We propose book about three children of Fatima, Lucy, Francisco, Jacinta. In the book by Fr. Stehlin, we read short biographies of children and their spirituality.
The life that the three children led after Our Lady’s appearances to them is an indirect lesson from heaven for us, but a very practical one. It teaches us that when heaven appears on earth, what is of the earth is transformed by heaven’s light. When Our Lady appears to a human being, that person becomes a vessel to whom the light and graces of Our Lady are entrusted. The human vessel becomes an instrument for her to continue to pour her grace and mercy into the world. We cannot have a full understanding of Guadalupe without Juan Diego or of Lourdes without Saint Bernadette.
Not only is the eye witness testimony of the visionaries important, but also their words and especially their lives. They are the reflection as of a mirror of her presence on earth!
These living testimonies of her and her message are very important for us, because while we cannot see Our Lady herself, we are able to see the visionaries as reflections of her. Since the children perfectly applied and realized the requests of Our Lady of Fatima, we can use their example and understanding of her message as a key to the true understanding of the spirituality of Fatima and the deepest intentions of the Immaculate Heart.
We can see how Our Lady chooses very different and even contrasting characters as her privileged children, and she uses them in different capacities to illustrate various aspects of her message. Jacinta was a very active little girl, a whirlwind of energy, the liveliest of the three children, one who could captivate and lead the other two. Francisco, on the contrary, was very calm, one could say phlegmatic, loving solitude and reflection. Lucy had all the qualities of a faithful witness: thorough circumspection, excellent memory, a sense for detail and especially a deep sense of honesty.
Let us consider the spirituality of each of these three children, beloved of Heaven. We will start, in chronological order of their death, with Francisco, then reflect upon Jacinta, and finally Lucy.
