Precisely, on May 13, 1917, the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to three shepherd children in Fatima, Portugal with an urgent message for the whole world. Between May and October, she would come five more times, each on the 13th of the month.
She identified herself as Our Lady of the Rosary and encouraged the children to pray the rosary daily for peace in the world (as World War I raged on) and to make sacrifices for the conversion of sinners. Over the course of these visits, and various visits by an angel, there were five prayers that were taught to Lucia, Francisco, and Jacinta.
THE PARDON PRAYER
The angel who appeared to the children called himself the Angel of Peace and the Angel of Portugal. He gave them the following prayer:
My God, I believe, I adore, I hope and I love Thee! I ask pardon for those who do not believe, do not adore, do not hope and do not love Thee.
THE ANGEL’S PRAYER
On one occasion, the three children saw the angel bowed before a host and chalice that hung in the air. Worshiping the Eucharist, the angel prayed,
Most Holy Trinity – Father, Son and Holy Spirit- I adore Thee profoundly. I offer Thee the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ, present in all the tabernacles of the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges, and indifferences whereby He is offended. And through the infinite merits of His Most Sacred Heart and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I beg of Thee the conversion of poor sinners.
THE EUCHARISTIC PRAYER
During the first apparition of Our Lady of Fatima, the children found themselves “moved by an interior impulse,” as Lucia later described, to say the following prayer together:
Most Holy Trinity, I adore Thee! My God, my God, I love Thee in the Most Blessed Sacrament.
THE SACRIFICE PRAYER
The Blessed Mother taught the children to offer all their personal sacrifices to God by praying,
Oh my Jesus, I offer this for love of Thee, for the conversion of sinners, and in reparation for the sins committed against the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
THE ROSARY DECADE PRAYER
The Blessed Mother stressed the critical relevance of praying the rosary daily for the conversion of sinners and for peace in the world. She asked that the following prayer is recited at the end of each rosary decade:
Oh My Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of Hell, lead all souls to Heaven, particularly those in most need of Thy mercy.
May 13th is the feast day of Our Lady of Fatima. Many miracles and conversions have been attributed to her Immaculate Heart, and she went ahead to pray for sinners that all may come to know Christ’s mercy.
These Fatima prayers, given to Lucia, Francisco, and Jacinta by Our Lady and an angel, are a heavenly gift to the faithful to teach us how to intercede effectively for the unseen battle for souls that takes place around us daily. They should be memorized and prayed as we offer up sacrifices throughout our day for the conversion of sinners, and in reparation for the many sins committed against God.
