Help - Search - Members - Calendar
Full Version: The Fatima Visions Contradict The Bible: Excellent Article
Christian-Forum.net > Bible Studies > General Bible Study
dennis mann

http://www.evangelicaloutreach.org/fatima.htm



www.evangelicaloutreach.org has a free email newsletter,,,,,,,,,i recommend it, very much...........ask for it




********
Written and Posted in Christian Love


The Fatima Visions
Dan Corner
[Duplications of this article, without additions or omissions—including
author’s name and ministry address at the end of this article—are
permitted and strongly encouraged.]



249 pages contrasting the
Mary of Catholicism with
the Mary of the Holy Bible.
click the book

According to the Catholic church, the Virgin Mary appeared at Fatima, Portugal numerous times in 1917 to three little shepherds named Lucia, Francisco and Jacinta. Since the Roman Catholic church has endorsed and fully accepted these visions as being from God and they have in turn affected hundreds of millions of people over the years by their messages these are very important Marian apparitions. The Bible commands Christians to test all things, which includes visions:


Test everything. Hold on to the good. (1 Thess. 5:21)
How are we to test these visions to ascertain their source and know how sound the wishes and directives of the Mary of Catholicism are?
The Message of Fatima
The visions at Fatima consisting of three apparitions of angels and at least six apparitions of Mary, would have us focus our attention in upon Mary as our refuge, the way to God, protector, etc. Moreover, according to these Catholic visions, amends for sin are to be made to Mary. Please carefully note the following statements which were communicated by Mary (or Lucia about Mary) at Fatima. [All quotes in this list are from the booklet entitled, Lucia Speaks on The Message of Fatima printed by Ave Maria Institute and carry the nihil obstat and imprimatur.]
Say the Rosary every day in order to obtain peace for the world and the end of the war (p.24).
Jesus wishes to make use of you to make me known and loved. He wants to establish in the world devotion to my Immaculate Heart (p.26).

I (Mary) will never leave you. My Immaculate Heart will be your refuge and the way that will lead you to God (p.26).

In front of the palm of Our Lady’s right hand there was a heart encircled with thorns which pierced it. We understood that it was the Immaculate Heart of Mary, outraged by the sins of Humanity, and that She wanted reparation (pp.26,27).

What I do remember is that Our Lady said it was necessary for those persons to say the Rosary in order to obtain the graces during the year. And She continued: “Sacrifice yourself for sinners, and say often, especially when you make some sacrifice: ‘Oh Jesus, this is for love of You, for the conversion of sinners, and in reparation for the sins committed against the Immaculate Heart of Mary.’” (p. 29).

You have seen hell where the souls of poor sinners go. In order to save them, God wishes to establish in the world devotion to my Immaculate Heart. If you do what I tell you, many souls will be saved, there will be peace (p.30).

And then with a sad expression She said: “Pray, pray very much and make sacrifices for sinners, for many souls go to hell because they have nobody to pray and make sacrifices for them” (p.35).

I want to tell you that I wish a chapel to be erected here in my honour, for I am the Lady of the Rosary. Continue to say the Rosary every day (p.40).

The 1925 Message to Lucia
Then on December 10, 1925 Mary and the child Jesus appeared, according to Lucia. The child Jesus said:
Have pity on the Heart of your Most Holy Mother. It is covered with the thorns with which ungrateful men pierce it at every moment, and there is no one to remove them with an act of reparation (p. 46).
Then the personage presenting herself as Mary said to Lucia:
My daughter, look at My Heart surrounded with the thorns with which ungrateful men piece it at every moment by their blasphemies and ingratitude. You at least, try to console me, and say that I promise to assist at the hour of death with the graces necessary for salvation all those who, on the first Saturday of five consecutive months, go to Confession and receive Holy Communion, recite five decades of the Rosary and keep me company for a quarter of an hour while meditating on the mysteries of the Rosary, with the intention of making reparation to me (pp.46,47).
Is This The Mary of the Bible?
1. The Rosary is exalted in these visions, but is anti-scriptural in itself. Jesus taught:
But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. (Mat 6:6-8)
Nowhere in the Bible are we ever told to pray to Mary or repetitiously, as the Fatima visions would have us do. Furthermore the Rosary would have us wrongly think Mary is our life. See our detailed article on the rosary.
The Bible declares Jesus is our Life:

I am the bread of life. (John 6:48)
Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies” (John 11:25)

Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. (John 14:6)

When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. (Col 3:4)

The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. (1 John 1:2)

And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. (1 John 5:11)

He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. (1 John 5:12)

Dear reader, is Jesus your life or is Mary? Your answer will affect your eternal destiny.
2. Does Jesus wish to establish world devotion to Mary? Please know that such was never the desire or will of the Lord at any time as expressed in the Bible. Jesus repeatedly pointed people to Himself, and rightly so since he is the Savior, our Life, only Hope, all in all, etc. He told people to come to him, follow him, obey him, trust on him, believe on him and remain in him. The Lord never pointed anyone to Mary and Himself. It was never a Son/mother team in the Bible. Please remember this and note the following teachings of Jesus Himself:

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. (Mat 11:28)
The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, "Follow me." (John 1:43)

You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life. (John 5:39,40)

Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.” (John 6:35)

All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. (John 6:37)

On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." (John 7:37,38)

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." (John 8:12)

I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. (John 10:9)

"I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me” (John 10:14)

My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. (John 10:27)

