Verghese V Joseph –
On Saturday morning, the Pope visited the Shrine of Fátima. It was almost 8:40 am when the helicopter that was transporting him landed near the Shrine. “It is important that the Church has no doors, so that everyone can enter,” Francis said after reciting the rosary.
This is the fourth day of Pope Francis in Portugal, on the visit that integrates the World Youth Day (WYD) Lisbon 2023.
Francis did not want to use the safety capsule, the glass that usually covers the popemobile, so that he could be closer to the people and that is how he presented himself to the people. On his way to the Shrine, Bishop José Ornelas, Bishop of Leiria and Fátima, follow him by his side. He spent two hours with the pilgrims, young people with illnesses or disabilities and prisoners who could not go to Lisbon, in their majority, reinforcing the idea that “the Church is for everyone”.
On the way to the Chapel of the Apparitions, Francis blessed some children who were placed in his arms, as he did in Lisbon, offering them rosaries that he brought with him. When he reaches the destination, the people rejoiced, and one can hear: “Long live the Pope”.
With a bouquet of flowers in his lap, he entered the Chapel of the Apparitions and addressed the image of Our Lady of Fátima, to whom he gave it. Francisco’s closed his eyes to allow a moment of silent surrender to the Virgin Mother. The rosary was then prayed, in which these young people participated in various languages, and Francis gave a speech referring to the example of Mary. “Our Lady who goes with haste and always accompanies, is never the protagonist, she always follows Jesus,” he said, leading each of those present to reflect.