www.fatima.

org Page 1 of 5

Pope John Paul II says:
The Message of Fatima Imposes An
Obligation On The Church
Pope John Paul II made the above statement about the Message of Our Lady of
Fatima on May 13, 1982 when he went to Fatima. Father Joseph de St. Marie, as
we reported in a previous article, outlined a few years ago some reasons why not
only the laity but also the Bishops must obey Our Lady of Fatima. Since this point
is the one of the most misunderstood aspects of Our Lady's appearance at Fatima
we give here a brief review of some of the Scriptural and Dogmatic basis for the
Pope's conclusions stated above. This article concludes with some practical steps
to take in the light of the present day situation in the Church.

Dear Friend of Our Lady:
Is it not true that we "must not despise prophecy (1 Thess. 5:19-22) but test all
things and hold fast to that which is good." And has not the Fatima Message been tested
and found to be good by five successive Pontiffs, including Pope John Paul II. And,
therefore, since it has been found to be good, must we not all hold fast to these commands
of God for our time.
And is it not true that the Angelic Doctor, St. Thomas Aquinas teaches that God
sends prophets to every generation to remind the faithful what they must do to save their
souls. Pope John Paul II says, "The Message of Fatima is more relevant and more urgent
today than it was 65 years ago." Therefore, are we not bound to obey Our Lady of Fatima,
since God, Who does nothing uselessly, sent His Mother the Queen of Prophets to Sister
Lucy at Fatima to give this message for our times.
And is it not true that Jesus rebuked the city Capharnaum in these words: "And thou,
Capharnaum, shalt thou be exalted to heaven? Thou shalt be thrust down to hell! For if the
miracles had been worked in Sodom that have been worked in thee, perhaps it would have
remained to this day." (Matt. 11:23)
Therefore, does it not follow that when God authenticates and certifies His Message by
miracles that this imposes an obligation to believe and to obey His commands that are so
authenticated.
And is it not true that the miracle of Fatima was one of the greatest miracles God
worked; it was a sign in the heavens. Even the Pharasees said they would have believed in
Jesus had they seen such a sign from Him, and yet Jesus refused to give them this sign but
reserved it for our time. And, therefore, do we not have a greater obligation to believe and
obey, considering the greatness and number of miracles worked in Fatima. Jesus said that
even the city of Sodom, which was destroyed for its sins, by fire from heaven would
perhaps have repented had it seen the miracles worked in Capharnaum. Yet the miracle of
Fatima is much greater than these miracles. And thus, are we not obliged to believe and
obey much more.
www.fatima.org Page 2 of 5

And is it not true we are even more bound to obey when we see all the prophecies
made by Our Lady of Fatima being fulfilled before our eyes. The fulfillment of prophecy
also certainly proves the truth of this message and that it comes from God. This is so
because Vatican Council I solemnly teaches that real miracles and prophecies constitute the
surest signs of God's revelation.
And is it not true that the Church is built upon the Apostles and the Prophets (see
Eph.2:20; see also 1 Cor. 12:28). The Prophets referred to are the prophets of the New
Testament.
And is it not true that the Church today is built upon the successors of the Apostles?
The Pope is successor of St. Peter, the Prince of the Apostles, the Rock upon which Christ
founded His Church and the Catholic Bishops in Communion with the Pope are the
successors of the other Apostles.
And is it not true the Church is still built upon the prophets of the New Testament,
not only those prophets who lived at the time the New Testament was being written, but
also their successors who are living today in the New Covenant. This covenant is renewed at
each Holy Sacrifice of the Mass when the priest offers the Chalice of the New and Eternal
Testament. These prophets of our time receive messages from God to be transmitted to the
Catholic Faithful and people of good will everywhere. As Pope John Paul II said, the Message
of Our Lady of Fatima is "addressed to every human being."
Is it not, therefore, true that Sister Lucy of Fatima, who is still alive, and her two
cousins, Jacinta and Francisco, who died in 1919 and 1920, also were in the sense of
scripture prophets of the New Testament giving a message to the whole Church.
And is it not, therefore, true that the Church has recognized this role and vocation
of Sister Lucy and her two cousins by recognizing the authenticity of the Fatima Message.
And is it not, therefore, true that once the Pope and the appropriate local Bishops
have recognized the Message of Fatima as coming from God that the Faithful are bound to
obey this message, not as obeying the prophet but as obeying God Who has used the
prophet to transmit His message to the Faithful.
And is it not also true that the Pope and all the Catholic Bishops must also obey the
Message of Fatima, not only in those requests that are addressed to all the Faithful, but also
specifically in those requests that have been addressed to them exclusively and explicitly.
And is it not true that this obedience requesting the Consecration of Russia and which
is owed to God by the Pope and the Bishops is a serious duty. The very peace of the whole
world awaits and depends upon the obedience of the bishops to this Command of God and
Our Lady. In fact, several nations will be entirely wiped out ANNIHILATED if the
Catholic Bishops do not fulfill this simple request of Our Lady of Fatima in time. Above all,
the salvation of many souls depends upon the bishops' obedience.
Furthermore, is it not true that the preservation of the Faith and the full freedom of
the Roman Catholic Church, especially in Communist dominated lands, is dependent upon
the obedience to this request by God that the Pope and the Bishops perform this Act of
Consecration. It is the only means whereby Russia will be converted and thereby will stop
www.fatima.org Page 3 of 5