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" (John 11:25 26)

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me” (John 14:1)

Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6)

"If you love me, you will obey what I command” (John 14:15)

Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him. (John 14:21)

Jesus replied, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me” (John 14:23,24)

Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. (John 15:4)

"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5)

If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. (John 15:6,7)

in regard to sin, because men do not believe in me; (John 16:9)

"My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, (John 17:20)

When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?" "Yes, Lord," he said, "you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Feed my lambs." Again Jesus said, "Simon son of John, do you truly love me?" He answered, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Take care of my sheep." The third time he said to him, "Simon son of John, do you love me?" Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, "Do you love me?" He said, "Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you." Jesus said, "Feed my sheep. (John 21:15-17)

We even see the Holy Spirit will bring glory to Jesus:
He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. (John 16:14)
Our devotion, trust, faith, reliance, love, etc. is to be on Jesus with no mention of Mary, based on Jesus’ teachings as well as his holy apostles. Moreover, Jesus is the one the Holy Spirit will glorify.
3. The Mary of the Bible could never say I will never leave you, as proclaimed in these visions. (Nor could she be our refuge or the way that will lead you to God). Please know it is only God who could promise the disciples that he would never leave them, since God is everywhere present:

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. (Deu 31:6)
The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. (Deut. 31:8)

No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. (Josh 1:5)

Also, our refuge is clearly God and Jesus—and not Mary too:
My God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation. He is my stronghold, my refuge and my savior—from violent men you save me. (2 Sam. 22:3).
As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is flawless. He is a shield for all who take refuge in him. (2 Sam 22:31)

Kiss the Son, lest he be angry and you be destroyed in your way, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all who take refuge in him. (Psa 2:12)

The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. (Psa 9:9)

You evildoers frustrate the plans of the poor, but the LORD is their refuge. (Psa 14:6)

The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. (Psa 18:2)

Most importantly we must know, for salvation’s sake, that Jesus is the way (or road) to the Father:
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6)
To say Mary is the way to God is to say we should trust in her for salvation, which is not only disobedience but spiritually deadly, according to the Bible.
4. To say Mary wants reparation for sins committed is to say that we are to make amends, satisfaction and restitution to her for sins, which is incredibly unscriptural. When people sin they don’t sin against Mary since she is not here among the living to be sinned against and neither is she deity. People either sin against a living person here among us now or against God, according to the Bible:

No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?" (Gen 39:9)
Otherwise, they will teach you to follow all the detestable things they do in worshiping their gods, and you will sin against the LORD your God. (Deu 20:18)

As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by failing to pray for you. And I will teach you the way that is good and right. (1 Sam 12:23)

Then he said, "Go out among the men and tell them, 'Each of you bring me your cattle and sheep, and slaughter them here and eat them. Do not sin against the LORD by eating meat with blood still in it.'" So everyone brought his ox that night and slaughtered it there. (1 Sam 14:34)

When they sin against you—for there is no one who does not sin—and you become angry with them and give them over to the enemy, who takes them captive to his own land, far away or near; (1 Ki 8:46)

In every case that comes before you from your fellow countrymen who live in the cities—whether bloodshed or other concerns of the law, commands, decrees or ordinances—you are to warn them not to sin against the LORD; otherwise his wrath will come on you and your brothers. Do this, and you will not sin. (2 Chr 19:10)

I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. (Psa 119:11)

For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. (Mat 6:14)

When you sin against your brothers in this way and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ. (1 Cor 8:12)

5. Unlike what the Fatima visions declare, no one can obtain grace by praying the rosary. If we could, then there is now a means to obtain grace that never existed for the first 1000 years in Christianity, since praying the Rosary began in 1090 A.D.
6. To save souls from Hell God wants the true gospel to be declared so forgiveness of sins can be found. Such never comes by devotion to Mary’s Immaculate Heart. The true gospel is summed up as repentance towards God and faith in Christ Jesus (Acts 20:21). We prove our repentance by our deeds (Acts 26:20) and must endure to the end to be saved (Mt. 10:22). This is the message that Jesus wanted his followers to spread throughout the world. Please note that Mary is not included in the message Jesus gave the disciples to spread.

