The Pope at Fatima

Pope Benedict XVI leads the Rosary at the Chapel of the Apparitions in Fatima's Sanctuary

Here, in case you have not seen it, and courtesy of Zenit, is the prayer Pope Benedict XVI pronounced at the Chapel of Apparitions upon arriving yesterday at the Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima.

Holy Father:
Our Lady, Mother of all men and women, I come before you as a son visiting his Mother, and I do so in company with a multitude of brothers and sisters. As the Successor of Peter, to whom was entrusted the mission of presiding in the service of charity in the Church of Christ and of confirming all in faith and in hope, I wish to present to your Immaculate Heart the joys and hopes as well as the problems and sufferings of each one of these sons and daughters of yours who are gathered in the Cova di Iria or who are praying with us from afar. Mother most gentle, you know each one by name, you know each one’s face and personal history, and you love them all with maternal benevolence that wells up from the very heart of Divine Love. I entrust and consecrate them all to you, Mary Most Holy, Mother of God and our Mother.

Cantors and Assembly: We sing to you and we praise you, O Mary

Holy Father:
The Venerable Pope John Paul II, who visited you three times here in Fatima and thanked the "unseen hand" that rescued him from death in the assassination attempt on 13 May in Saint Peter’s Square almost thirty years ago, wanted to offer to the Shrine of Fatima a bullet which gravely wounded him and was placed in the crown of the Queen of Peace. It is a profound consolation to know that you are crowned not only with the silver and gold of our joys and hopes, but also with the "bullet" of our anxieties and sufferings. I thank you, beloved Mother, for the prayers and sacrifices that the shepherd-children of Fatima offered for the Pope, led by the sentiments that you inspired in them in the apparitions. I also thank all those who, every day, pray for the Successor of Peter and for his intentions, that the Pope may be strong in faith, bold in hope and zealous in love.

Cantors and Assembly: We sing to you and we praise you, O Mary

Holy Father:
Beloved Mother of us all, here in your Shrine at Fatima I consign the Golden Rose that I have brought from Rome as a homage of gratitude from the Pope for the marvels that the Almighty has worked through you in the hearts of so many who come as pilgrims to this your maternal home. I am sure that the shepherd-children of Fatima, Blessed Francisco and Jacinta and the Servant of God Lucia of Jesus, are united with us at this hour of prayer and jubilation.

Cantors and Assembly: We sing to you and we praise you, O Mary