Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke has launched an international prayer call on the occasion of the centenary of the apparition of the Virgin Mary in Pontevedra, on December 10, 1925, when the Mother of God, accompanied by the Child Jesus, asked Sister Lucia of Fatima for the reparative devotion of the First Saturdays.
Nine Weeks of Preparation
To prepare for the centenary, the American cardinal invites the faithful to participate in nine weeks of prayer, which will begin on the coming October 8 and conclude on December 10, 2025, the exact date of the centenary. The initiative is centered on reparation to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, in line with the message of Fatima.
“For the celebration of the centenary, I invite you to join me in nine weeks of prayer, beginning this coming October 8 and concluding on December 10, the 100th anniversary of the apparition in Pontevedra,” explained Cardinal Burke in his message.
The Message of Pontevedra
On December 10, 1925, the Virgin Mary and the Child Jesus appeared to Sister Lucia, then a postulant in the convent of the Dorotheans in Pontevedra (Spain). On that occasion, the Virgin requested the practice of the Five First Saturdays of the Month, a reparative devotion that consists of confessing, receiving Communion, praying the rosary, and meditating for fifteen minutes on the mysteries, in reparation for the sins committed against her Immaculate Heart.
This message is framed within the apparitions of Fatima in 1917 and constitutes one of the most important elements of its spiritual and reparative dimension.
International Dimension
Cardinal Burke’s call seeks to gather the faithful from around the world around this practice, in anticipation of the anniversary. On his official website (guadalupeshrine.org/fatima), resources and prayer materials for the nine weeks are offered.
Burke emphasizes that the centenary is a providential occasion to faithfully resume the Virgin’s request in Fatima: prayer, penance, and reparation for the sins of the world.