Not The Mary of The Bible
7. The following is a clear example of a false gospel, but nonetheless is part of the salvation message at Fatima. The personage claiming to be Mary said:
I promise to assist at the hour of death with the graces necessary for salvation all those who, on the first Saturday of five consecutive months, go to Confession and receive Holy Communion, recite five decades of the Rosary and keep me company for a quarter of an hour while meditating on the mysteries of the Rosary, with the intention of making reparation to me (p. 47).
Dear reader, please know that Mary doesn’t have the ability or influence to make such a promise to assist in one’s salvation. Furthermore, even if she did, her directives are not true. All this talk about going to confession, receiving communion, reciting 5 decades of the Rosary, etc. is all foreign to the Bible. This was never the message of Jesus, Paul, Peter, John, James, etc. Did God have his salvation message changed or revised for us since Fatima? If He did, then there is now another way to obtain salvation since the Fatima visions, which is impossible. There has only been one true plan of salvation alongside many counterfeits. The following is most relevant about a false gospel:
.... Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned! As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned! (Gal 1:7-9)
All this evidence from comparing (and contrasting) the message of Fatima to the Bible forces one to conclude the personage representing Mary was not the Mary of the Bible. The Mary of the Bible never had any role in one’s salvation, as already proven. Never did any sinner go to Mary to get to Jesus. Never is Mary shown to have more mercy or compassion on sinners than Jesus did, etc. The message of Fatima draws our attention and trust from the Lord Jesus and places them upon a creature (Mary). Even though sincere Catholic people may be trying to reach out to God by observing the Fatima message, we must come to God the way the Lord taught to receive salvation results.
The Vision of Moses and Elijah
Peter, John and James had a vision of Moses and Elijah in their glorious splendor:
About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray. As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. Two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem. Peter and his companions were very sleepy, but when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. As the men were leaving Jesus, Peter said to him, "Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah." (He did not know what he was saying.) While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. A voice came from the cloud, saying, "This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him." When the voice had spoken, they found that Jesus was alone. The disciples kept this to themselves, and told no one at that time what they had seen (Lk. 9:28-36).
Moses and Elijah spoke with Jesus about his departure, which would be fulfilled at Jerusalem. (Jesus’ departure refers to his physical death.) Please note that no unscriptural statements were uttered by Moses or Elijah. Nothing they declared would cause one to trust in them for anything, including protection, salvation or anything else. Furthermore, there was a form of correction that needed to be issued as a result of this vision. It was given to Peter who wrongly wanted to exalt these two men to the same level as the Lord by building a shelter for them as he wanted one also built for the Lord. The voice from the cloud (God the Father) rebuked Peter for even the suggestion that these men are on a par with Jesus and declared that we are listen to Jesus.
We can learn from that vision and correction issued to Peter. Again, please know that even though someone would appear in glorious splendor, that in itself doesn’t mean that the vision could not be misunderstood, as Peter did. Most importantly, Moses and Elijah didn’t speak in any unscriptural way. They merely spoke with the Lord about his departure, which was 100% in accord with Scripture.

