By Catholic Review Staff
The International Pilgrim Virgin Statue of Fatima will make four stops in the Archdiocese of Baltimore this Lent as part of a nationwide call to prayer.
Organizers note, “The tour and your prayers will create an outpouring of grace to allow Our Lady of Fatima to claim her dominion over our country through her Immaculate Heart.”
The statue is a representation of the Blessed Virgin Mary as she appeared to three shepherd children in Fatima, Portugal, in 1917. Mary appeared a total of six times between May 13 and Oct. 13, 1917, usually on the 13th of the month, to 10-year-old Lucia Santos, who later became a nun, and her cousins Jacinta and Francisco Marto, age 7 and 9 respectively.
The apparitions were declared worthy of belief by the Catholic Church in 1930.
The Diocese of Coimbra, Portugal, recently concluded its phase of the sainthood cause of Carmelite Sister Lucia dos Santos, one of the three children who saw Our Lady of Fatima in 1917.
The International Pilgrim Virgin Statue of Fatima is one of two “twin” statues sculpted in 1947 by renowned sculptor José Thedim. The image reflects the precise instructions of Sister Lucia.
In the Archdiocese of Baltimore, the statue can be seen at St. Philip Neri Church, Linthicum, March 26, 8 a.m.-6 p.m.; St. Benedict, Baltimore, March 27, 8 a.m.-10 p.m.; St. John the Evangelist, Westminster, March 28, 7:45 a.m. to March 29, after the 8 a.m. Mass, and Our Lady’s Center in Ellicott City, March 31 from 10 a.m. until 9 p.m.
At each location, the custodian of the statue, Patrick Sabat, will give a talk about the history of the statue and its significance.
Sabat, born in the Philippines, has been traveling with the statue since 2003 and it has been his full-time ministry since 2008. He has visited more than 25 countries and territories to tell the Fatima story.
The International Pilgrim Virgin Statue of Fatima has been under the auspices of the World Apostolate of Fatima, USA, known as Our Lady’s Blue Army, since 2014.
For a detailed schedule at each location, including the times of Sabat’s talks, visit fatimatourforpeace.com/the-tour, and select Maryland under “See dates in your state.”
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