The Third Secret of Fatima is Spoken

What Pope Benedict XVI Revealed:
The Third Secret is Spoken


---An excerpt from a chapter in my book, "Fatima: The Signs and Secrets" (available through Amazon in both paperback and Kindle). Originally published as an article in my column, Secrets of the Catholic City in the July 2010 issue of Catholic Family News, it was both a 'follow-up' and a greatly expanded version of my original blog post of May 27, 2010.)
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Three simple but remarkable words in Pope Benedict XVI’s recent and surprising commentary on Fatima reveal that there is more to the Third Secret than a startling but inexplicable Vision. A careful examination of the Pope’s response to a question, asked and answered in Italian, show that - not once, but twice – His Holiness made clear that the Third Secret is also spoken. [487]


Flying en route to Portugal on May 11, 2010, Pope Benedict made a crucial revelation to a group of journalists, the press corps of the papal entourage. As is the usual practice, Vatican protocol asks correspondents who will travel with the Pope to submit their questions - days in advance. [488] 


Of all the inquiries, the Pope chose to answer only three, all of which were formally presented by Vatican spokesman Fr. Frederico Lombardi. On the same day, the complete question-and-answer session (an exchange made and published in Italian) was quickly transcribed by journalist Gian Guido Vecchi for Corriere della Sera. [489]
 

As it turned out, the last of these pre-selected questions was actually a three-part inquiry about the Fatima apparitions and the Third Secret, the last of three distinct parts of “the Great Secret” given by the Virgin Mary to three shepherd children on July 13, 1917 - 93 years ago.


In comparing the various English renditions of the on-board press conference, one will find a few inaccuracies or mis-translations. To a certain degree, this is understandable, as any translator would attest. On the other hand, some things lost in translation are too important to lose.


What follows, then, is my literal translation [489] from Italian-to-English of the Fatima/Third Secret question and the incredibly relevant section of the Pope’s response (all following emphasis mine):


[Author’s translation begins, with all emphasis mine]: “Holiness, what significance have we today for the apparitions of Fatima? And when you presented the text of the Third secret (sic), in the Vatican Press Office, in June 2000, it was asked if the Message could be extended [“broadened” or “widened”], beyond the attack on John Paul II, also to the additional [or “other”] sufferings of the popes? And is it possible, in your opinion [or “according to you”], to frame also in that vision the sufferings of the Church of today for the sins of the sexual abuse of minors?”


Pope Benedict XVI’s Response: “Beyond this great vision of the suffering of the pope, which we might in essence attribute to John Paul II, there is indicated the reality of the future of the Church which [will] gradually develop and demonstrate [itself]. Namely [also rendered as either “That is” or “In other words”] it is true that beyond the moment indicated in the vision, it is spoken, it is shown [there is] the necessity of the passion of the Church which, naturally [or “of course”], is reflected in the person of the Pope, but the Pope is in the Church, and therefore it is the sufferings of the Church that are announced…” [End of author’s translation]

---Continued in  "Fatima: The Signs and Secrets" (available through Amazon in both paperback and Kindle).