Is Mary Blessed Because She Gave Birth To Jesus?
Nearly two thousand years ago, a woman tried to publically exalt Mary on the basis that she gave birth to Jesus in the presence of the Lord Himself and his disciples. This is how the eternal record states it:
As Jesus was saying these things, a woman in the crowd called out, "Blessed is the mother who gave you birth and nursed you." He replied, "Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it." (Luke 11:27,28)
Did the Lord approve of her praise of Mary? Holy Writ states that the Lord publicly rebuked that Mary-exalting woman for that notion and set the record straight on who is blessed with these words: Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it. Please note that Jesus wants all to know that any person hearing and obeying God’s word is blessed more than Mary on the basis she gave birth to Jesus. Dear reader do you believe what Jesus taught here? Please read his eternal words again:
As Jesus was saying these things, a woman in the crowd called out, "Blessed is the mother who gave you birth and nursed you." He replied, "Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.” (Luke 11:27,28)
Satan Can Masquerade as an Angel of Light
Among the many ways the devil tries to deceive people is through visions. According to the following we must be on guard against such a subtle form of deception:
And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. (2 Cor 11:14)
That truth explains why the message of Fatima is so foreign to the Bible. It also explains how such a vision could endorse many Catholic practices which are unscriptural in themselves. Please know that Mormonism and Seventh Day Adventism also claim visions from God, but they flatly contradict the visions of Catholicism. Since God can’t be contradicting Himself with all of these visions there has to be another source of visions besides God. According to Scripture that other source is the devil. Deception is the work of the arch-deceiver, who is trying to mislead precious souls trying to find God. Dear reader, to know God’s will for you and how to find salvation, go to the New Testament and trust its message above everything else you were ever taught. It in turn will point you to Jesus and Him alone for your salvation.
The Solar Miracle and Healings
If the devil is try to deceive sincere people through these visions, then how should we view the solar miracle and healings that have occurred there? On July 13th, Lucia requested a miracle from Mary so that everyone will believe that you have appeared to us. In response, Mary answered:
Continue to come here every month. In October I will tell you who I am and what I want, and will perform a miracle so that all may believe (p. 29).
The miracle on October 13, 1917 is described by Lucia in the following words:
... And opening Her hands, She made them reflect on the sun. While She ascended, the reflection from Her person was projected on the sun itself. That is the reason why I cried aloud “Look at the sun” (p. 40).
Besides the solar miracle there have been reported physical healings over the years at Fatima. Undoubtedly, many would view this as surely being the handiwork of God. But the truth is, if we go to Scripture, we learn there are two sources of such miraculous/healing power—God and the devil. Please see our important and detailed article on this.
The Fatima Discrepancies
On May 13, 1917 when the Mary of Fatima started to appear to the three little shepherd children, among other things, she told them:
I came to ask you to come here [Cova da Iria] for six successive months, on the 13th day at the same hour. Later I will tell you what I want. And I will return here yet a seventh time. (Lucia Speaks on The Message of Fatima [Ave Maria Institute, Washington, New Jersey], p. 22.)
Wrong Time and Place!
The fourth apparition occurred on August 15, 1917 in a place different from the Cova da Iria called Valinhos. ( Ibid., p. 33.) A different source shows a four day discrepancy from this account:
On the afternoon of Sunday 19 August, Lucia, Francisco and his broth John were pasturing the sheep in a rocky field known as Valinhos, about a mile from Fatima, when suddenly they noticed the beginning of the extraordinary atmospheric phenomena that has preceded the visions in the Cova da Iria. (Francis Johnson, Fatima: The Great Sign [Tan Books and Publishers, Rockford, Illinois], p. 45.)
Note: In both quotes it was not on the 13th of the month and not in the place where Mary told the children to be to see the apparition. Is it possible the all-knowing God was taken by surprise and had to send Mary to a different place on a different day then originally announced?
Penance For Salvation —Drinking Pond Water?
As a result of the Fatima message the three children were influenced in the following way behavior-wise:
The three children undertook the most severe penance for the salvation of sinners. They wore a rope tightly round their waists; they gave their lunches to the poor, or even to their sheep; they didn’t drink during the furnace-like heat of August 1917—an almost unendurable penance as anyone who has stayed in Fatima during that month will appreciate. Later, Jacinta even wanted to drink water from a pond frequented by cattle. (Fatima: The Great Sign, p. 37.)
Again, from a Biblical point of view the above statements are far from God’s truth, especially in the following ways: (1) Jesus on Calvary’s cross was the all-sufficient and final sacrifice for sinners. There is nothing Lucia, Jacinta or any other, as sincere as he may be, improve upon that one-time-for-all-sin sacrifice, (2) It is impossible that Mary has been sinned against, as suggested, and that reparation (satisfaction) needs to be made to her. (3) In October, the Mary of Fatima revealed herself as the Lady of the Rosary. (Ibid., p.40.) This again shows the spiritual force behind these apparitions is not the same as what gave us the Scriptures.
The Bad Fruit of Fatima and Other Visions
Sadly, Jacinta trusted in Mary for her salvation, at least in part, because of the visions she saw:
During this period her [Jacinta] love of God and Our Lady seems to have risen to ecstatic heights. She never tired repeating: “.... Sweet Heart of Mary, be my salvation!” (Fatima The Great Sign, pp. 82,83.)
Only God knows how many others have likewise been misled through Marian visions over the years. As astronomical as that number is, it is even larger when one would include the ones deceived by the visions that Joseph Smith and Ellen G. White claim to have had that has adversely affected millions of Mormons and Seventh Day Adventists throughout the years.
Fatima: a Compendium of the Catholic Faith
As the Bishop of Fatima expressed it in 1975: “Fatima as a whole is a compendium of the Catholic Faith.” (Fatima, The Great Sign, inside back cover)
To be more exact, the Fatima visions confirmed the following doctrines, most of which are distinctively Catholic and unscriptural:
The apparitions of Our Lady in the following year again emphasise (sic) the priority of penance and prayer, particularly the devout daily recitation of the gospel prayer of the rosary “which contains all the mysteries of our salvation,” as Pope Leo XIII pointed out. Also confirmed in Our Lady’s appearances were the doctrine of the Holy Trinity, the Sacrifice of the Mass, the authority of the Pope, the existence of Heaven, Purgatory and Hell, of saints and demons that Modernists try to eliminate, the meaning and value of suffering, the evil of sin and the serious obligation of every committed Christian to the work of atonement, the necessity of interior conversion, the indwelling of God in the souls of the just by grace, the mystery of Christ’s redemption, the unique role of Mary as our Mediatrix with Christ, the importance of devotion to the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, the practice of the virtues and the spiritual and corporal works of mercy and so on. Even the doctrine of original sin is implied at Fatima, for the Immaculate Heart of Mary, which Fatima underlines, clearly brings into focus the Immaculate Conception which in turn points to the doctrine of the Fall. (Fatima, The Great Sign, pp. 75,76.)
Another False Gospel
It is crystal clear from the evidence that the Mary of Fatima is not the Mary of the Bible. There is only one way to be saved and Mary is not even indirectly connected in the smallest manner with our salvation, according to the Bible. Mary has absolutely no role in our salvation, that is, unless you accept Scripture-contradicting-Marian-visions (and other Catholic materials) that would state she does. But to do that is to dangerously ignore the fact that the Scriptures (or sacred writings) are able to give us the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus:
And that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus (2 Tim. 3:15).
Notice how the Scriptures will cause us to place our faith in Jesus alone for salvation. Hence, not only don’t we need to go elsewhere for salvation directions, we can be assured all other sources (visions, papal decrees, etc.) that would differ with what the Scriptures declare are not from the same source that gave us the Bible.
The Acid Test For Visions
Again, the real test for Fatima is the message itself and how it parallels or contradicts the message of the Bible. It is not if there are miracles or healings, but the message itself. When such is examined, Fatima is shown to be of a different source than the one who gave us the Bible. To be more exact, this different source is an enemy trying to lead us away from absolute 100% trust and reliance on Jesus, who is our life, for our salvation, as declared in the Scriptures. Dear reader, please for your own soul’s sake carefully reread this important article and verify all Scripture references for yourself. Don’t just trust another to do this for you. Souls are at stake over this issue. Please pass this article on to a Catholic friend. GOD BLESS YOU.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



Contact Us Or Join Our Email List


Evangelical Outreach
PO Box 265, Washington, PA 15301

BibleScholar
A better way to prove this is to prove that the event did not happen.

It was said that the sun dances that one day as a sign because the people were asking for it to see it to believe it. If the sun dances, wouldn't the surrounding areas also see the same sun? How come it did not dance to them? Was it an illusion or a trickery for those who are within that small area? Was it something they ate like bread who yeast gave them the hallucination effect?

Whatever the case, we have to look at how our own bible is constructed. Where the OT ends, the NT continues but does the NT contradicts any of the OT teachings?

