For those of you who passed on this year’s pilgrimage to Fatima, all we can say is you missed the opportunity of a lifetime. The boys sounded wonderful and were well-received everywhere they performed, including on the steps of the seminary each evening before processing to the rosary procession in the Cova.
We headed off to Fatima with a sense of excitement and a bit of apprehension, since we knew that flights to Europe were heavily booked this summer, especially flights to cities near major pilgrimage sites. Our guardian angels were watching over us, however, not to mention St. Christopher, because everyone arrived in Lisbon safe and sound (and on time), despite Lufthansa’s attempt to bump two of our choir boys to a later flight out of Frankfurt. All we lost because of the mix-up was a few pieces of luggage, and those arrived before breakfast the next morning.
Our first morning was spent exploring the beautiful city of Lisbon. We visited the 800-year-old cathedral and the birthplace of St. Anthony across the street, then climbed the narrow, twisting streets to the Castle of St. George for a panoramic view of the city. After winding our way back down to the riverfront, where our buses were parked, we drove on to Sintra for lunch and a bit of shopping before driving on to Fatima.
After checking into the Seminario Consolata and eating dinner, we proceeded as a family to the Cova da Iria, site of the apparitions in 1917. We entered the Cova at dusk, just as the rosary procession was beginning. Many were choked with emotion, so I’ m afraid our first chorus of the Fatima Ave was pretty shaky, but in this instance the feeling behind it was more important than the musical quality. We ducked into the basilica to visit the tombs of Jacinta and Francisco, then headed back to the seminary for bed.
The next morning, we fell into the pattern that would continue for the rest of our stay in Fatima. After breakfast, the boys warmed up in the chapel before heading to the Cova for the morning Mass in the Chapel of the Apparitions. This chapel was built around the original chapel and the boys were seated within 20 feet of the statue of Our Lady which marks the exact spot on which she appeared.
After lunch, we ventured into the Portuguese sun to pray the stations of the cross. The stations cover the entire hillside between the Cova and the village of Aljustrel, where the "little seers" lived. Many were awed by the thought that the three children herded their sheep over the very path we were walking and that the stations had been paid for with money smuggled from behind the iron curtain. We ended the afternoon with visits to the houses in which the three children were born and lived, including the room in which Francisco died. After a quick visit to the parish church, we returned to the seminary.
The next morning, we made our official entrance as pilgrims by entering the Cova through the "Jubilee door," a gap through a wall built at the top of the hill opposite the basilica. The wall was inscribed with "I am the door, Whoever comes in by me will be saved" in dozens of languages. It was a wonderful affirmation of our oneness in the Lord, whatever our nationality or heritage.
Saturday brought us to the beautiful city of Coimbra, site of one of the oldest universities in Europe and home to Sister Lucia, the only surviving seer of Fatima. We had the honor of being allowed to visit the Carmelite convent where she lives and the boys filled her home with song. The boys sang in the chapel, which is graced by a beautiful statue of Our Lady. Sister Lucia collaborated with the artist and has said that while it is a very good likeness, no earthly statue can convey the heavenly beauty she saw in 1917 and continues to see to this day.
The Saturday evening rosary procession was the largest by far. Thousands of people had decended on the town for the Sunday Mass and other services and most of them had come to the Cova to begin their worship in the cool twilight. Once again, the boys had a place of honor within the Chapel of the Apparitions.
Sunday morning brought a brief shower, but nothing could dampen the spirits of the crowd, estimated at over 100,000, that gathered for the open-air Mass in front of the basilica. After the cantor (we nicknamed him the "Pavarotti Priest") went over the responses, the boys began singing from the relative comfort of the enclosed choir room behind the altar. Space was tight, as the boys were packed in with the shrine’s regular choir, but the sound was much better because of the superior microphones. At the end of the Mass, everyone waved white handkerchiefs as the statue of Our Lady was carried back to the Chapel of the Apparitions and everyone sang "Fatima Adeus."
The day was far from over, however. After lunch, the boys proceeded to Domus Pacis, home of the Blue Army, for a brief rehearsal and refreshments. Then we headed back to the Cova for a concert inside the basilica – a great honor. The basilica was absolutely packed. People stood in the side aisles and outside the windows to hear the boys sing and after the last note the appreciative crowd gave the choir a rousing standing ovation.
