Traveling statue is reminder of Our Lady of Fatima's 1917 message

By Tanya Connor
The Catholic Free Press

A pleasant surprise.

An experience of God’s love and forgiveness.

An affirmation about how to address world problems.  

These were among reactions to a Marian statue’s visit and accompanying presentation and prayer.

Kenneth Murphy of Boston brought a replica of the International Pilgrim Statue of Our Lady of Fatima to the Milford home of James and Judith Burke Tuesday, where about a dozen people gathered for the occasion.  

Mr. Murphy, “Our Lady’s driver,” gave a presentation that included a video about the Blessed Mother’s apparitions at Fatima, Portugal, in 1917, and applied her messages to people today.

The group prayed the rosary and wrote out petitions to be taken to Fatima by an America Needs Fatima volunteer.  

The Burkes and their invited guests were experiencing a home visit organized by America Needs Fatima, which is a campaign of The American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property. ANF aims “to win the heart and soul of America for Mary by spreading her Fatima message and promoting devotion to her Immaculate Heart,” says the website americaneedsfatima.org.  

One way the campaign does that is by having volunteer “custodians” like Mr. Murphy bring a statue to homes to accompany the prayer and presentation.  

Mr. Murphy gave the following explanation for traveling statues.

The Blessed Mother asked Lucia dos Santos, one of the Fatima visionaries, to help spread her requests to other people. To do this, Lucia asked that a shrine be built, but the first and then the second shrines were destroyed by government officials. (The third shrine is still present in Fatima.)

“If you met a 10-year-old child” who claimed to have seen the Blessed Mother, “what would you ask her?” Mr. Murphy queried. He suggested that people would ask what Mary looked like.

Lucia decided to have traveling statues. In the 1940s, she worked with an artist, José Thedim, to design the statue that she ultimately said most closely resembled Mary as she appeared at Fatima.

That statue was taken to different parts of the world and “cried” what tests found to be human tears, Mr. Murphy said.

Now traveling the world are replicas of that statue, including the one he brings for presentations to help spread the Fatima message and devotions.  

The Burkes said they were honored to host the statue. Mrs. Burke said when an America Needs Fatima representative called to invite them to do so, she asked how they were chosen, and was told they came up randomly in a database of people who have given charitable contributions.

At the Burkes’ house, Mr. Murphy invited others interested in hosting the statue to sign up. Other people can request a visit by calling 1-888-460-7371.

The video Mr. Murphy and other custodians use in the presentation recounted Mary’s prophecies about punishment for sin and her promise that her Immaculate Heart would triumph.

Mr. Murphy said the world is in a bad way because of sin, but “we shouldn’t worry too much; Our Lady did promise victory over these problems.”  

“I wasn’t sure what to expect,” Deborah Slavinskas said after the presentation. “It was a pleasant surprise. It’s almost like you feel Mary’s presence here.” She and her husband, Daniel Slavinskas, who also came, are members of St. John Parish in Worcester and parents of Father Jonathan J. Slavinskas, pastor of Our Lady of Providence Parish in Worcester. The Burkes are also members of St. John’s, where they grew up.

Their fellow parishioners Theresa Abruzzise and her son Nicholas also attended the Fatima presentation.

“Coming here gave me hope” and the impetus to continue praying and going to church and confession, Ms. Abruzzise said. “It was very moving. ... I came here thinking this was not going to change how I felt.” She’d experienced practice of the faith as “robotic,” but “never felt accepted [and] loved by God,” she said. Now, she said, “I feel forgiven.”

Her son said the video confirmed his thoughts about the state of the world.  

“I want to eventually be a psychiatrist … to help people come away from sin [and] live a better life,” he said; he’s working on a master’s in counseling before going to medical school. Attending the presentation “reaffirmed that I might be thinking the correct way about how to deal with the world’s problems.”

“It’s nice to be with a group of people who live their faith,” commented another participant, Robert Morrison, of Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish in Milford.  

Mr. Murphy gave attendees “homework” for living their faith: praying the rosary and the Fatima prayer that is often said with it, participating in First Saturday devotions, sacrificing in reparation for sin and for the conversion of sinners, and amending one’s life.

“I was just happy that [the Blessed Mother] came,” said Mrs. Burke. “I believe this was the time we needed [the home visit]. … Everybody here needed some type of blessing, and I feel in my heart” that they received it.

– For more information, see the website americaneedsfatima.org.