Jimmy Akin

Y’know how Sr. Lucia wrote on the envelope that contained the third secret that it wasn’t to be opened until 1960? Here’s the straight story on that:

Before giving the sealed envelope containing the third part of the “secret” to the then [1944] Bishop of Leiria-Fatima, Sister Lucia wrote on the outside envelope that it could be opened only after 1960, either by the Patriarch of Lisbon or the Bishop of Leiria. Archbishop Bertone therefore asked: “Why only after 1960? Was it Our Lady who fixed that date?” Sister Lucia replied: “It was not Our Lady. I fixed the date because I had the intuition that before 1960 it would not be understood, but that only later would it be understood. Now it can be better understood. I wrote down what I saw; however it was not for me to interpret it, but for the Pope [SOURCE: The Message of Fatima (Vatican doc.)].

The reason the Vatican had to ask Sr. Lucia to clarify this is that the apparition rumor-net had been circulating allegations that Mary herself had commanded that the message be "read to the world" by "1960 at the latest." (The apparition rumor-net is second only to the papal rumor-net in rumor generating capacity.) These allegations were then used to denounce John XXIII (pope in 1960) and every subsequent pope for not announcing the secret to the world "as Mary had commanded."

Now that we know the straight story, it serves as a good caution to all of us to CHECK OUR FACTS INSTEAD OF JUST REPEATING RUMORS!!! (Unfortunately, the advent of the blogosphere may not play the same fact-checking function for the apparition and papal rumor-nets as it does for the MSM.)

That being said, I had a few thoughts recently about why the third secret was best kept under wraps until 1960 (and even after):

1. The third secret was written down January 3, 1944, in the midst of World War II. Since the third secret contains a vision of a devastated city and a large number of people, including the pope, apparently being killed, if it had been released in 1944 it likely would have been interpreted as a prophecy of the events of World War II instead of the accurate interpretation of it as pertaining to the events of World War III (the Cold War). Indeed, Pius XII already thought that Hitler was going to have him kidnapped, and as we’ve recently learned Hitler did order the pope to be kidnapped (but the general didn’t carry out the order). If Pius had read it in 1944, he likely would have thought (incorrectly) that he would be martyred by Hitler.
2. Since Sr. Lucia already sensed that the third secret pertains to the part of the second secret where it is mentioned that "Russia will spread its errors," she deferred its opening to 1960, a date that she intuited needed to be reached for it to be properly understood. Indeed, by that time the Cold War was under way and the threat posed by Russia was well understood.
3. It’s even good that the message was not announced to the world at that time. If it had been it might have resulted in a self-fulfilling prophecy of a pope being killed (i.e., some nujob might have taken it into his nogging to off the pope and thus fulfill the third secret).
4. It’s also good that it wasn’t announced because the assassination attempt on John Paul II did not occur until May 13, 1981. If the secret had been known publicly beforehand then we would not be able as clearly to see this date as linking it to Fatima (May 13 was the first appearance of Our Lady of Fatima) since we wouldn’t be able to be sure that the would-be assassin (or his paymasters) didn’t know this and didn’t engineer it to occur on that date because of the third secret.
5. It’s even good that, though others had read the third secret previously, John Paul II had not read it before the assassination attempt. At first he did not see the connection between the May 13 assassination attempt and Fatima, but when he read the third secret afterwards, the scales fell from his eyes (figuratively!) and he credited Our Lady of Fatima with saving his life. This helped motivate him to perform the consecration of Russia (and, for good measure, the rest of the world) in 1984.

This consecration, coupled with John Paul II’s role in the end of the Cold War, may have averted a nuclear war that might otherwise have ben the terminus of the U.S.-Soviet conflict (note the third secret’s reference to a angel’s flaming sword about to set the world on fire but stopped by Mary’s intervention).

It’s interesting to observe that the secret of Fatima addressed each of the first three world wars:

• [Addressing World War I:] "If what I say to you is done, many souls will be saved and there will be peace. The war is going to end. . . . "
• [Addressing World War II:] " . . . but if people do not cease offending God, a worse one will break out during the Pontificate of Pius XI."
• [Addressing World War III:] "If my requests are heeded, Russia will be converted, and there will be peace; if not, she will spread her errors throughout the world, causing wars and persecutions of the Church."