The boys then hustled back outside to the choir room behind the altar for the final event of their full day – the Eucharistic Procession. As the procession came to a close and the choir launched into the "Festival Canticle," parents could be seen throughout the crowd singing along with looks of absolute joy.
The perfect day was topped off with the group photos, taken at the top of the hill, with the basilica and the Chapel of the Apparitions in the background. After the shots of the boys had been taken, the full complement of ABC pilgrims joined them for a "family" photo. Between chasing away the friendly stray dogs that roam the Cova, individual families took turns photographing each other so that nobody would forget the inspiring experience of being in Fatima during the Jubilee year and the year that Jacinta and Francisco were beatified.
The final full day of our pilgrimage dawned cloudy and drizzly, but by the time we reached the first stop of our day-long bus tour, the sun had come out and the mist had burned off the mountains.
We began with a visit to the beautiful monastery of Batalha, built in honor of victory in a great battle (batalha) in 1385. The monastery is considered one of the finest examples of Manueline architecture and features a number of royal tombs, including that of Prince Henry the Navigator, and is the site of Portugal’s Tomb of the Unknowns from WWI. We marveled at the entrance to the Unfinished Chapels, the most intricate doorway you will ever see, said to have 14 layers of ornamentation.
Next we toured the monastery of Alcobaça, once home to nearly a thousand monks, and the largest church in Portugal. The Cistercian abbey, completed in 1223, is notable for its "skinny door" to the refectory. Monks who could not fit through the door had to subsist on bread and water until they could. (Good thing they didn’t do that at the seminary!) The gigantic kitchen had running water, supplied by a stream running through it, and an oven large enough to roast three whole oxen at a time.
Alcobaça is also noted for the tombs of Pedro I and his beloved, Ines de Castro. Ines had been murdered by Pedro’s enemies, so upon his ascension to the throne, Pedro had her corpse exhumed and seated at his side dressed in royal robes. The nobles were then forced to kiss her hand to prove their loyalty. The tombs are situated at either side of the altar, with the feet toward each other. Pedro believed that on Judgment Day, they would rise and see each other first before ascending to Heaven. The tombs were damaged by Napolean’s army when they encamped in the monastery during his invasion of Portugal.
We proceeded on to Óbidos, a picture-perfect city surrounded by 14th century castellated walls. After sharing our bag lunches in a small picnic grove overlooking the Roman aqueduct outside the walls, we spent most of the afternoon exploring the town. Many climbed the walls to take in the view of whitewashed houses, trimmed in bright blue or yellow, and the castle (now a five-star hotel) crowning the hill.
Our final stop of the day was the fishing village of Nazaré, a popular summer resort. We stopped at the top of the cliffs to take in the breathtaking view of the sweeping beaches below us, bathed in turquoise water. Moms and others looked for "true" Nazaré dolls with their seven petticoats, representing the seven seas.
Many also stopped in the tiny 17th century church of Our Lady of Nazaré, which contains a statue of the Virgin Mary said to have been brought there in the 4th century by a monk from Nazareth. The site at the top of the cliffs is also noted for a local dignitary’s miraculous rescue in 1182. He credited the Virgin with keeping his horse from following a deer that had jumped off the cliff in the mist.
After dinner, it was time for our farewell to Fatima. The choir once more participated in the evening rosary procession, but the evening was bittersweet. After the procession, we presented our petitions and offered prayers of thanksgiving for a truly inspirational pilgrimage – a PILGRIMAGE in every sense of the word.
We prayed and sacrificed to get there, but in the end all of the hard work was worth it. We’ll never forget the boys’ reactions after the final note was sung and they filed out of the Chapel of the Apparitions. Many boys and parents alike were overcome with emotion and didn’t want to leave. They lingered in the Cova, filling their bottles with water from the spring and themselves with the wonderful feeling of this place they had worked so hard to reach. Several said they never even went to bed, preferring to spend their last hours in Fatima visiting the Adoration Chapel or in individual prayer in the Chapel of the Apparitions before heading back to the seminary to pack for the long flight home.
The question on everyone’s lips was "when are we coming back?" and the general feeling was that the next time, we need to bring every boy because the 53 boys who made the pilgrimage will never forget the experience. Nobody who went on this pilgrimage came away untouched by the spirit of Fatima and for that we thank the Lord.
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