CHAPTER VIII

PATRIARCH LUCIANI’S MEETING WITH SISTER LUCY

S Paul VI’s papacy neared its end, the revelations of Fatima continued to be obscured and derided in the Church. In 1977, the sixtieth anniversary of the apparitions was almost entirely passed over in silence in Rome. The editorial writer of L’Osservatore Romano had this to say on May 13, 1977: «Some have spoken and continue to speak about a “secret of Fatima” that has not been revealed. The Church does not encourage us to imagine sensational hypotheses, but invites us rather to welcome the admonition, valid in all circumstances, to return to God, to the Gospel and to brotherly love.» In short, in the Eternal City Heaven’s requests and wishes continued to be ignored.

However, it was precisely in this year, by a special grace of election, that Fatima came to occupy a place of considerable importance in Cardinal Luciani’s life, mind and heart. On the evening of January 3, 1977 he took the opportunity to read the long speech that Cardinal Roncalli had addressed to the Fatima pilgrims on May 13, 1956. It made a powerful impression on him.
 

JANUARY 6, 1977: THE PATRIARCH’S HOMILY FOR THE SIXTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF THE APPARITIONS.

He then wrote a homily on Fatima which he delivered in Saint Mark’s Basilica in Venice three days later, on January 6, the Feast of the Epiphany. The whole congregation was very moved by it:

«At the end of these Vespers, in keeping with a pious tradition introduced by Cardinal La Fontaine, we will all – patriarch, clergy and people – sing the Litanies of Loreto as we process before the Madone Nicopeja, the Virgin of Victory¹. Our Basilica of Saint Mark contains more than forty images of the Madonna: pictures, sculptures, mosaics; on the façade, on the vaulted ceilings of the cupolas, on the pilasters, and in the Mascoli Chapel. They sometimes bear unusual names like “Our Lady of the Kiss, of the Gun, of the Shrouds, of Graces, of Consolation”. But the most venerated of the Virgins in Saint Mark’s is the Nicopeja: for centuries the Venetians have been invoking Her under this title, lavishing Her with gifts, offerings and ex-votos; She is their protectress. This is common knowledge.

«What is perhaps less well known is that Cardinal Roncalli visualised an imaginary arc stretching from the Nicopeja to Fatima, joining East and West and linking the Patriarch of Lisbon to the Patriarch of Venice, the Adriatic Sea to the Atlantic Ocean. He stated this on May 13, 1956, at the conclusion of his homily given in Fatima’s great esplanade before the whole Portuguese episcopate and half a million pilgrims, a homily in which he gave a detailed history of the apparitions.

«Now 1977 is in fact the sixtieth anniversary of the apparitions. And following the lead of my venerable predecessor, I believe that I also must say a few words about Fatima in honour of the Blessed Virgin, and give the events that our people bear in their hearts their rightful due.²»

His narration of the apparitions of 1916 and 1917 was detailed and enthralling. Cardinal Luciani set out to show the extraordinary miraculous character of the pulsating and plummeting sun on that October 13, 1917.

«The Virgin Mary gradually disappeared from sight, and Lucy cried out: “Look at the sun!” Everyone looked. The sun had cleared itself a passage through the clouds. It looked like a white silver disc; one could view it without harm; it did not dazzle; it did not blind; it was as though one were witnessing an eclipse.

«But now a great clamour arose, a sort of human groundswell, and people could be heart exclaiming: “Miracle! Miracle!” The crowd’s manner was reminiscent of the biblical image of God’s people beholding the manifestations of Yahweh. Everyone, their eyes amazed, their minds and breath suspended, their heads uncovered, was looking up at the sky: the sun was shaking, vibrating, “dancing”, as the spectators described it.

«But there was more to come: the sun began to turn in on itself like a wheel of fire. It shot out bright rays of various colours in all directions, rather like a giant Bengal light; the atmosphere and every object were coloured green, red, yellow and blue by the sun. Every colour in the rainbow, one after the other, covered and painted the immense crowd.

«Then the spectacle stopped for a few moments, but only to begin again with more intensity and brilliance. It stopped again, but on the third occasion the sun was like a wildly spinning top, emitting luminous coloured beams.