Unfortunatley, it said nothing about World War IV (the War on Terror), which we are now in the midst of. We know this because in the wake of September 11th and the start of World War IV,

The content of the interview held between the Vatican representative and Sister Lucia in the convent of Coimbra, Portugal, where she resided, was made public by the Vatican press office on Dec. 20, 2001.

The text of the document states: "In recent months, especially following the sad events of the September 11 terrorist attacks, articles appeared in newspapers alleging new revelations by Sister Lucia, announcements of letters of warning to the Pope, and apocalyptic reinterpretations of the Fatima message."

"Moreover, emphasis was placed on the suspicion that the Holy See had not published the entire text of the third part of the secret, and some ‘Fatimist’ movements have repeated the accusation that the Holy Father has yet to consecrate Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary," the document continues.

As a result, the Vatican note clarifies, it was considered necessary that Archbishop Bertone go personally "to clarify and obtain direct information from the visionary."

The meeting was held in the presence of Father Luis Kondor, vice postulator of the cause of Blessed Francisco and Jacinta (the other Fatima visionaries), and of the prioress of St. Teresa’s Carmelite Convent.

The conversation took place on the afternoon of that Nov. 17 and lasted more than two hours. Sister Lucia, then 94, "was in great form — lucid and vivacious," the Vatican envoy said.

The meeting addressed the question of the third part of the secret of Fatima. The Portuguese religious said that she had read "carefully and meditated on the fascicle published by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and confirms everything that is written," the Vatican statement noted.

When the archbishop explained that there are doubts that part of the secret remains unknown, Sister Lucia replied: "Everything has been published; there are no more secrets."

"If I had received new revelations, I would not have communicated them to anyone, but I would have told them directly to the Holy Father," the religious added.

There was then talk about the statements of Nicholas Gruner, a Canadian priest suspended "a divinis," who is collecting signatures insisting that the Pope finally consecrate Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and alleging that this has never been done.

Sister Lucia told the archbishop: "The Carmel community has rejected the forms for the collection of signatures. I have already said that the consecration requested by Our Lady was done in 1984, and it has been accepted in heaven" [SOURCE.]

Take that, rumor-net!

READ MY PIECE ON THE THIRD SECRET.

READ THE VATICAN DOC ANNOUNCING THE THIRD SECRET.

Y’know how Sr. Lucia wrote on the envelope that contained the third secret that it wasn’t to be opened until 1960? Here’s the straight story on that:

Before giving the sealed envelope containing the third part of the “secret” to the then [1944] Bishop of Leiria-Fatima, Sister Lucia wrote on the outside envelope that it could be opened only after 1960, either by the Patriarch of Lisbon or the Bishop of Leiria. Archbishop Bertone therefore asked: “Why only after 1960? Was it Our Lady who fixed that date?” Sister Lucia replied: “It was not Our Lady. I fixed the date because I had the intuition that before 1960 it would not be understood, but that only later would it be understood. Now it can be better understood. I wrote down what I saw; however it was not for me to interpret it, but for the Pope [SOURCE: The Message of Fatima (Vatican doc.)].

The reason the Vatican had to ask Sr. Lucia to clarify this is that the apparition rumor-net had been circulating allegations that Mary herself had commanded that the message be "read to the world" by "1960 at the latest." (The apparition rumor-net is second only to the papal rumor-net in rumor generating capacity.) These allegations were then used to denounce John XXIII (pope in 1960) and every subsequent pope for not announcing the secret to the world "as Mary had commanded."

Now that we know the straight story, it serves as a good caution to all of us to CHECK OUR FACTS INSTEAD OF JUST REPEATING RUMORS!!! (Unfortunately, the advent of the blogosphere may not play the same fact-checking function for the apparition and papal rumor-nets as it does for the MSM.)

That being said, I had a few thoughts recently about why the third secret was best kept under wraps until 1960 (and even after):

