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The Benefits of
Action
Our Lady of Fatima promised
many benefits for obedience to Her requests. For the individual, the devotions
encouraged at Fatima, including the Rosary and Brown Scapular, have particular
promises attached to them. There are many promises attached to the recitation
of the Rosary (see "15 Promises for Praying
the Most Holy Rosary"), and Our Lady has said that the Brown Scapular is a
"sign of salvation, a protection from danger and a pledge of peace" (see " The Brown
Scapular of Mount Carmel" and "Sister Lucy and the
Brown Scapular "). Families that pray the Rosary together will gain immeasurable
graces for the individual members, and the strength for the family to stay
together and grow in the love of God.
There are many examples of
individuals, cities and countries being delivered from danger and evil due to
the intercession of Our Lady, effected by the action taken by one or more
people. If we are devoted to Our Lady, live our faith and work to promote it,
Our Heavenly Mother will surely aid us, for as Sister Lucy has said, She "will
protect Her dear ones."
Seville
The protection rendered to
the Spanish city of Seville during the Spanish Civil War is an example of the
benefits of taking action at the local level. The Bishop of Seville consecrated
his city to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and as a result Seville miraculously
suffered no casualties from the war, in which one-tenth of the population of
Spain was killed. Seville was the only city that was consecrated to the
Immaculate Heart, and the only city that, as a result, was granted such a
grace.
Lepanto
In the Sixteenth Century the
Turks were overrunning all of Europe and seemed to be on the verge of wiping
out Christianity. When all seemed lost, Pope St. Pius V organized a Rosary
Crusade. He asked Catholics everywhere to pray the Rosary to ask Our Lady to
deliver them from the imminent disaster. When the day of the great battle
arrived, the Christian soldiers literally went into battle with swords in one
hand and Rosaries in the other. Thus on October 7, 1571, one of the greatest
military upsets in all history took place at Lepanto. The little Christian
fleet, greatly outnumbered, defeated the mighty Turkish Armada and Christianity
was saved – through the power of the Rosary. The Holy Father subsequently
instituted October 7 as the Feast of the Most Holy Rosary.
Hiroshima
The rectory of the Assumption
of Our Lady Church in Hiroshima, Japan was left standing on August 6, 1945,
after the atomic bomb killed 200,000 people and decimated the city. The church
next door to the rectory was completely demolished by the atomic blast. There
was nothing left standing on the street outside. There was, in fact, no street
outside – it too had been completely destroyed. Only the rectory stood
amidst the surrounding rubble and four Catholic priests inside survived the
blast, and were miraculously preserved from any effects of the radiation. It
was because, as one of the survivors stated, the priests were praying the
Rosary every day and living the Message of Fatima.
Portugal
The country of Portugal was
consecrated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary three times, and each consecration
effected a singular grace for that country: first, it was spared from the
ravages of the Spanish Civil War; then the Second World War; and finally, from
the threat of Communist takeover. (See " The
Consecrations of Portugal (1931, 1938) and Their Benefits".)
Austria
Austria, also, was spared
from Communist occupation due to the action of its citizens: after ten years of
occupation, in 1955 the Russian armies withdrew from that country, without one
person being killed or even one shot fired. This was due to the fact that 10%
of the country’s population prayed the Rosary every day for the
deliverance of their country. It is the only time that the militant atheistic
forces of Marxism have ever peacefully left a country in which they held power.
* * *
Our Lady has proven time and
again that She will aid and defend those who are devoted to Her. Thus, with all
of us taking action and doing our part, we will help to bring about the Triumph
of the Immaculate Heart, the promised consecration of Russia, and the
subsequent period of peace for ourselves, our families, and our cities and
countries.
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