Our Lady of Fatima

To answer the second question first, Fatima is a small town located in Portugal. The town has a population of around 7,756 people. Fatima,as well as other regions, is a town filled with men and women, old and young, that impulsively mix work with faith. Like most small towns,everyone knows everyone. The name 'Fatima' seems to derive itself from a young Moorish princess who was captured by Christians and then forced to convert to Catholicism.
Fatima is known for the apparitions that have taken place from May 13 - October 13, 1917. The apparitions were from the Virgin Mary who at the time, presented herself to three young shepherd children named Jacinta, Lucy and Francisco and told them that she was the Lady of The Rosary. She appeared a total of six times to the children in Fatima; a village who had remained faithful to the Catholic Church despite the appeals and persecutions of the government. On May 13,2007 Pope Benedict XVI said, "Today is the ninetieth anniversary of the apparitions of Our Lady of Fatima. With their powerful call to conversion and penance, they are without doubt the most prophetic of all modern apparitions." Certainly, we should hold this village as a role model for other communities all over the world.
Dates of Apparitions
First Apparition - May 13, 1917
Second Apparition - June 13, 1917
Third Apparition - June 13, 1917
Fourth Apparition - August 13, 1917
Fifth Apparition - September 13, 1917
Sixth Apparition - October 13, 1917
The Messages of Fatima
Mary was sent as a messenger from her son to every man, woman and child. She is here to intervene and save us from war, poverty, self-destruction, enslavement, corruption and sin. Her message is simple as she tries to save all souls and bring them to heaven. As long as we understand and obey her plans, we will all live in peace. If not, we are certain to be cast into doom.
It is truly up to us to listen and obey Our Lady of Fatima by applying her heavenly messages into our lives, especially by praying the rosary daily. She appeared to Sister Lucia in 1917 with the brown scapular and the rosary. She wants us to use these tools to pray and also to use them as devotions to her. The scapular is to be worn symbolizing that we place ourselves under her protection. She is the sacred heart and therefore, the pathway to God.
With her messages being delivered to the three little shepherds,many wondered if this was all a hoax until God Himself authenticated the apparitions by the miracle of the sun. The Miracle of the Sun occurred on October 13, 1917 in front of more than 70,000 witnesses. The three pilgrim children had predicted the time and location in the name of Our Lady of Fatima. According to the spectators once the rain stopped, the clouds broke open, and the sun appeared as a spinning disk in the sky. It illuminated the crowd and the landscape with multiple colors and moved in a zig zag towards the Earth. The spectators clothes miraculously became dry. The event was officially accepted as a miracle by the Roman Catholic Church on October 13, 1930.
Whoever shall Pray the Rosary/Promises of Mary