About Today 

I didn't really think about the significance of starting the blog on August 22nd back in 2010. But I am very aware of it now. 

That's because today, August 22nd, 2022, isn't just my birthday or the blog's. It's the feast of the Queenship of Mary.  The Queenship of Mary falls on the octave (8th day) after the Assumption and celebrates the coronation of Mary Queen of Heaven. 

I was walking around my home town on Assumption Sunday 2 years ago when I took this picture.

Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee!

It was true, as many have said, that the movie minimized that the gravity of the Blessed Mother's message,  the true nature of the miracle of the sun and the cruelties the children endured.  In my estimation, it is also true that this does weaken the film.  

But in most other ways, the story was very true to the actual events.  The acting, particularly on the part of the young visionaries, was wonderful.  The three visions were portrayed in a fairly accurate way.  And the representation of the Blessed Mother was handled well, in  my opinion.

I'm not sure why the producers decided to play down certain aspects of the apparitions but the end result was a movie that anyone (Catholic or non-Catholic) of any age could enjoy.  To me, this was no small thing. 

I was wary of choosing "Fatima" for our weekly family movie matinee because I was worried that it would be too religious for some.  But this was not the case.  Everyone liked it.  

The movie could have been more powerful, yes.  But it touched me anyway.  I cried at the end and after it was over, I resolved to learn more about Our Lady of Fatima.  

And I have been.

To me, this is a good result.  Good enough to make me think that it wasn't so much the film that moved me, as it was the Our Lady herself.

Either way, I'm going to share a bit about what I'm learning in future posts!

Here is the trailer:

Mary Saying Yes to God

And in the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God into a city of Galilee, called Nazareth, To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. And the angel being come in, said unto her: Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. Who having heard, was troubled at his saying, and thought with herself what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said to her: Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found grace with God.

Behold thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shalt bring forth a son; and thou shalt call his name Jesus. [32] He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the most High; and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of David his father; and he shall reign in the house of Jacob for ever. And of his kingdom there shall be no end. And Mary said to the angel: How shall this be done, because I know not man? And the angel answering, said to her: The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the most High shall overshadow thee. And therefore also the Holy which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.

And behold thy cousin Elizabeth, she also hath conceived a son in her old age; and this is the sixth month with her that is called barren: Because no word shall be impossible with God. And Mary said: Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it done to me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.  

- Luke 1: 26-38  (Douay Rheims Bible)

You can listen to the SSPX (Society of St. Pius the X) Consecration (of Russia) Prayer as spoken by Bishop Fellay below at 44:19:

About Our Lady of Guadalupe  

Our Lady of Guadalupe first appeared to  Juan Diego, an Aztec convert to Catholicism, on December 9th and 12th of 1531 at Tepeyac Hill Mexico. During that first apparition Our Lady requested that a shrine be built on the site. The Archbishop, however, refused to approve construction unless she gave him a sign. 

The Blessed Mother then appeared a second time to Juan Diego, asking him to gather flowers from the summit of Tepeyac Hill, which was normally barren, especially in the cold of December. Juan Diego obeyed her instruction and he found Castilian roses, not native to Mexico, blooming there.

The Virgin arranged the flowers in Juan Diego's tilma, or cloak, and when Juan Diego opened his cloak later that day before Archbishop Zumárraga, the flowers fell to the floor, revealing the image of the Virgin of Guadalupe imprinted on the fabric  This is the same image that is now venerated in the Basilica of Guadalupe (below).  The cloak and image have never deteriorated or faded.  

Following the apparitions the people of Mexico converted to the Catholic faith by the thousands.

Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us!

About the Queenship of Mary

I say the Rosary every morning to this end, and could not recommend it more highly.  The following prayer is said at the end of the Rosary.

Hail Holy Queen Prayer in English

Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our life, our sweetness and our hope. To you do we cry, poor banished children of Eve.  To you do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears Turn then, most gracious advocate, your eyes of mercy toward us, and after this exile show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus. O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary. 

V. Prayer for us oh Holy Mother of God.

R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Let us pray. Almighty and everlasting God, Who by the working of the Holy Spirit didst prepare both body and soul of the glorious Virgin Mother, Mary, that she might deserve to be made a worthy dwelling for Thy Son, grant that we who rejoice in her memory, may, by her loving intercession, be delivered from present evils and from lasting death, through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.

Salve, Regina (Hail Holy Queen Prayer in Latin)

Salve, Regina, mater misericordiae;

vita, dulcedo et spes nostra, salve.

Ad te clamamus exsules filii Hevae.

Ad te suspiramus gementes et flentes

in hac lacrimarum valle. 

Eia ergo, advocata nostra, 

illos tuos misericordes oculos ad nos converte. 

Et Iesum, benedictum fructum ventris tui, 

nobis post hoc exsilium ostende. 

O clemens, o pia, o dulcis Virgo Maria.

V. Ora pro nobis, sancta Dei Genitrix. 

R. Ut digni efficamur promissionibus Christi.

Oremus. Omnipotens sempiterne Deus, qui gloriosae Virginis Matris Mariae corpus et animam, ut dignum Filii tui habitaculum effici mereretur, Spiritu Sancto cooperante, praeparasti, da, ut cuius commemoratione laetamur; eius pia intercessione, ab instantibus malis et a morte perpetua liberemur. Per eundem Christum Dominum nostrum. Amen.

This Blog

Today seemed like the perfect day to begin this blog.  I am dedicating it to the Blessed Mother.  It's my intent to talk about Catholicism, writing and some of my favorite books.  At some point, I hope to included some excerpts from my own upcoming ebooks.  I will also be sharing some of the prayer cards and other catholic items I design for my Etsy shop - as I've done below :)

I'll write a bit more about the blog in a future post!

Hail Holy Queen Prayer Card

I had wanted to design a Queenship of Mary prayer card for this feast.  But this week got a little busy so I'll have to plan on it for next year.  

I do have one card in the shop already that has the Hail Holy Queen prayer.  Sharing a pic and link below! 

Available for purchase at CatholicBookAndCard.com here