According to a report issued by the Center for Studies on New Religions, there were 90,000 Christians killed for their faith in 2016. As Robert Nicholson of the Philos Project has said, “There are many places on earth where being a Christian is the most dangerous thing you can be.” Open Doors, a non-denominational organization which supports persecuted Christians in more than 60 countries, has reported that there are 215 million Christians today who face intimidation, physical harm, loss of property and even death simply because they were Christians.
In June 2013, the European Union adopted “Guidelines on the Promotion and Protection of Freedom of Religion or Belief.” At the time, church leaders welcomed the directives. However, most recently, the secretary-general of the Council of European Bishops’ Conferences reported that there has been little movement defending religious liberty on the basis of these guidelines.
On Oct. 13, 1917, more than 70,000 people gathered in a small rural community about 110 miles north of Lisbon, Portugal. Reports that the Blessed Mother had promised a miracle on this day brought them to the Cova da Iria. It had rained throughout the night. The ground was muddy; the people, drenched. As the clock passed the predicted noon hour and nothing happened, skeptics jeered at the simple faith of the thousands waiting for the miracle.
This year we are celebrating the 100th anniversary of the apparitions of our Blessed Mother at Fatima. The message of Fatima, strengthened and authenticated by fulfillment of its prophecies in history, remains as needed today as it was when Lucia and her two cousins, Jacinta and Francisco, heard it from the lips of Our Lady. In an age when humankind continues its rebellion against the will of God, Mary repeats for each of us the first words of Jesus in his public ministry. She brings to us Christ’s call to conversion. “The kingdom of God is close at hand. Repent and believe the gospel” (Mk 1:15).