So now we have the end of the NT which talks about the book of Revelation. Is that it? Can there not a continuation or other messages to come? If we are not to accept any (must somehow be proven) messages from the future that sounds divine then it is the same as how we should throw out the NT if it contradicts the OT.

Now what I am concerning is the message from this Mary and how it flows or favors the doctrine of the RCC. Why not the message of this Mary talks about other denominations outside the RCC? Praying with the rosary does not do good for any other denominations but the RCC.

There are many other Mary's apparition from around the world and still, all of them talks to favor the RCC. When will we get something like a Joseph who appears to little children and talk about reading the bible and/or anything else that does not favor the RCC like rosary and ect. ect?

Don't tell me the RCC gets all the fun like it is the only true religion for all of these RCC events be happening.
dennis mann
QUOTE (BibleScholar @ Nov 17 2008, 04:39 PM) *
A better way to prove this is to prove that the event did not happen.

It was said that the sun dances that one day as a sign because the people were asking for it to see it to believe it. If the sun dances, wouldn't the surrounding areas also see the same sun? How come it did not dance to them? Was it an illusion or a trickery for those who are within that small area? Was it something they ate like bread who yeast gave them the hallucination effect?

Whatever the case, we have to look at how our own bible is constructed. Where the OT ends, the NT continues but does the NT contradicts any of the OT teachings?

So now we have the end of the NT which talks about the book of Revelation. Is that it? Can there not a continuation or other messages to come? If we are not to accept any (must somehow be proven) messages from the future that sounds divine then it is the same as how we should throw out the NT if it contradicts the OT.

Now what I am concerning is the message from this Mary and how it flows or favors the doctrine of the RCC. Why not the message of this Mary talks about other denominations outside the RCC? Praying with the rosary does not do good for any other denominations but the RCC.

There are many other Mary's apparition from around the world and still, all of them talks to favor the RCC. When will we get something like a Joseph who appears to little children and talk about reading the bible and/or anything else that does not favor the RCC like rosary and ect. ect?

Don't tell me the RCC gets all the fun like it is the only true religion for all of these RCC events be happening.




a multitude of people were there,,,,,,,,,,,they all saw the same things,,,,,,,,they heard the same things.........the newspaper men were there to record every word and event

the apparition happened 6 times, a month apart, for 6 months

so, it was not illusion............the apparition was super-natural,,,,,,,,by the power of satan

God allows satan, demons, and men to lie to us, and decieve us,,,,,,,to TEST our faith

God TESTED Abraham's faith.........Genesis 22;1-12

God TESTED Job's faith

God is TESTING my faith
Mosesjoel
Yes Satan does appear as many things including an angel of light.

I cannot understand why Catholics have to play for salvation through Mary, Mother of Christ.
Mary cannot answer their prays as she has been dead for almost 2000 years now and laying in her common grave conscience of nothing at all as Jesus Christ told us what of the dead.

Conscience are the living, as for the dead they are conscience of nothing atall

Mary is awaiting her resurrection when Haydes gives up it's dead. But Catholics deny what the real scriptures teach
as being 'The Mother of God' is blasfermous as God had no mother he has always been only Jesus Christ had an Earthly mother being Mary.
BibleScholar
QUOTE
a multitude of people were there,,,,,,,,,,,they all saw the same things,,,,,,,,they heard the same things.........the newspaper men were there to record every word and event

the apparition happened 6 times, a month apart, for 6 months


so it is a supernatural event and so it is real as it is being recorded?

If you say that it is the work of Satan when you were not even there then I will say that if ever in the coming future and we see Jesus or the second coming, it too is the work of Satan.

Now read the bible again to how many people are calling Jesus names as though he is satan himself. Are we guilty of it? Is that not what we are doing? The bible spoke of the past is a reflection to how we are today. We are no different in the way we think or shall I say, men think. You can be a saint like Peter but yet, even peter denies Jesus so what does that tell about us? Are we that fallible?

When we speak against what is good then that is the work of Satan. Now you tell me what good did fatima's message did to the world. If it is good then how can it be bad?
Here Am I


This is the story of meetings that took place in Fatima, Portugal, in 1917, between three children named Lucia, Francisco, and Jacinta and a brilliantly effulgent lady whom they understood to be the Virgin Mary. As we shall see, this story is relevant to the UFO question, and it is backed up by an unprecedented amount of eyewitness testimony.

The meetings occurred on the 13th of the month for 6 successive months
in a natural amphitheater called the Cova da Iria near the town of Fatima. Revelations were made to the three children in the presence of a large throng of onlookers, which increased greatly from month to month as news spread. The actual visions of the beautiful lady could be seen only by the three children, and so our knowledge of these visions is limited to their testimony. However, during the revelations there occurred related phenomena that were witnessed by large numbers of people.


These phenomena included the appearance of a glowing, globe- shaped vehicle and the occurrence of a shower of rose petals that vanished upon touching the ground. Showers of flower petals are often mentioned in Vedic accounts of celestial visitations.[In other words, the rebel angels who pretended to be Vedic gods did the same things as the rebel angels who are now pretending to be Mary... perhaps they are the same rebellious entities? - ww] For example, here is an excerpt from the description of Krsna's rasa dance in the Bhagavata Purana:

The demigods and their wives were overwhelmed with eagerness to witness the rasa dance, and they soon crowded the sky with their hundreds of celestial airplanes. Kettledrums then resounded in the sky while flowers rained down and the chief Gandharvas and their wives sang Lord Krsna's spotless glories.

