In 1917, towards the end of World War I, Mary (the Mother of God) appeared to three shepherd children (including the future Sr. Lucia) in the small town of Fatima, Portugal to speak of God’s honor, the Rosary, the state of the Church, the state of Communism that was coming and heaven and hell.
There were three secrets that had to do with:
1. A vision of souls in hell.
2. The Immaculate Heart of Mary and the annihilation of nations.
3. “In Portugal, the dogma of the faith will always be preserved, etc.”
That third secret was written down by Sr. Lucia later in her convent. Many people have asked for decades: What does “etc.” refer to? Does this mean the Catholic faith would be lost in the hearts and minds of all Catholics across the globe except for Portugal? If so, why does Portugal, over 100 years after Fatima, have the same abysmal rates of Mass-attending Catholics as the rest of Europe?
Sr. Lucia never made a public statement on what “etc.” referred to, but the nuns in the convent, where she lived for decades, claimed to know what was meant by it. They say she was referring to a conditional statement from Our Lady, namely, that, in summary: The dogma of the faith will always be preserved in Portugal only if abortion is not legalized.
Chicago Citation: 1
Thus, we have further reason to believe that the Fatima apparition is true, even though we see that the traditional Catholic faith has tanked just as much in Portugal as much as in the rest of the world. The faith would be preserved there only if abortion was not legalized. Once again, Mary warned us (just as she warned the Pope to consecrate Russia to her heart or the errors of Russia would spread) but we did not listen. Our world going to hell in a handbasket, but this is not heaven’s fault. Heaven warned earth, and earth did not listen.