Our Lady of Fatima (Paperback)

~ William T. Walsh (Author) "Half a mile south of Fatima, on both sides of a winding road paved with flattish cobblestones and scarcely wide enough for two ox-teams to..." (more)
Key Phrases: Cova da Iria, Maria Rosa, Maria Carreira (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

In 1917 the Virgin Mary is believed to have appeared in a tiny Portuguese village. Her prophecies of World War II and the rise of communism, her plea for penance, and her promise of the conversion of Russia are among the dramatic moments in this fascinating account of a modern miracle.

From the Publisher

In 1917 the Virgin Mary is believed to have appeared in a tiny Portuguese village. Her prophecies of World War II and the rise of communism, her plea for penance, and her promise of the conversion of Russia are among the dramatic moments in this fascinating account of a modern miracle.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Image (October 1, 1954)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385028695
• ISBN-13: 978-0385028691
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #66,296 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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  #9 in	Books > History > Europe > Portugal
  #14 in	Books > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Catholicism > Mariology
  #31 in	Books > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Jesus > Historical Jesus

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Holy Mary, Mother of God, Pray for Us, May 20, 2005

By	Dennis Phillips "The Book Friar" (Bulls Gap, Tennessee USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Between May and October of 1917 the Blessed Virgin appeared to three children at Cova da Iria near Fatima, Portugal. The oldest of the children, Lucia Abobora was only ten years old at the time but had the wisdom of someone much older and instructed her younger cousins Francisco and Jacinta Martos that they should tell no one of their experience. Young Jacinta however decided to tell about their visitor and this led to much ridicule and persecution for the three young mystics. Our Lady had told them they would suffer greatly and that they should offer up their suffering for all of the sinners of the world. The fact that they were helping to save sinners by their suffering gave these children much comfort in their sufferings and this was especially true of Francisco and Jacinta since Mother Mary had informed them that she would take them to heaven soon. In less than three years both of these children were dead.

The Church was, as is prudent, slow to accept the miracle at Fatima but has now fully accepted what happened there and millions of Catholics have an extra prayer at the end of each decade of the Rosary because of it. Those who refuse to believe in miracles still can't fully explain the actions of the Sun during the Virgin's last visit in October 1917 that was witnessed by over 70,000 people at the site and hundreds of others who were miles away from Cova da Iria. It is especially interesting to note that Socialist newspaper men who were there in order to inform their readers that the whole thing was a hoax had to admit that they had seen the miracle also.

William Walsh first published this book in 1947 after extensive interviews with the surviving child and others that were involved. He also made careful study of Lucia Abobora's journals of the events that she had written well after the fact at the insistence of a Bishop. This careful research and the interviews along with many visits to the sight of the visitation have enabled the author to write what still may be the best book available on the subject. The writing is a little lax grammatically at times but more than makes up for that with style. This is a very easy to read and clear account of the events at Fatima and even someone with no Catholic background at all will be able to follow the story with no problem. Even those who refuse to believe will I think find this book enjoyable and will if nothing else be able to see the life of early twentieth century Portuguese peasants as they lived through the upheavals going on all around them.

Since this story continues to unfold this book does show it's age to some extent For example, the secret the children would not tell to anyone has long since been revealed. Also, since the death of the last child only this past February, the Vatican has sealed her cell (she became a nun) and a team of investigators will be going through her papers to see what else might be revealed. There may indeed be much more of this story to be told and the events of Fatima still cause controversy so this book is over fifty years behind, but for a basic understanding of the appearance of Our Lady of Fatima this book is hard to beat. I seriously doubt that a better basic account will ever be written.

26 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Everything you wanted to know about The Lady of Fatima, September 10, 1999

By A Customer

After reading and searching for the past 5 years about the information about Fatima this book is by far the best. Everything you ever wanted to know about fatima from the begining to the present is all here.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best book on Fatima I've read, February 23, 2001

By A Customer

I've read many books on Fatima, and this is the best--hands down. William Thomas Walsh's writing is truly magnificent. Fatima literally comes alive in these pages, with rich descriptions, and a truly exciting prose style.

I must disagree with a previous reviewer that said that the book's age is beginning to show. The apparitions of Fatima occurred in 1917. The fact that the book was written closer to the time-frame of the occurrences there is an asset, not a detriment. And yet the book and it's well regarded message could not be more current. This one is not to be missed.