Fatima Prayer
Encyclopedia
Jesus Prayer
The Jesus Prayer or "The Prayer" is a short, formulaic prayer esteemed and advocated within the Eastern Orthodox church:The prayer has been widely taught and discussed throughout the history of the Eastern Churches. It is often repeated continually as a part of personal ascetic practice, its use...
used by Catholics. It, along with four other "Fátima prayers", originated during the Marian apparitions
Our Lady of Fatima
Our Lady of Fátima is a famous title given to the Blessed Virgin Mary as she appeared in apparitions reported by three shepherd children at Fátima in Portugal. These occurred on the 13th day of six consecutive months in 1917, starting on May 13...
at Fátima, Portugal
Fátima, Portugal
Fátima is a city in Portugal famous for the Marian apparitions, recognized by the Catholic Church, that took place there in 1917. The town itself has a population of 7,756 and is located in the municipality of Ourém, in the Centro Region and Médio Tejo Subregion...
in 1917. The Decade Prayer, as the most commonly said of these five prayers is known, is commonly added at the end of each decade of the Dominican Rosary
Rosary
The rosary or "garland of roses" is a traditional Catholic devotion. The term denotes the prayer beads used to count the series of prayers that make up the rosary...
, one of the most popular devotional practices in Roman Catholicism. Two other prayers are also associated with the visions and may be classed as Fátima Prayers, however they did not come to existence in Fátima but in Spain many years later. This brings the number of prayers to seven.
The Decade Prayer
While not part of the original tradition of the RosaryRosary
The rosary or "garland of roses" is a traditional Catholic devotion. The term denotes the prayer beads used to count the series of prayers that make up the rosary...
or in the original text of the vulgate
Vulgate
The Vulgate is a late 4th-century Latin translation of the Bible. It was largely the work of St. Jerome, who was commissioned by Pope Damasus I in 382 to make a revision of the old Latin translations...
, many Roman Catholics choose to add it after the Glory Be to the Father
Glory Be to the Father
Gloria Patri, also known as Glory Be to the Father’ , is a doxology, a short hymn of praise to God in various Christian liturgies...
after the Blessed Virgin Mary was said to have requested its use during her apparition at Fátima
Our Lady of Fatima
Our Lady of Fátima is a famous title given to the Blessed Virgin Mary as she appeared in apparitions reported by three shepherd children at Fátima in Portugal. These occurred on the 13th day of six consecutive months in 1917, starting on May 13...
, a miracle
Miracle
A miracle often denotes an event attributed to divine intervention. Alternatively, it may be an event attributed to a miracle worker, saint, or religious leader. A miracle is sometimes thought of as a perceptible interruption of the laws of nature. Others suggest that a god may work with the laws...
deemed "worthy of belief" by the Church. The following text of the prayer appears first in Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
and then in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
.
- "O mi Iesu, dimitte nobis debita nostra, libera nos ab igne inferni, conduc in caelum omnes animas, praesertim illas quae maxime indigent misericordia tua. Amen."
- "O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hellHellIn many religious traditions, a hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hells as endless. Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations...
, lead all souls to HeavenHeavenHeaven, the Heavens or Seven Heavens, is a common religious cosmological or metaphysical term for the physical or transcendent place from which heavenly beings originate, are enthroned or inhabit...
, especially those in most need of Thy mercy. AmenAmenThe word amen is a declaration of affirmation found in the Hebrew Bible and New Testament. Its use in Judaism dates back to its earliest texts. It has been generally adopted in Christian worship as a concluding word for prayers and hymns. In Islam, it is the standard ending to Dua and the...
."
Here is a Portuguese
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
version:
- "Ó meu bom Jesus perdoai e livrai-nos do fogo do inferno, levai as almas todas para o céu e socorrei as que mais precisarem de vossa infinita misericordia."
