May 13 is the feast day of Our Lady of Fatima, marking the anniversary of the first of six Marian apparitions to three shepherd children in Fatima, Portugal in 1917.
Between May 13 and October 13, 1917, the Blessed Virgin May appeared to Lucia dos Santos, along with her cousins Francisco and Jacinta Marto, giving them prophecies and instruction. She also confided three secrets to the children, known as the Three Secrets of Fatima.
The first secret was a vision of hell, the second secret was instruction on how to save souls from hell and the third secret was a vision of the death of the Pope and other religious figures.
On her last appearance on October 13, the Blessed Virgin appeared and performed miracles of extraordinary solar activity, witnessed by as many as 100,000 people and known as the Miracle of the Sun.
In 1950, Pope Pius XII told the people of Portugal to keep the Fatima and her message in their hearts.
"May Portugal never forget the heavenly message of Fátima, which, before anybody else she was blessed to hear,” he said.
“To keep Fátima in your heart and to translate Fátima into deeds is the best guarantee for ever more graces"
While the apparitions occurred more than a century ago, they have been renewed in the Church’s consciousness in the past few years.
In March, Pope Francis consecrated Russia and Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary at Saint Peter’s Basilica in Roma, as requested by the Blessed Virgin in Fatima in 1917.
World Youth Day 2023 will take place in Lisbon, Portugal, the country where the apparitions and miracles occurred. Francisco and Jacinta Marto have been chosen as patrons of the festival, recognised as Catholics who took decisive steps in the path to holiness while still in their youth.
As part of World Youth Day 2023, the young people in attendance will be invited to pray and deepen the main devotion from the apparitions of Our Lady of Fatima, in particular, to pray the Holy Rosary.
Fatima is located just 120 kilometres outside of Lisbon and is one of the most visited Marian pilgrimage sits in the world.