are being to hard on chiliasts? Even though it is not a popular theory these days, it was believed by many eminent writers in the early Church and has never been dogmatically condemned as far as I know.
ReplyDeleteFeel free to make the case for Chiliasm, if you like. I always considered its heyday a brief but embarrassing episode of the early Church, but I haven't given it much thought beyond that.
Delete