According to the book Our Lady of Fátima by William Thomas Walsh (Macmillan, 1947), in an interview with the author Sr. Lucia states that, “The correct form is the one I have written in my account of the apparition of July 13: ‘O my Jesus, pardon us, and save us from the fire of hell; draw all souls to heaven, especially those most in need.’” Note that this version does not have the commonly-added phrase “of thy mercy” to the end of it.
It also gives the original Portuguese in a footnote: “Ó meu Jesus, perdoai-nos e livrai nos do fogo do inferno; levai as alminhas todas para o Céu, principalmente aquelas que mais precisarem.”
Other Fátima Prayers
The less commonly said "Fátima Prayers" include the Pardon Prayer, the Angel's Prayer, the Eucharistic Prayer and the Sacrifice Prayer which the seers said they learned from the heavenly personages of their visitations. Sister Lucia said another two prayers were given to her in 1931 in a vision of Jesus Christ. These two are known as the Conversion Prayer and the Salvation Prayer and are often classed as Fátima prayers.The Pardon Prayer
The seers said this prayer was taught to them in the initial Fátima apparition in the spring of 1916, by an angelAngel
Angels are mythical beings often depicted as messengers of God in the Hebrew and Christian Bibles along with the Quran. The English word angel is derived from the Greek ἄγγελος, a translation of in the Hebrew Bible ; a similar term, ملائكة , is used in the Qur'an...
who called himself "the Guardian Angel of Portugal".
- My God, I believe, I adore, I trust and I love Thee! I beg pardon for all those that do not believe, do not adore, do not trust and do not love Thee.
The Angel's Prayer
In the autumn of that year, according to Lucia, she and her cousins saw the same angel again, and he taught them a second prayer. At the same time they beheld a vision of the Blessed SacramentBlessed Sacrament
The Blessed Sacrament, or the Body and Blood of Christ, is a devotional name used in the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Catholic Churches, Old Catholic, Anglican, and Lutheran churches, to refer to the Host after it has been consecrated in the sacrament of the Eucharist...
suspended in the air before which the Angel prostrated himself and prayed:
- O Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy SpiritHoly SpiritHoly Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of the Hebrew Bible, but understood differently in the main Abrahamic religions.While the general concept of a "Spirit" that permeates the cosmos has been used in various religions Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of...
, I adoreAdorationAdoration is love given with deep affection. The term comes from the Latin adōrātiō, meaning "to give homage or worship to someone or something."-Ancient Middle East:...
Thee profoundly. I offer Thee the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ present in all the tabernaclesChurch tabernacleA tabernacle is the fixed, locked box in which, in some Christian churches, the Eucharist is "reserved" . A less obvious container, set into the wall, is called an aumbry....
of the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrilegesSacrilegeSacrilege is the violation or injurious treatment of a sacred object. In a less proper sense, any transgression against the virtue of religion would be a sacrilege. It can come in the form of irreverence to sacred persons, places, and things...
and indifferences by which He is offended. By the infinite merits of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of MaryImmaculate Heart of MaryThe Immaculate Heart of Mary originally The Sacred Heart of Mary is a devotional name used to refer to the interior life of Mary, her joys and sorrows, her virtues and hidden perfections, and, above all, her virginal love for God, her maternal love for her Son, Jesus, and her compassionate love for...
I beg the conversionReligious conversionReligious conversion is the adoption of a new religion that differs from the convert's previous religion. Changing from one denomination to another within the same religion is usually described as reaffiliation rather than conversion.People convert to a different religion for various reasons,...
of poor sinners.
The Angel's Prayer is an Act of Reparation to The Holy Trinity.
The Eucharistic Prayer
On May 13, 1917, the three children saw a woman clad in radiant white, whom they later realized was the Virgin Mary. Her primary message at first was the importance of praying the RosaryRosary
The rosary or "garland of roses" is a traditional Catholic devotion. The term denotes the prayer beads used to count the series of prayers that make up the rosary...