«At a certain moment it appeared to detach itself from the sky and to come crashing down in a spiral upon the earth. Terrified, the spectators threw themselves down on the muddy ground. One person cried out, “My Jesus! Have mercy!” Another said the Ave Maria, and another the Pater. Then, when everything was over, they each got to their feet again and stood up, safe and sound; they then began to chant a thunderous Credo. The “sign” had lasted for a good ten minutes.³»

The text of the homily, touched up and completed, was published in Venice’s diocesan review. It was presented as a small treatise on Fatima. However, in his account of the apparitions of 1917, the Patriarch, although reporting many of Our Lady’s words, omitted any mention of devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

So what was the reason for the reserve he so markedly displayed towards the revelation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary?

The Patriarch was aware of Father Dhanis’s thesis, which had cast suspicion over Sister Lucy’s testimony, but what he did not know was that it had been learnedly refuted, notably by two Portuguese Jesuits, Fathers Fonseca and Veloso, by the Montfortian Father Jongen, and by the Claretian Father Alonso, the official expert.

Six months later, in the summer of 1977, we will see that events which were certainly providential would allow him to understand the radical falsity of this thesis: his mind would once and for all be freed from the wild flights of fancy of the Belgian Jesuit. But in January 1977, he believed himself obliged to discuss his arguments at length. As far as we know, he is to date the only bishop in the world, along with Msgr. Joao Venancio, to have criticised them in public.

He finally adopted a position of cautious uncertainty: he dared not firmly condemn Dhanis’ thesis because his customary approach, in all his conflicts with the modernists, was to defend Catholic truth on the basis of the authority of the Sovereign Pontiff’s teachings and judgements. And in this matter the Popes had ceded the majority of the ground to Dhanis.

Admittedly, the Patriarch referred to the apostolic exhortation, Signum magnum, of May 13, 1967, in which Paul VI had recommended the consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. But this exhortation did not go directly against Father Dhanis’ thesis.

Admittedly, the Patriarch recalled the Pope’s pilgrimage to Fatima on May 13, 1967: «Paul VI», he wrote, «met Sister Lucy in public, before the television cameras, which relayed the scene to millions of viewers. This positive gesture would have had no significance if, in Rome, Sister Lucy had been looked upon as a visionary prone to illusions.» However, this argument was not decisive, as is proved by the dialogue between Jean Guitton and Paul VI two weeks later, on May 28, 1967: «And Lucy, what impression did she make on you? – Oh! replied the Pope, she’s a uncomplicated peasant woman. The people wanted to see her, so I showed her to them.⁴»

Cardinal Luciani went on: «Some people balk when one speaks of consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. They only want to hear about established devotions based on the firm solid bread of the Bible. Now, while it is certainly a good thing to ensure that Marian devotion is solid and authentic, this does not mean that one has to be more Catholic than the Popes.

«Let everyone praise the Madonna as best he can, but let them not however drag other people backwards. In those domains where the Popes have got involved, let them stop continually appealing to the “grass roots”, that is to the people of God and their right to “participate” in the Church, only then to go on to mock these same “grass roots” as soon as they display some inclination for the popular devotions that offend their critical spirit.

«To do penance, in other words to be converted, is simply a command from God. Even if the Virgin Mary had not recommended it, it is taught in every page in the Bible, and penance is even more indispensable at the current time when worldly customs and propaganda would have us believe that life consists in eating well, dressing elegantly, pursuing a career and having as much fun as possible.»

When asked why he preached on Fatima early in 1977, he did not disclose his real thinking but simply replied that nothing happens by chance in human life⁵.

In the conclusion of his homily, he had however indicated one of the truly supernatural lessons he himself had drawn from the revelations of 1917 and from the heroic virtues of the three shepherd children: «The three little shepherds of Fatima received the same promise that was made to Bernadette: “I do not promise that you will be happy in this world, but in the next.” These words relate to us as well.⁶»

Four years later, on May 1, the Patriarch wrote to his diocesan faithful to recommend them to join with all their hearts in celebrating the sixtieth anniversary of the first apparition of Fatima. He strongly encouraged them to remain faithful to their own proper traditions:

«I have been told: “On November 21, the Feast of Our Lady of Health, the whole of Venice wakes up Christian and Marian. Fine words if they mean that Venice, always Christian and Marian, honours its vow in a special manner on that day⁷. Sad words if we look upon November 21 as a sporadic manifestation, and if everyone sinks back into a lethargic slumber once the feast is over and treats themselves to a further year of spiritual somnolence.

