During the Holy Mass, the Holy See’s ambassador emphasized the role of Our Lady as a contributor to God’s plan of salvation.

Portugal Fatima – (June 16, 2021 9:50, Gaudium Press) The Apostolic Nuncio in Portugal, Archbishop Ivo Scapolo, presided last Sunday, June 13, the International Anniversary Pilgrimage. During the Holy Mass, the prelate stressed the role of Our Lady as a contributor to God’s plan of salvation.

According to him, Marian apparitions in different countries and continents reveal God’s attention for humanity. “She, Mother of Jesus and Mother of the Church, continues to cooperate, helpin us to fulfill in human history the mission that her Son Jesus left to his Apostles, to proclaim the Gospel and baptize in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. It is within the framework of this great plan of Salvation that God wanted the Virgin Mary to intervene many times in the history of the Church,” he assured.

Our Lady asks for our contribution to her mission

Archbishop Ivo Scapolo also emphasized that Our Lady, as Mother of the Church, loves us and cares for us.
For this reason, she comes to show us the path of conversion and the instruments necessary to enter the House of God the Father.

“The apparitions that the Virgin Mary here in Fatima 104 years ago are part of this mission. The Virgin Mary is carrying out, also asking for our collaboration. As she asked the three little shepherds, Lucia, Francisco and Jacinta, to assist with the salvation of souls, namely the conversion of sinners, so today she asks us for the same assistance,” he noted.

The Feast of St. Anthony of Padua

At the end of his homily, the prelate recalled the memory of St. Anthony of Padua, the Patron saint of his hometown. At the end of the celebration, he recited a prayer to the Portuguese saint, invoking the help of Our Blessed Mother: “Our Lady, our only hope, we beg you to enlighten our minds with the splendour of your grace, to warm us with the warmth of your visit, and to reconcile us to your Son, so that we may merit to reach the splendour of his glory. (EPC)