Image: Lucia Santos, Francisco and Jacinta Marto

On February 20, our saints of the day are Saints Francisco (June 11, 1908 – April 4, 1919) and Jacinta Marto (March 11, 1910 – February 20, 1920) , two of the three visionaries at Fatima, Portugal. The brother and sister, who tended their families’ sheep with their cousin Lucia Santo in the fields of Fatima, Portugal, witnessed the apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary, now commonly known as Our Lady of Fatima.

During the first apparition, which took place May 13, 1917, Our Lady asked the three children to pray the Rosary, do penance, and make sacrifices, offering them for the conversion of sinners. The children did, praying often, giving their lunch to beggars and going without food themselves. They offered up their daily crosses and even refrained from drinking water on hot days.

The youngest children of Manuel and Olimpia Marto, Francisco and Jacinta were illiterate, but had a rich oral tradition on which to rely. Francisco had a peaceful, easygoing temperament, was musically inclined and spent much of his time alone thinking. Jacinta was affectionate, somewhat spoiled, and strong-willed. She had a sweet singing voice and a gift for dancing. All three children gave up music and dancing after the visions began, believing that these and other recreational activities might lead to occasions of sin.

In October 1918, Francisco and Jacinta became seriously ill with the Spanish flu. Our Lady appeared to them and said she would to take them to heaven soon.

Bed-ridden, Francisco requested his first Communion. The following day, Francisco died, April 14, 1919. Jacinta suffered a long illness as well. She was eventually transferred to a Lisbon hospital and operated for an abscess in her chest, but her health did not improve. She died Feb. 20, 1920. Jacinta and Francisco are both buried at the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary of Fatima.

Pope John Paul II beatified Francisco and Jacinta May 13, 2000. Pope Francis canonized the younger children on his visit to Fatima to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the first apparition–May 13, 2017.

For more information on Saints Francisco and Jacinta and the Fatima apparitions, read my book, Fatima: The Apparition That Changed the World (St. Benedict Press, 2017).

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