Not Afraid to Publicly Show Our Faith
On October 13, 2007, the 90th anniversary of the Miracle of the Sun, the Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary rang across the square in front of the Harrisburg Capitol.
The America Needs Fatima campaign motivated over two thousand public rallies in the U.S. and around the world. Rally captains organized local events in each of the fifty states. The Harrisburg rally was headed by Mr. Robert Charlton, who invited us to attend. He gathered over two hundred participants to pray the rosary and to process from the stairs of the Capitol to St. Patrick’s Cathedral for Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and Benediction.
Mr. Charlton placed everyone in their positions. The Academy students stood in the center with four of us carrying the litter with the statue of Our Lady of Fatima. Fr. Edward Quinlan, Secretary for Education of the Harrisburg Diocese and Pastor of St. Matthew Parish in Dauphin, led the Rosary. The Knights of Columbus were the honor guard for the statue. Several young men stood behind with a banner announcing the event. Everyone else faced the statue as the prayers were recited and hymns sung. Among those present was a large group of students from a Catholic school in Lancaster as well as some Boys Scouts. What a beautiful crowd to pray and profess the Catholic Faith publicly.
From the steps we processed solemnly to the Cathedral for the Adoration as we sang a Marian hymn. After we filed into the church, the statue of Our Lady was placed in the sanctuary, and Fr. Quinlan said a few words to call to mind the seriousness of what happened at Fatima. The Holy Eucharist was removed from the tabernacle and placed in the monstrance. The faithful humbly adored Our Lord in His Real Presence and then gratefully received Benediction. Thus concluded our act of atonement for the many blasphemies and sacrileges that wound the Hearts of Jesus and Mary. Nine decades ago the sun danced in the sky to prove to the world that Mary's message at Fatima was real and important. Our presence was an effort to affirm that great miracle and to remind the world of its importance. Our Lady surely accepted that public remembrance in Heaven and an act of reparation with a desire of thwarting the horrible ways of evil men.
For us in particular, it opened our eyes to the world’s needfor prayer, especially the Rosary. Is that not what Our Lady asked for? With the Rosary prayed publicly, the world that witnessed the militancy of Catholics is still alive today.