«In these stormy years – stormy for both the Church and for all spiritual values – there can be no question of sleeping; Catholics should stay awake, standing ready to defend their endangered institutions and their faith. To defend them with spiritual weapons, it goes without saying.

«It is life lived holily that proclaims the Gospel. It is faith solidly grounded that erects a seawall of firm convictions against the continually shifting waves of public opinion, unstable and liberticidal.

«The Venetians of the eighth century raised seawalls to protect their city from the menace of the sea. It is written that they were built “ausu romano, aere veneto, with Roman verve and Venetian brass”. We are still men of verve today, even more so, if possible, than they were. In place of copper coins we must count on the help of Our Lord which the Virgin Mary will obtain for us all in abundance, provided we invoke Her with confidence and lead an upright and exemplary life.⁸»
 

JULY 10, 1977: PILGRIM TO FATIMA

In order to celebrate devoutly the sixtieth anniversary of Our Lady’s apparitions, Father Leandro Tiveron, S.J., who was Cardinal Luciani’s confessor, organised a pilgrimage to Fatima for Venetians. One day in May, he asked his Patriarch:

«Eminence, would you be happy to come with us to Fatima?

– Yes I’d love to go, it’s a desire I’ve had in my heart for a long time. It’s a secret promise I made the Madonna.⁹”

Shortly afterwards, Cardinal Luciani telephoned Marquess Olga do Cadaval. She was an old friend of his, of Venetian stock, who had married a member of the high Portuguese aristocracy. He wanted her to take in hand the planning and organisation of his pilgrimage to Fatima.

«Eminence», she replied, «I can’t. I’m not qualified to do this job. You should get in touch with the Patriarch of Lisbon, or else write to the Vatican.» The Cardinal stopped her: «Oh, no! Impossible!» And he  made this remarkable response: «I want nothing to do with the Vatican. The devil is in the Vatican.¹⁰»

If Cardinal Luciani was convinced that the devil ruled in the Vatican, this was probably owing to his knowledge of the financial skulduggery of the Milanese mafia, all-powerful in the Vatican¹¹.

The Cardinal’s pilgrimage in early July was extremely rapid, but nonetheless it was a genuine pilgrimage and, from what his family says, he returned a deeply affected and altered man.

Having missed the flight that the pilgrim group had already boarded, he left Fiumicino Airport (Rome) on Saturday, July 9, around midnight. The next day he landed very early in Lisbon where, the previous day, the Patriarch of this city and the Bishop of Leiria had expected him in vain. He joined them in Fatima by car, just in time to preside at the solemn concelebration above the immense esplanade, where the statue of the Blessed Virgin was carried in procession on its cushion of flowers, preceded by a line of deacons, priest and bishops.

Thanks to the one solitary document about the Patriarch’s pilgrimage, now preserved in the sanctuary archives¹², we learn of the charming Venetian legend he related to the twenty thousand pilgrims in his homily:

«One morning, the father of a family arrived at the entrance to Paradise and knocked on the door. “I was expecting you. I’ll come and let you in immediately”, Saint Peter replied to him. From behind the door, the Apostle pulled open a drawer and wondered, “Now where did I put the key? It was here a moment ago.” Alas, he could not find it.

«In their turn, a nun and then a mother of a family also presented themselves. Saint Peter was becoming alarmed. “For the love of God”, he said to them, “don’t make so much noise, because if Jesus noticed I’d lost the key, He’d take away my job as doorkeeper, and, having had this top job for 2000 years, I’d be mortified.” The queue was growing longer… but Saint Peter still could not find the key.

«Finally, a little old lady came up, dressed entirely in black, who, to everyone’s surprise, shouted: “I’ve got the key, I’ve got it!” At once the long procession of souls divided into two lines between which the old grandma advanced, cheered and hailed by everyone.

«When she got to the door, she plunged her hand into her apron pocket, took out her Rosary and slid the small cross into the lock. The door opened. Everyone was full of joy and sang God’s praises.»

