Mary's Love

Note:  After a week of vain attempts to send a slice of daily bread, Eurika...in Rome, I have finally succeeded in typing without losing a word after hitting the space bar.  I don´t know what happened to my I Pad, but until I got "on board" with this PC, I have been frustrated and disappointed.  Let me now share my joy with you all.

Three days at Fatima overlapping the Vigil on October 12th and the International Mass on the 13th, assured me of Mary´s unending love for all of us.  The little Cove where Mary appeared in 1917 has become a splendid shrine dominated by an imposing basilica, an underground museum and series of chapels, a huge square,  and a second modern church seating 8,600.  The original chapel constructed after the apparitions is still there and the location of the bush on which Mary appeared is marked by a marble pillar on which stands the revered statue of Our Lady of Fatima with a crown in which the bullet that nearly killed St. John Paul II is encased.  Pilgrims pray on their knees, sing, an honor Mary´s request by praying the Rosary.  Whatever the village of Fatima was 99 years ago, it has now become a welcoming city with hotels, restaurants and religious goods stores to accommodate the thousands who come each year.  As at Lourdes and Medjugorje, the local economy has benefited from Mary´s presence and the faith of her followers.
But over and above these material things, her plea for prayer, penance and a more complete adherence to the teachings of Jesus and the loving compassion with which she has repeated her request over the centuries is the most compelling justification for Fatima and the other major centers of Marian devotion.  Her love for us is so great that she tries with loving patience to help us "get it."  Few have tried harder than Pope St. John Paul II and now Pope Francis.  May we, in the best way we can, begin today to put our faith into practice, live it publicly as well as privately and let the world know that our only help, hope and happiness are in God.
Bro. Rene