. She also asked the children if they would be willing to offer sacrifices in reparation for the sins of the world, and they agreed; she then said "You will have much to suffer, but the grace of God will be your comfort." When she said "the grace of God" she held out her hands and the children experienced a great light surrounding and penetrating them. Without thinking about it, they found themselves saying these words:
- Most Holy Trinity, I adore you! My God, my God, I love you in the Most Blessed SacramentBlessed SacramentThe Blessed Sacrament, or the Body and Blood of Christ, is a devotional name used in the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Catholic Churches, Old Catholic, Anglican, and Lutheran churches, to refer to the Host after it has been consecrated in the sacrament of the Eucharist...
.
Lucia later wrote that they were "moved by an interior impulse", as she was at the October 13, 1917 vision where she was heard calling "Look at the sun!"
The Sacrifice Prayer
On the 13th of June of that year, the seers said the "lady from heaven" appeared again and taught them two more prayers, the Decade Prayer and the Sacrifice Prayer. This second prayer was to be said when offering up an action or some suffering in a spirit of SacrificeSacrifice
Sacrifice is the offering of food, objects or the lives of animals or people to God or the gods as an act of propitiation or worship.While sacrifice often implies ritual killing, the term offering can be used for bloodless sacrifices of cereal food or artifacts...
.
- O JesusJesusJesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
, it is for the love of You, in reparation for the offences committed against the Immaculate Heart of MaryImmaculate Heart of MaryThe Immaculate Heart of Mary originally The Sacred Heart of Mary is a devotional name used to refer to the interior life of Mary, her joys and sorrows, her virtues and hidden perfections, and, above all, her virginal love for God, her maternal love for her Son, Jesus, and her compassionate love for...
, and for the conversion of poor sinners [Some add here "that I pray/do this"].
William Thomas Walsh said Lucia told him the words as follows: "O Jesus, it is for your love, for the conversion of sinners, and in reparation for sins committed against the Immaculate Heart of Mary."
This prayer, spoken sincerely, effectively allows any hardship, illness or pain in one's life to be offered as Acts of Reparation
Acts of reparation
In the Roman Catholic tradition, an Act of Reparation is a prayer or devotion with the intent to repair the "sins of others", e.g. for the repair of the sin of blasphemy, the sufferings of Jesus Christ or as Acts of Reparation to the Virgin Mary...
.
The Conversion and Salvation Prayers
The final two prayers were taught to the last of the living seers, Lucia, as her two companions had since died. In 1931 she had a vision in RianxoRianxo
Rianxo is a port town in Galicia, Spain, in the Province of A Coruña. It has a population of a little over 11,000 and its two main industries are fishing and tourism. The town's yearly celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe is popular with tourists. Rianxo was the birthplace of several influential...
, Spain, where she met Christ. He asked her to pray for the Conversion
Religious conversion
Religious conversion is the adoption of a new religion that differs from the convert's previous religion. Changing from one denomination to another within the same religion is usually described as reaffiliation rather than conversion.People convert to a different religion for various reasons,...
and Salvation
Salvation
Within religion salvation is the phenomenon of being saved from the undesirable condition of bondage or suffering experienced by the psyche or soul that has arisen as a result of unskillful or immoral actions generically referred to as sins. Salvation may also be called "deliverance" or...
of the world
World
World is a common name for the whole of human civilization, specifically human experience, history, or the human condition in general, worldwide, i.e. anywhere on Earth....
through the Heart of Mary
Immaculate Heart of Mary
The Immaculate Heart of Mary originally The Sacred Heart of Mary is a devotional name used to refer to the interior life of Mary, her joys and sorrows, her virtues and hidden perfections, and, above all, her virginal love for God, her maternal love for her Son, Jesus, and her compassionate love for...
, His Mother.
- By your pure and Immaculate ConceptionImmaculate ConceptionThe Immaculate Conception of Mary is a dogma of the Roman Catholic Church, according to which the Virgin Mary was conceived without any stain of original sin. It is one of the four dogmata in Roman Catholic Mariology...
