Our Lady of Fatima

Our Lady of Fatima: Feast Day May 13th

The feast day of Our Lady of Fatima holds a very special place in my heart. The year that I was pregnant with my second child, I decided to do a Marian Consecration. I read the book, 33 Days to Morning Glory: A Do it Yourself Retreat in Preparation for Marian Consecration, by Father Michael Gaitley, and the day I was to consecrate myself to the Blessed Virgin Mary so that she could bring me closer to her son, was May 13th—the feast of Our Lady of Fatima. Not only was May 13th that year the feast day of Our Lady of Fatima, but it was also Mother's Day and the day before my baby was due. Ever since consecrating myself to Mary that day, I have felt closer to Mary as Our Lady of Fatima and enjoy reading everything I can about her message given at Fatima. This year, May 13, 2021, is even more special to me, because it’s the day I renewed my Marian consecration and enrolled in the Militia Immaculata. The Militia Immaculata (MI), founded by Saint Maximilian Kolbe in 1917, has the mission of bringing the world to Jesus through Mary. If you’re interested in learning more about the MI, here is a write-up from EWTN, and here is how to make your Marian consecration from the MI’s website.

To help my family celebrate this wonderful day, we made "Lady Fingers for Our Lady of Fatima", using a recipe from “Allrecipes,” as a treat, and told our children about Our Lady of Fatima. My husband also read them the book Our Lady of Fatima, by Father Lovasik S.V.D. We also taught them the Fatima Prayer that the Blessed Virgin Mary asked Saint Francisco, Saint Jacinta and Blessed Sister Lucia to say as they prayed the rosary. I hope you and your family are able to celebrate this beautiful feast day!

Celebrating with More Food:

Since our Lady appeared in Fatima, Portugal, for today’s feast day make a yummy Portuguese inspired feast for dinner. We made delicious “Carne Vinho de Alhos” using a recipe from “Catholic Cuisine,” and paired it with “Nando’s Portuguese Spicy Rice” If you don’t like a lot of spice, I recommended cutting the amount of cayenne pepper in half, since I lit my family’s mouths on fire! The flavors in both dishes are very bold and yummy!

Additional Reading:

Here is an article, from EWTN, about Our Lady of Fatima and her message to oSaint Jacinta, Saint Francisco and Blessed Sister Lucia when she appeared to them in 1917. It’s a very good read!

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