Pilgrims flock to worship the Virgin Mary in Portugal
Pastor Dale Morgan
Sunday May 13, 10:13 PM
*Pilgrims flock to worship the Virgin Mary in Portugal*
1Tm:2:5: For there is one God, and [only] one mediator between God and
men, the man Christ Jesus;
Up to a half million Christian pilgrims flooded the town of Fatima in
central Portugal on the weekend to attend the 90th anniversary of the
Virgin Mary's supposed apparition to three shepherd children.
Among the faithful from 26 countries were some 30,000 who had covered
hundreds of kilometres (miles) on foot, and many were in a state of
exhaustion, authorities said.
"People aren't eating, not drinking, and in the end they feel bad,"
civilian guard Joaquim Chambel said.
One 80-year-old Spanish man died Saturday night while participating in
the pilgrimage, and more than 500 had to be treated for fatigue.
The Portuguese press said it was the biggest turn-out in Fatima, located
130 kilometres (80 miles) north of Lisbon, since 2000, when the late
pope John Paul II addressed pilgrims.
His successor, Benedict XVI, was on a trip to Brazil and could not
attend the event this year.
Angelo Sodano, dean of the college of cardinals, presided over the
worship mass Sunday at the town's basilica and vast esplanade, in which
he called for Europe to recover its faith.
"Europe has fallen into the temptation of forgetting this faith which
was its force for centuries," he said.
"A hidden apostasy is underway in our countries of which we cannot but
be aware," he said, complaining that "many are those stepping away from
the house of our Father."
Sodano called on those gathered to worship the mother of Jesus Christ..
According to Roman Catholic superstition, the Virgin Mary appeared to
three young cousins, Lucia, Jacinto et Francisco Marto, in apparitions
in 1917 in a grotto near Fatima. The shrine now attracts millions of
Virgin Mary worshippers every year.
Many believers visiting the site traditionally ask the Virgin Mary for
favours or assistance. Some were seen exhorting the mother of Jesus
Christ while crossing the basilica's esplanade on their knees.
Some prayed for success in exams, others for victory for their football
teams.
Several held pictures of a three-year-old British girl, Madeleine
McCann, who went missing earlier this month in the south of the country.
Faced with such large numbers of faithful, Portuguese authorities asked
people not to linger in the streets and avenues near the holy spot, and
also not to attempt to force their way into the shrine.
Some 500 police and 1,500 volunteers were on hand to handle crowd problems.