persecuting the Church and spreading among the Faithful everywhere errors against the
Faith.
And, therefore, since the Faith itself is in danger and the salvation of many souls is in
jeopardy due to the lack of compliance of the Pope and the Bishops to this Command of
God, is it not justified and even demanded that we resist by whatever legitimate means at
our disposal, those Bishops who show themselves opposed to fulfilling this request of Our
Lady of Fatima?
St. Robert Belarmine, who is a Saint and Doctor of the Catholic Church, teaches that
we must resist, even with physical force if necessary, those Bishops who do things which
endanger the Catholic Faith. There is no greater danger to the Faith today than Marxism as
both Our Lady of Fatima tells us as well as recently, Cardinal Ratzinger. Since there is no
other solution but the Consecration of Russia by the bishops in the form prescribed by Our
Lady, surely our resistance is justified and now necessary, since it is over 56 years ago that
Our Lady said, "The Moment has now come for the Pope, together with all the Bishops of
the world, to Consecrate Russia to My Immaculate Heart." No other means will work,
since Jesus said He would "save Russia by this means."
In light of the foregoing facts, are we not duty bound to resist prelates who, while
enjoying external freedom from Government interference, do not positively show
themselves in favor of obeying this request of Our Lady of Fatima?
Therefore, dear friends, we ask you to do your duty in doing what you can to bring
about the Collegial Consecration of Russia. We remind you that the Holy Pontiffs, together
with Vatican Council I and the Oecumenical Council of Lyons solemnly defined and taught
that each member of the Faithful may appeal directly to the Pope in any matter that
pertains to Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction. Therefore, since the hour is grave and it is very late,
we beg you to appeal to the Pope for a ruling so that we can (if He so rules that it is right)
use whatever legitimate means we can to get the Bishops to obey Our Lady of Fatima. For
Cardinal Gagnon, who works in the Vatican, says that it is up to the laity to get the Bishops
to obey the Pope. In answer to the question how to get obedience to a certain Vatican
document, Cardinal Gagnon replied, "But whatever is in the document will not be
implemented unless the Catholic community demands it. They can say we are not going to
give one more cent to the parish or to the Church until you obey. And then they can give
their money to other places, that are genuinely Catholic, genuinely obedient to the
teachings of the Holy See."
Would this teaching of Cardinal Gagnon not apply even more to getting the Bishops to
obey Our Lady? Is this not especially so because only by the Consecration of Russia by the
Catholic Bishops as Our Lady at Fatima requested, will we be saved from open Marxist
attack and world-wide Marxist oppression with the consequent loss of many souls and the
danger to our own salvation under their terrible persecution.



Dear friends, please, in consideration of all the above, join us in
sending the following petition to the Holy Father, Pope John Paul II.
www.fatima.org Page 4 of 5

May it please Your Holiness,
In view of the Command of God given through Our Lady of Fatima to Your Holiness and
to your brother Bishops to Consecrate Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and in view
of the fact that until this Command is obeyed, Russia will continue to terribly persecute the
Church and Your Holiness and that entire nations will be totally wiped out if it is not obeyed
soon, we ask you to let it be known clearly by your words and actions to the Faithful that
the Faithful may seek to persuade the Bishops to obey Our Lady of Fatima by legitimate
sanctions. Please let this be known clearly; soon for the time is short.
Alternatively, if it please Your Holiness, if circumstances allow you to, command your
brother Bishops under pain of excommunication, to obey this Command of God before
millions of people perish in the next World War.
At the very least, please let Sister Lucy speak now clearly, unambiguously to the world
to tell the Faithful what they must do to save themselves.
May it please Your Holiness, that since the hour is so grave, and since You are under
great pressure from the enemies of God to not fulfill the request of Our Lady, would you
please help us come to your and our own aid. That is, we humbly ask Your Holiness to
release the Secret of Fatima in its entirety so that the people everywhere may realize the
great need they have to fervently pray the Rosary and do Penance. In Biblical times, when
the people of Nineve understood from Jonah that unless they repented their civilization
would be destroyed within forty days, the people, upon learning this, repented in time and
avoided the destruction of their civilization. So too, our time has been given a similar
Message from God in the Secret of Fatima but most people will not know this unless you
release this Message to us. Without this knowledge, the people feel secure in their
ignorance. If you would release it, perhaps the people of our generation will repent in time
and obtain by their prayers the graces you and the Catholic Bishops need to Consecrate
Russia as God and Our Lady commanded. Without this knowledge we all perish. Please
release this Secret of Fatima to the world before it is too late.
Since the Vatican-Moscow Agreement of 1962 has finally come to light, and since
Cardinal Gagnon has recently acknowledged that evil forces within the Vatican as well as in
various national governments are preventing Your Holiness from ruling the Church
effectively, we understand that Your Holiness may find it impossible to respond to this, our
petition. We want you to know we do support you and will be praying a great deal for Your
Holiness so that you will soon be able to obey this command of Our Lord and Our Lady of
Fatima to solemnly and publicly, together with all the Catholic Bishops on the same day,
Consecrate Russia specifically to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. We know that you want to
obey Our Lady of Fatima but that you, by yourself do not have the strength in face of the
many hidden pressures against you so we pray for you so that you may obtain the
necessary Grace to fulfill this Command of God. We also offer Your Holiness our moral
support.



www.fatima.org Page 5 of 5

Signature___________________Name__________________
Address___________________________Apt.Box________
City____________State/Prov_________Zip/Code_________
Signature___________________Name__________________
Address___________________________Apt.Box________
City____________State/Prov_________Zip/Code_________
Signature___________________Name__________________
Address___________________________Apt.Box________
City____________State/Prov_________Zip/Code_________
Send your Petitions to Father Nicholas Gruner, c/o The Fatima Crusader (Click the
"contact" link below for contact information.) Father Gruner will personally carry
them to a Cardinal in Rome. The Cardinal will deliver them personally to the Holy Father.
Write us for extra copies of this petition.