1. The third secret was written down January 3, 1944, in the midst of World War II. Since the third secret contains a vision of a devastated city and a large number of people, including the pope, apparently being killed, if it had been released in 1944 it likely would have been interpreted as a prophecy of the events of World War II instead of the accurate interpretation of it as pertaining to the events of World War III (the Cold War). Indeed, Pius XII already thought that Hitler was going to have him kidnapped, and as we’ve recently learned Hitler did order the pope to be kidnapped (but the general didn’t carry out the order). If Pius had read it in 1944, he likely would have thought (incorrectly) that he would be martyred by Hitler.
2. Since Sr. Lucia already sensed that the third secret pertains to the part of the second secret where it is mentioned that "Russia will spread its errors," she deferred its opening to 1960, a date that she intuited needed to be reached for it to be properly understood. Indeed, by that time the Cold War was under way and the threat posed by Russia was well understood.
3. It’s even good that the message was not announced to the world at that time. If it had been it might have resulted in a self-fulfilling prophecy of a pope being killed (i.e., some nujob might have taken it into his nogging to off the pope and thus fulfill the third secret).
4. It’s also good that it wasn’t announced because the assassination attempt on John Paul II did not occur until May 13, 1981. If the secret had been known publicly beforehand then we would not be able as clearly to see this date as linking it to Fatima (May 13 was the first appearance of Our Lady of Fatima) since we wouldn’t be able to be sure that the would-be assassin (or his paymasters) didn’t know this and didn’t engineer it to occur on that date because of the third secret.
5. It’s even good that, though others had read the third secret previously, John Paul II had not read it before the assassination attempt. At first he did not see the connection between the May 13 assassination attempt and Fatima, but when he read the third secret afterwards, the scales fell from his eyes (figuratively!) and he credited Our Lady of Fatima with saving his life. This helped motivate him to perform the consecration of Russia (and, for good measure, the rest of the world) in 1984.

This consecration, coupled with John Paul II’s role in the end of the Cold War, may have averted a nuclear war that might otherwise have ben the terminus of the U.S.-Soviet conflict (note the third secret’s reference to a angel’s flaming sword about to set the world on fire but stopped by Mary’s intervention).

It’s interesting to observe that the secret of Fatima addressed each of the first three world wars:

• [Addressing World War I:] "If what I say to you is done, many souls will be saved and there will be peace. The war is going to end. . . . "
• [Addressing World War II:] " . . . but if people do not cease offending God, a worse one will break out during the Pontificate of Pius XI."
• [Addressing World War III:] "If my requests are heeded, Russia will be converted, and there will be peace; if not, she will spread her errors throughout the world, causing wars and persecutions of the Church."

Unfortunatley, it said nothing about World War IV (the War on Terror), which we are now in the midst of. We know this because in the wake of September 11th and the start of World War IV,

The content of the interview held between the Vatican representative and Sister Lucia in the convent of Coimbra, Portugal, where she resided, was made public by the Vatican press office on Dec. 20, 2001.

The text of the document states: "In recent months, especially following the sad events of the September 11 terrorist attacks, articles appeared in newspapers alleging new revelations by Sister Lucia, announcements of letters of warning to the Pope, and apocalyptic reinterpretations of the Fatima message."

"Moreover, emphasis was placed on the suspicion that the Holy See had not published the entire text of the third part of the secret, and some ‘Fatimist’ movements have repeated the accusation that the Holy Father has yet to consecrate Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary," the document continues.

As a result, the Vatican note clarifies, it was considered necessary that Archbishop Bertone go personally "to clarify and obtain direct information from the visionary."

The meeting was held in the presence of Father Luis Kondor, vice postulator of the cause of Blessed Francisco and Jacinta (the other Fatima visionaries), and of the prioress of St. Teresa’s Carmelite Convent.

The conversation took place on the afternoon of that Nov. 17 and lasted more than two hours. Sister Lucia, then 94, "was in great form — lucid and vivacious," the Vatican envoy said.

The meeting addressed the question of the third part of the secret of Fatima. The Portuguese religious said that she had read "carefully and meditated on the fascicle published by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and confirms everything that is written," the Vatican statement noted.

When the archbishop explained that there are doubts that part of the secret remains unknown, Sister Lucia replied: "Everything has been published; there are no more secrets."

"If I had received new revelations, I would not have communicated them to anyone, but I would have told them directly to the Holy Father," the religious added.

There was then talk about the statements of Nicholas Gruner, a Canadian priest suspended "a divinis," who is collecting signatures insisting that the Pope finally consecrate Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and alleging that this has never been done.

Sister Lucia told the archbishop: "The Carmel community has rejected the forms for the collection of signatures. I have already said that the consecration requested by Our Lady was done in 1984, and it has been accepted in heaven" [SOURCE.]

Take that, rumor-net!

READ MY PIECE ON THE THIRD SECRET.

READ THE VATICAN DOC ANNOUNCING THE THIRD SECRET.