This week, Fr. Robert M. Egan, CSV, and Fr. Richard Rinn, CSV, led parishioners from St. Viator Catholic Community in Las Vegas, on a pilgrimage to Portugal and Spain. Their itinerary is impressive, with stops in Lisbon, Seville, Granada, Toledo, Madrid and Barcelona.
The “little shepherds,” Lucia, Francisco and Jacinta
But what makes this pilgrimage so memorable is their first stop: visiting one of the most famous Marian shrines in the world, Our Lady of Fatima. The shrine is large, with chapels surrounding a large square, much like St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican.
Yet, their visit started with a private Mass in the Chapel of the Angel of Peace, where Fr. Egan and Fr. Rinn concelebrated the intimate liturgy.
“We come to this holy and sacred place, in the tradition of the church,” Fr. Egan began, “with our prayers, hopes and perhaps uniquely individual prayers to the Lord.”
Our Lady of Fatima, enshrined on the spot of the apparitions
The tour of the shrine included visiting the Basilica of Our Lady of Fatima, where the graves of the little shepherds, Francisco, Jacinta and Sr. Lucia are buried. They also saw the Chapel of Apparitions, built on the site where the children saw the apparition of Mary, on the 13th of the month, from May to October in 1917.
Near the chapel is a monument dedicated to Pope John Paul II, who visited the shrine many times and whose bullet during an assassination attempt now is encased in the crown on Mary, displayed on the exact site where she appeared to the children.
Over the next week, the pilgrimage will take visitors to many historic churches and cathedrals in Spain, wrapping up with a tour of the La Sagrada Familia Church, whose construction started in 1882 and still is under construction today.
A monument to Pope John Paul II
But right from the start, at the private Mass in a chapel at Fatima, Fr. Egan reflected on his hopes for the tour. He drew inspiration from St. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, where Paul writes about the great depth of Christ’s love for us.
“It is my hope that your faith may be deepened, that you come to know the height and depth of Christ’s love,” he said. “For if there is any reason to come to Fatima, it is that we be filled with the fullness of God.”
Pilgrims at Our Lady of Fatima Shrine