5th Sunday after Easter 13 May 2012 Sermon

5th Sunday after Easter 13.5.12 Fatima

We note today the 95th anniversary of Our Lady’s first appearance at Fatima.
Our Lady was asking us to give her a more prominent place in our lives and in the Church.

She was asking for the Rosary, for Masses, for repentance and penance, for the consecration of Russia. If we would do those things we would be greatly blessed; if not, well, we know what happened since 1917. Clearly we have not done the great part of what she asked, and we have reaped the results.

The things she asks are not difficult but we don't do them. They are easy to do and even easier not to do!

We have too little faith, too much ‘sophistication’, too much rationality, too much arguing.

We must not be deceived by the humility of Fatima. A remote town (so were Bethlehem and Nazareth), far from the centres of world politics, economics, and military matters. These were three children who had no power in worldly terms. Yet God chose them as His instruments. As we find God so often does, He entrusts His messages to improbable people (less educated, youngest, smallest etc)

God does not consult with businessmen or soldiers or politicians to decide these things. He prefers the humble of the world. We can be humble even if we don’t live in a remote town. But we do have to be humble, whatever else.

If we would just humble ourselves to do as Our Lady asks: go to confession, pray the rosary; do the basic things; do them well and we will see better times.

We have not heeded the message as well as we should but it is never too late; or even if it is too late we can still retrieve something.

We can start praying now like we should have prayed then. In today’s Gospel: ask for what you want and you shall have it. If the thing we ask for is a big thing it will take more than one time or more than one person asking. We cannot just ask for something like ‘world peace’ and expect it the same day.

Some things we really have to go on our knees, and wail a little bit, and get involved.

Fatima is one such case. We are really asking for two things at Fatima - World peace and Conversion of sinners. They are both huge things to ask and the second is bigger than the first.

It is going to take a lot of prayer and penance from a lot of people. We aggregate our prayer and faith and thus we offer an opposing force to the aggregation of sin, blasphemy, neglect and all the rest.

If we can get enough momentum going change will come.

The consecration to Russia has never been done exactly as asked for. Other consecrations have been made, which have helped along the way, but we clearly need that absolute literal blessing as Our Lady asked.

So we pray for our Pope and Bishops, as we do in every Mass, that whatever they need to understand will be made clear to them; that they will have the wisdom and courage to do what they need to do.

All prayer is connected. One prayer leads the way to another prayer. When we pray to Mary, she prays to God. Our humble prayer is like putting a match to a fuse. Our prayer will enable other things to happen.

The more each of us does the better. It is vital that we pray even when there is no obvious reward; even if we think we are the only one praying, and feel discouraged etc.

No prayer is wasted. We keep hammering away. The great spiritual battle of our time will be won in this way.