, O Mary, obtain the conversion of RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, SpainSpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, PortugalPortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, EuropeEuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and the whole world!
- Sweet Heart of MaryImmaculate Heart of MaryThe Immaculate Heart of Mary originally The Sacred Heart of Mary is a devotional name used to refer to the interior life of Mary, her joys and sorrows, her virtues and hidden perfections, and, above all, her virginal love for God, her maternal love for her Son, Jesus, and her compassionate love for...
, be the salvation of Russia, Spain, Portugal, Europe and the whole world.
The Eucharistic Prayer and the Pardon Prayer are often used as ejaculatory
Ejaculation (grammar)
In grammar, an ejaculation is an utterance that expresses a feeling outside of the normal language structure. Often, but not always, it is an exclamation, most often consisting of a single word, either an interjection or a profanity or both.Examples:...
prayers which are quite common in Catholic tradition. A visiting Jesuit priest, Father Cruz, also taught the children to say brief prayers; "Jesus, I love you" or "Immaculate Heart of Mary, save the poor sinners". According to Lucia, Jacinta immediately set these prayers to music and could be heard singing them throughout the day.
Other Prayers and Practices related to the Visions
These prayers were not the only devotions which arose from the visions of Fátima. Lucia said that Mary called for a series of devotions, including the Five SaturdaysFirst Saturday Devotions
The First Saturdays Devotion is a Catholic practice which, according to the visionaries, has been requested by the Virgin Mary in several visitations, notably Our Lady of Fátima and the subsequent Pontevedra apparitions...
, frequent recitation of the Rosary
Rosary
The rosary or "garland of roses" is a traditional Catholic devotion. The term denotes the prayer beads used to count the series of prayers that make up the rosary...
, and prayers for the conversion of Russia
Consecration of Russia
The Consecration of Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary is a belief in the Roman Catholic Church that a specific act of consecration on the part of the Pope has been required by the Virgin Mary in return for which there would be world peace....
-- at the time viewed by the Church as a godless, Communist nation.
This spurred the creation of an organization known as the Blue Army of Our Lady of Fátima
Blue Army of Our Lady of Fatima
The Blue Army of Our Lady of Fátima is a public international association of the Christian faithful that has as its general purpose "the promotion of the authentic teaching of the Roman Catholic Church and the strict adherence to the tenets of the Gospel; the personal sanctification of adherents...
, dedicated to carrying out the requests of Our Lady of Fátima
Our Lady of Fatima
Our Lady of Fátima is a famous title given to the Blessed Virgin Mary as she appeared in apparitions reported by three shepherd children at Fátima in Portugal. These occurred on the 13th day of six consecutive months in 1917, starting on May 13...
, as well as promotion of the Brown Scapular.
Further reading
- Our Lady of FátimaOur Lady of FatimaOur Lady of Fátima is a famous title given to the Blessed Virgin Mary as she appeared in apparitions reported by three shepherd children at Fátima in Portugal. These occurred on the 13th day of six consecutive months in 1917, starting on May 13...
- Three Secrets of FátimaThree Secrets of FatimaThe Three Secrets of Fátima consist of a series of visions and prophecies given by an apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary to three young Portuguese shepherds, Lúcia Santos and her cousins Jacinta and Francisco Marto, starting on 13 May 1917. The three children claimed to have been visited by a...
- Consecration of Fátima
- Blue Army of Our Lady of FátimaBlue Army of Our Lady of FatimaThe Blue Army of Our Lady of Fátima is a public international association of the Christian faithful that has as its general purpose "the promotion of the authentic teaching of the Roman Catholic Church and the strict adherence to the tenets of the Gospel; the personal sanctification of adherents...
- Marian apparition
- Catholic devotionsCatholic devotionsA Roman Catholic devotion is a gift of oneself, or one's activities to God. It is a willingness and desire to dedicate oneself to serve God; either in terms of prayers or in terms of a set of pious acts such as the adoration of God or the veneration of the saints or the Virgin Mary.Roman Catholic...