As for the aerial globe, one eyewitness, Mgr. J. Quaresma, described its appearance on September 13, 1917, as follows:

"To my surprise, I see clearly and distinctly a globe of light advancing from east to west, gliding slowly and majestically through the air...Suddenly the globe with its extraordinary light vanished, but near us a little girl of about ten con- tinues to cry joyfully: 'I still see it! I still see it! Now it is going down!'"

In his report about what happened after these events, Quaresma said, "My friend, full of enthusiasm, went from group to group... asking people what they had seen. The persons asked came from the most varied social classes and all unanimously affirmed the reality of the phenomena which we ourselves had observed."

THE SOLAR MIRACLE


During one of the revelations, the child Lucia had requested that a miracle be shown so that people unable to see the divine lady could believe in the reality of what was happening. She was told that this would occur on the 13th of October, and she immediately communicated this to others.

On this date, it is estimated that some 70,000 people congregated in the vicinity of the Cova da Iria in anticipation of the predicted miracle. The day was overcast and rainy, and the crowd huddled under umbrellas in the midst of a sea of mud. Suddenly, the clouds parted, and an astonishing solar display began to unfold. I will describe this in the words of some of the witnesses:

Dr. Joseph Garrett, Professor of Natural Sciences at Coimbra University:


"The sun's disc did not remain immobile. This was not the sparkling of a heavenly body, for it spun round on itself in a mad whirl, when suddenly a clamour was heard from all the people. The sun, whirling, seemed to loosen itself from the firmament and advance threateningly upon the earth as if to crush us with its huge fiery weight. The sensation during those moments was terrible."

Dr. Formigao, a professor at the seminary at Santarem:

"As if like a bolt from the blue, the clouds were wrenched apart, and the sun at its zenith appeared in all its splendour. It began to revolve vertiginously on its axis, like the most magnificent firewheel that could be imagined, taking on all the colors of the rainbow and sending forth multi-colored flashes of light, producing the most astounding effect. This sublime and incomparable spectacle, which was repeated three distinct times, lasted for about ten minutes. The immense multitude, overcome by idence of such a tremendous prodigy, threw themselves on their knees."

Similar testimony was given by large numbers of people, both from the crowd at the Cova da Iria and from a surrounding area measuring about 20 by 30 miles. The presence of confirming witnesses over such a large area suggests that the phenomenon cannot be explained as the result of crowd hysteria. The absence of reports from a wider area and the complete absence of reports from scientific observatories suggest that the phenomenon was local to the region of Fatima. It seems there are two possibilities. [b]Either remarkable atmospheric phenomena were arranged by an intelligent agency at a time announced specifically in advance or coordinated hallucinations in thousands of people were similarly arranged at this time. By either interpretation, it is hard to fit these phenomena into the framework of modern science.

Although there seems to be a remarkable amount of testimony attesting to the unusual phenomena at Fatima, it is also relatively easy to dismiss them, if that is what one wants to do. For example, consider the following statement by a skeptical newspaper reporter:

"According to what we heard, there were people who seemed to see the sun leave its supposed orbit, break through the clouds and descend to the horizon. The impression of these seers spread to others, in a common effort to explain the phenomenon, many crying out in fear that the giant orb would precipitate itself to the earth on top of them, and imploring the protection of the Holy Virgin. The 'miraculous hour' passed."

Here simple suggestibility and crowd hysteria are used to explain how a few people's imaginary ideas were spread and amplified by frenzied believers. However, this doesn't explain how it came about that many people in surrounding communities also witnessed the solar spectacle. For example, in 1960 the Rev. Joaquim Lourenco, a canon lawyer of the diocese of Leira, described what he saw as a boy in the town of Alburitel, some nine miles from Fatima:

"I feel incapable of describing what I saw, I looked fixedly at the sun, which seemed pale and did not hurt my eyes [maybe it did not look like the sun because it wasn't the sun... it was a UFO - ww]. Looking like a ball of snow, revolving on itself, it suddenly seemed to come down in a zig-zag, menacing the earth. Terrified, I ran and hid myself among the people, who were weeping and expecting the end of the world at any moment."

It would seem unlikely that mass hysteria would give rise to the same illusions in Fatima, Alburitel, and other separated communities.

THE BEINGS SEEN AT FATIMA

The manifestations at Fatima were strongly connected with religion, and with Roman Catholicism in particular. I should emphasize, however, that all testimony regarding communication with the effulgent lady and other paranormal beings comes solely from the three children, since only they could actually see these beings and hear them speak.

The lady would appear to the children as a dazzling, beautiful figure standing directly above a small holm oak tree that grew in the Cova da Iria. According to Lucia, "She was more brilliant than the sun, and she radiated a sparkling light from her person, clearer and more intense than that of a crystal filled with glittering water and transpierced by the rays of the most burning sun." Her message to the children was couched explicitly in the terminology of the Catholic Church, and it consisted mainly of warnings that unless people give up sinful life and turn back to God, there will be terrible divine punishment, and various nations will be annihilated.



