In a crowded celebration presided over by the bishop of Getafe, the coronation and fixing in the front corners of the temple of a new image of the Virgin of Fatima and the restored image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus took place.
On Saturday, January 11, at 7:30 p.m., the local bishop, Ginés García Beltrán, consecrated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and to the Virgin of Fatima the temple of the Parish of Our Lady of Good Sight in Sector 3 of Getafe (Madrid, Spain), erected in 1986 and served by the Augustinian Recollects since 1990.
The group of Devotees of the Virgin of Fatima is one of the most active in the Parish. More than a year ago they requested that the church have an image of this Marian devotion and the Parish proposed that it be in a similar size so that the Sacred Heart of Jesus, whose image would be restored and then both form a whole.
From that moment on, the idea of consecrating the church to the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary was put into action, once it met the necessary devotional requirements. Specifically, on Fridays the Blessed Sacrament is exposed from 10:00 to 19:00 in the church; on the first Friday of the month there are prayers to the Heart of Christ; the rosary is prayed daily; and, finally, on the 13th of each month there is a Eucharist of special devotion to the Virgin of Fatima.
As a prior preparation, Manuel de los Reyes gave two talks in November and December, “Fatima and the family” and “Adoration and mission.” A graduate in Social Psychology and Industrial Sociology and specialized in the historiography of the Catholic Social House of Valladolid, De los Reyes is the author of books such as The Catholic Social House in Valladolid (1881-1946), Social Economy in Valladolid and A light on, a biography of the Jesuit Marcelino de la Paz, who placed the Heart of Jesus as the epicenter of Christian life and social commitment in Valladolid at the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century.
The Diocese of Getafe set the definitive date for the consecration and asked to postpone it until January so that it would be within the Holy Year of the Jubilee 2025 “Pilgrims of Hope”. The temple was filled, even with people standing, with representatives from all the parish groups: catechists, Caritas, the Secular Fraternity and Augustinian-Recollect Youth, the Christian Mothers of Saint Monica, Eucharistic Adoration…
The local devotees of Our Lady of Fatima were accompanied by their namesakes from three other parishes in the diocese, with whom they organize joint events and pilgrimages.
Augustinian Recollect religious living in Madrid accompanied the parish community on this day, a total of 15 concelebrants, some of them former members of this parish community and now with other destinations.
In the homily, in addition to remembering the celebration of the Baptism of the Lord and presenting the Jubilee Year, the bishop invited each of those present to convert their hearts. As an anecdote, he pointed out that although the Sacred Heart of Jesus has a heart on its exterior and the Virgin of Fatima does not, in the famous apparition in Portugal it was shown that the immaculate heart of the Virgin would triumph and, therefore, it can be consecrated by analogy.
First, the image of the Heart of Jesus was consecrated. In a procession, the faithful carried candles, flowers and the crown, which the bishop placed on the head of the image. After the incense, the crowned image was raised to its pedestal and blessed, the litanies of the Heart of Jesus were sung and a final prayer was pronounced.
The process with the image of the Virgin of Fatima was similar, only in this case the litanies were properly Marian.
The temple was finally left with the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary crowned in each of its corners at the front. And a holy card was distributed with the commemorative date of the celebration.
During the after-dinner conversation, the bishop said he had been surprised by such devout participation and the deep fervor that was evident even during the liturgical songs.
