André Pereira, rector of the Fatima Shrine in Portugal, outlined the three ways of obtaining the indulgence, detailed in a statement on the shrine’s website.
To obtain the plenary indulgence, the faithful must also fulfill the three ordinary conditions: Go to Confession and Communion, be interiorly detached from sin, and pray for the intentions of the Holy Father. (The latter means to pray for the Pope to lead the Church as God wills.)
1. Pilgrimage to the shrine
The first way to gain the plenary indulgence is for “the faithful to make a pilgrimage to the Fatima Shrine in Portugal and participate in a celebration or prayer dedicated to the Virgin.”
In addition, the faithful must pray the Our Father, recite the Apostles' Creed and invoke Our Lady of Fatima (i.e., "Our Lady of Fatima, pray for us" or "Virgin of Fatima, pray for us," etc.).
2. Prayer before any statue of Our Lady of Fatima on the 13th of the Month
The second way applies to “the pious faithful who visit with devotion a statue of Our Lady of Fatima solemnly exposed for public veneration in any church, oratory or proper place during the days of the anniversary of the apparitions, the 13th of each month from May to October (2017), and there devoutly participate in some celebration or prayer in honor of the Virgin Mary.”
The rector of the Fatima Shrine explained that the visit to the statue of the Virgin “does not necessarily have to be only at Fatima or exclusively in Portugal,” but can be done anywhere in the world.
Additionally, all those seeking an indulgence must also pray an Our Father, recite the Apostle’s Creed and invoke Our Lady of Fatima (i.e., “Our Lady of Fatima, pray for us” or “Holy Virgin of Fatima, pray for us”).
3. Conditions for the elderly and infirm (May 13, June 13, etc. through October 13)
The third way to obtain a plenary indulgence applies to people who, due to age, illness or other serious cause, are unable to get around well.
These faithful can pray in front of any statue of Our Lady of Fatima and must spiritually unite themselves to the jubilee celebrations on the days of the apparitions, the 13th of each month, between May and October 2017.
They also must “offer to merciful God with confidence, through Mary, their prayers and sufferings or the sacrifices they make in their own lives.”
Our Lady of Fatima, ora pro nobis!
