THE STATUE OF BLESSED VIRGIN MARY IS MOVED FROM FATIMA TO VISIT ROME!
This morning, a press conference was held in the Holy See Press
Office to present the key event of the Year of Faith, the Marian Day,
which is scheduled to take place in Rome on 12 and 13 October. The
speakers at the conference were Archbishop Rino Fisichella, Bishop Jose
Octavio Ruiz Arena, and Msgr. Graham Bell, respectively president,
secretary and under-secretary of the Pontifical Council for Promoting
the New Evangelisation.
In his
address, Archbishop Fisichella, stated that at the beginning of the Year
of Faith it was decided that it would be fundamental to retrace the
history of our faith, and for this reason Benedict XVI placed in the
foreground the figure of Mary, who represents for believers the first
response of complete and total faith, in which we fully abandon
ourselves to God. Therefore, on Saturday 12 October the original statue
of Our Lady of Fatima will arrive in Rome, and will return to Fatima on
Sunday evening. The archbishop emphasised the importance of this event,
recalling that "the statue never leaves the shrine, except in the case
of entirely exceptional and extraordinary events. The last time was
during the Great Jubilee of the year 2000 when, on 13 May, Blessed John
Paul II carried out the act of consecration to the Virgin. ... The date
of 13 October has been chosen as it recalls the final appearance of the
Virgin to the three shepherd children in 1917".
As
is traditional in these events, on Saturday morning there will be a
pilgrimage to the Tomb of Peter and in the afternoon, Pope Francis'
catechesis. In the afternoon St. Peter's Square will open to pilgrims at
2.30 p.m. At 3 p.m. there will be a moment of reflection, and at 4 p.m.
the procession of the Virgin around the square will begin. In
accordance with tradition, pilgrims are asked to wave with white
handkerchiefs as the statue of the Virgin of Fatima passes. At 5 p.m.
the Holy Father will greet the statue of the Virgin in front of the
Basilica. Following a moment of prayer in St. Peter's Square, the statue
will be transported to the Santuario del Divino Amore, where an
all-night prayer vigil will take place. On Sunday morning, the Virgin
will return to the Vatican where the procession across St. Peter's
Square will be repeated at 9.30 a.m., followed by Holy Mass celebrated
by Pope Francis. Finally, the Pope will carry out the act of
consecration to the Virgin and will pray the Angelus with the pilgrims
present.
It is expected that
over 150,000 pilgrims from all over the world will participate, with
international representations from 48 countries.