[The message was non-Biblical, and a messenger from God would not contradict the Gospel. No matter what puny humans do, God will carry out what He has determined to carry out i.e. Divine punishment of sinful dwellers on the Earth. The intelligent supernatural being pretending to be Mary urged the listeners to "pray constantly", say the Rosary, and vaguley somehow "turn back towards God". Despite human efforts or some rebel angel or demon pretending to be Mary ... THE WRATH OF GOD WILL STILL FALL ON THE EARTH BECAUSE BIBLE PROPHECY SAYS IT WILL. The Book of Revelation will be fulfilled just as God says, and the prophecy of Daniel concerning the "tribulation" will come to pass, no matter what puny humans do. And if this glowing creature is really the mother of Jesus, then where is the Good News in her message? She says nothing of Christ's Atonement, and her message is inconsistant with the Gospel. Galatians 1:7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. - ww]


Before their meetings with the lady, the three children also had encounters with an angel. At the time of the first encounter they were tending their sheep at a rocky knoll not far from their home. They saw across the valley a dazzling globe of light like a miniature sun, gliding slowly towards them. As it approached, the ball of light gradually resolved itself into a brilliantly shining young man, who seemed to be about fourteen years old. He identified himself as the "Angel of Peace" and enjoined them to recite the following prayer: "My God, I believe, I adore, I hope, I love Thee. I ask pardon for those who do not believe, nor adore, nor hope, nor love Thee." Then he disappeared by fading away.

FATIMA AS A UFO-ENCOUNTER CASE

How should we interpret these experiences? Of course, one approach is to dismiss them as illusions or attempt physical explanations similar to Terence Meaden's. Another is to propose that they are UFO encounters. For example, Wendelle Stevens did this straightforwardly in one of his books, in a chapter entitled "The Fatima UFO Sightings." Jacques Vallee also argued that the events at Fatima are UFO encounters and not divine miracles as understood by the Catholic Church.

My response to this proposal is to say "yes and no." On the one hand, the events at Fatima have many features that are also seen in UFO accounts. There are glowing globes of light that might be vehicles and were regarded as such by some of the people who saw them. Stevens and Vallee even interpreted the spectacular spinning solar disc of October 13 as a disc-shaped UFO. This may be valid, since it moved about in a zig-zag pattern, gave off colored beams of light, and could be looked at directly without hurting people's eyes. It may well have been a flying device, which finally departed by flying in the direction of the real sun when the latter became visible through the heavy overcast.

On the other hand, there is some danger of creating a stereotyped idea of UFOs and UFO encounters, and imposing this on the evidence. Our ideas about UFOs are empirically based, and they tend to expand and transform as we learn more about the full range of relevant empirical evidence. Clearly, not all UFO encounters are the same. Both the entities involved and the technology they employ show considerable variability. Thus to force Fatima into a preconceived UFO theory might block us from getting an understanding of what was really going on.

To support his view that the Fatima events involved UFOs rather than religious revelations, Vallee stretched some of the evidence. Thus he said that the lady appearing to the children "had not said she was the Virgin Mary. She had simply stated she was 'from Heaven.'" She, indeed, said this during her first visitation on May 13, but she added that she would reveal her identity on October 13. On that date she identified herself as the "Lady of the Rosary" -- an explicitly Catholic designation. [Yes, and that is the partial truth of the BIG LIE... of course a fallen angel would claim it was from heaven -- because it is -- and of course it would identify with the Rosary, a tool of promoting idolatry and totally in keeping with the occultism and eastern mysticism they wish to promote instead of the Gospel. - ww]

The children's encounters with the Angel of Peace are consistent with this: "Through the white radiance of his presence the children could see that he held a chalice with a Host above it, from which drops of Blood fell into the cup." If this is an honest statement of what the children saw, we must conclude that whoever the angel may have been, he was making use of explicit Catholic symbolism.


After seeing the angel with the chalice, the children experienced a sense of utter weakness and remained prostrated on the ground, praying, until evening. Vallee spoke of this as paralysis and compared it to the paralysis connected with many UFO encounters. However, there are forms of weakness, including hysterical paralysis, that are caused by powerful emotional experiences and may have nothing whatsoever to do with UFOs. This seems to be the kind of weakness that is involved here. The children's experiences can be contrasted with those of UFO abductees, who describe the terror of being immobilized by weird beings who lay them out on tables and stick probes into their bodies.

There is a striking contrast between the Fatima visitations and many UFO encounters. In a large group of these encounters, the beings involved are said to have gray, pasty, or mushroom like complexions, terrifying slanted eyes, slit mouths, and vestigial noses. They come in the night, carry people off helplessly, and subject them to sexual molestation. The victims experience psychological trauma, and in some cases develop physical diseases.

Of course, there are other cases in which people have claimed to have relatively friendly contacts with humanoids of various descriptions, including some who looked completely human. In some cases, these beings have conveyed messages to people, and some of these messages were quite complex. As in the case of Fatima, these messages have often been critical of human behavior, and they have often predicted disasters of various kinds. They have also sometimes contained philosophical and theological material.


Witness exclusivity is another feature that Fatima shares with many other UFO cases. The angels and the effulgent lady were seen only by the three children, although thousands of other people present in the Cova da Iria witnessed aerial light displays that tended to back up the children's story.

UFO cases can be regarded as falling along a broad continuum of types. This continuum is not linear. Rather it should be defined by several variables, which might include (1) the degree of friendliness of the contacts, (2) the degree of humanness of the contacting beings, and (3) some measure of the quality of the communicated material.

The Fatima case can certainly be added to this continuum, but I would suggest that it constitutes an outlying point that is quite far removed from the majority of other cases reported in the existing UFO literature. Thus it would rate very high in (1) and (2), especially if we measure humanness in terms of attractive qualities such as beauty. It is hard to define measure (3), but it is clear that the Fatima communications are unusual in the sense of being strongly oriented towards Roman Catholicism. Apart from this, they display an emphasis on spiritual devotion that is rarely seen in UFO communications, including those of a philosophical nature.

One interesting project would be to make a general survey of all cultural traditions in search of cases in which people have claimed to meet beautiful, effulgent beings that conveyed spiritual teachings. Many of these cases would probably display typical features connected with the UFO phenomenon, although these would often have more to do with the behavior and powers of the beings involved than with UFOs per se. Thus the UFO continuum might be seen as part of a larger mystical-humanoid continuum. Fatima would probably appear as a typical point in this larger assemblage.


Vallee summed up his viewpoint by saying, "In many UFO stories of the olden days, the witnesses thought they had seen angels from God....Others thought they had seen devils. The difference may be small."

On the contrary, the difference seems quite large to me. The various kinds of encounters in the UFO continuum may all be similar in that they involve similar powers and technologies lying beyond our present understanding. But the extreme points of the continuum are strikingly different with regard to the behavior and, by implication, the consciousness of the beings involved.

If the manifestations at Fatima were not "typical UFO phenomena" and did use Christian symbolism, does this mean that we should interpret them in an exclusive Christian sense? The answer is no, because the same reasoning that would induce one to take the Fatima manifestations seriously can equally well be applied to other meetings with divine beings occurring in non-Christian contexts. Some may argue that only the Christian (and specifically the Catholic) meetings are genuine, and all others are the work of Satan. [No, a Catholic might argue that, but true Christians would admit that ALL are the work of satan - ww] However, if beings demonstrating divine qualities in all non-Christian traditions are actually clever deceptions created by a cosmic trickster, then surely the same thing can be said of the divine beings of Christianity. [Yes, all divine-seeming apparitions in this modern age ARE clever deceptions of a cosmic trickster... but the idolatrous reverence of apparitions described is only Catholic, not Christian. -ww] This brings us back to Vallee's position that the angels and devils are all the same.
No, it would bring us to the conclusion that beings claiming to be ** Catholic angels, saints or the Virgin Mary ** are the same as devils. Any true Christian would tell you that the "divine beings" sighted in modern apparitions like Fatima, Bayside, Medjagorge, Georgia etc. are NOT the Biblical Mary but some creature impersonating her for a deceptive religious agenda. Christians do not believe in Marian apparitions, only Catholics do. You folks can write to me and complain about this, but I am sorry to say... if you hold on to the idolatrous belief that there are angels and the Virgin Mary out there appearing to folks and telling them to pray the rosary and go to church ... then you are not truly of the Called Out, and you are not truly Christian. - ww
The point should also be made that while the communications at Fatima were expressed in explicitly Catholic terms, they also added something new to Catholicism. In his discussion of the Fatima revelations, Francis Johnston made it clear that they have caused a great deal of controversy within the Catholic Church, and the new material (including, for example, the idea of consecrating Russia to the Heart of Mary) has not been immediately and universally acceptable. Protestants will declare that the Catholic cult of Mary is a controversial addition to Christianity, and, of course, Christianity itself arose at a certain point in history. It would seem that at Fatima a new revelation was made in the context of an older tradition, and this has also been done many times in the past. [Yeah, but the current Pope doesn't care if Fatima adds to Catholicism... he is willing, as are most Catholics, to accept supernatural beings at their word. - ww]

Here is another example. In the sixth century A.D., a man in Arabia experienced a vision of the Angel Gabriel "in the likeness of a man, standing in the sky above the horizon." The man was ordered to become a prophet, and over a number of years he would periodically go into trance and dictate messages that were carefully noted and memorized by his followers. The man was named Mohammed, and the messages he delivered in trance were later compiled to form the Koran. [Yep, but don't forget another religion that distorts the Gospel, given to a "prophet" named Joseph Smith by an angelic being... Mormonism. ww]

Galatians 1:8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned!

(Excerpts from. Alien Identities: Ancient Insights into Modern UFO Phenomena)
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/096.../watcherwebsite


dennis mann
QUOTE (BibleScholar @ Nov 18 2008, 04:49 PM) *
QUOTE
a multitude of people were there,,,,,,,,,,,they all saw the same things,,,,,,,,they heard the same things.........the newspaper men were there to record every word and event

the apparition happened 6 times, a month apart, for 6 months


so it is a supernatural event and so it is real as it is being recorded?

If you say that it is the work of Satan when you were not even there then I will say that if ever in the coming future and we see Jesus or the second coming, it too is the work of Satan.

Now read the bible again to how many people are calling Jesus names as though he is satan himself. Are we guilty of it? Is that not what we are doing? The bible spoke of the past is a reflection to how we are today. We are no different in the way we think or shall I say, men think. You can be a saint like Peter but yet, even peter denies Jesus so what does that tell about us? Are we that fallible?

When we speak against what is good then that is the work of Satan. Now you tell me what good did fatima's message did to the world. If it is good then how can it be bad?


i don't understand your post

the apparition is a lie/deception from satan...........it hurt people.........it did not help people.........it helped to lead people away from Biblical Christianity into RCC religion

the apparition contradicted the bible,,,,,,,,thus, we know that it's not from God (it is satanic)
This is a "lo-fi" version of our main content. To view the full version with more information, formatting and images, please click here.
Invision Power Board © 2001-2009 Invision Power Services, Inc.