The Cardinal drew a wonderful lesson from this: «You have the key to Paradise in your hands. Say the Holy Rosary.»

The Venetian Camillo Bassotto recorded an even more detailed account of the Patriarch’s homily. Here it is, exactly as it was reported to him:

«My dearest brothers and sisters, today I have fulfilled my great desire to come to Fatima to thank our dearest Mother Mary for all the graces She has filled my life with ever since I was a child. It is with great emotion that I speak to you, here where the Blessed Virgin appeared to the little shepherds, Jacinta, Francisco and Lucy. We have come to Fatima to ask the Madonna, our Mother, for grace, mercy and peace, both for ourselves and for all the peoples.

«In our hearts resound the Angel’s words to the children: “I am the Angel of Peace. Pray together with me: O my God, I believe, I adore, I hope and I love Thee. I ask pardon of Thee for all those who do not believe, do not adore, do not hope, and do not love Thee.” We also recall the Blessed Virgin’s words: “Pray, pray a great deal, and make sacrifices for sinners. So many souls go to hell because there is no one to make sacrifices or to pray for them. Say the Rosary every day to obtain the end of the war and peace.” That was in 1917, and the war was raging on all fronts, fomenting massacres and ruin.

«During Her last apparition, on October 13, 1917, the Madonna said to the little shepherds: “I am Our Lady of the Rosary. Continue to say the Rosary every day. The war will end soon and the soldiers will return to their homes. When you say the Rosary, say after each mystery: O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, and lead all souls to Heaven, especially those who have most need of Thy mercy.¹³” The Blessed Virgin’s words and requests to the little shepherds are a kind of recurring appeal at each of the apparitions of that year, so laden with misfortune for humanity. Our Lady requests prayer, penance, and sacrifices in reparation for the offences committed against Her Son Jesus and against Her Immaculate Heart.

«Let us also say the Rosary, either alone or with our families. It is the most beautiful biblical prayer. It was Jesus who taught us the Our Father, and the words of the Ave Maria were inspired by the Holy Spirit. The mysteries of the Rosary, meditated upon and savoured, allow us to enter more deeply into the Bible. Saying five decades as a family is a kind of domestic liturgy. I see a number of sick people here. They are very dear to the Heart of Mary and also to my heart. Jesus taught us how we must face up to suffering and accept it. In the Garden of Gethsemane, He first experienced nausea and anguish before the suffering that was to come, then He implored the aid of His Father, and finally, with the courage that came to Him from the Father, He finished by saying: “Not my will but Thine be done.” (Lk 22:42)

«My brothers and sisters, today dark storm clouds are passing over humanity. Our hearts are troubled. However, the Blessed Virgin told the children of Fatima, during the apparition of July 13: “In the end My Immaculate Heart will triumph, the Holy Father will consecrate Russia to Me, Russia will be converted, and a certain period of peace will be granted to the world.” May Our Lady of Fatima, through God’s grace and mercy, and through the merits of Her Son Jesus, obtain pardon for us and preserve us from the horrors of new and terrible wars.¹⁴»

During his pilgrimage, Cardinal Luciani was very edified by the piety of the Portuguese, great numbers of whom made the “way of penance” on their knees, as Lucy herself had done for the first time in 1919 to obtain her mother’s cure. «The climate of authentic prayer and the painful, moving acts of penance that I saw in Fatima several days ago», he would write on August 15, «are reminiscent of the acts formerly recommended by the prophets and the biblical receptivity of the “poor of Yahweh”. Very many pilgrims had made a long journey, in the open sun, walking barefoot along the roads, in a spirit of penance. When they arrived, many ladies, including a Venetian noblewoman, would wash and tend the pilgrims’ feet, a hundred or so at a time.¹⁵»

The Cardinal met up, in Fatima, with the small group of Venetians, consisting of around fifty pilgrims, including twelve ecclesiastics. In the afternoon he visited the Basilica to pray at the tombs of Francisco and Jacinta. Then, like a simple priest, he followed the stations of the so-called “Hungarian” way of the Cross together with his diocesan faithful, on the hill that separates the Cova da Iria from Aljustrel. «I learned», writes one of the ladies of his diocese, Miss Luisa Vannini di Gorizia, «that he spent much of the following night in prayer.¹⁶»
 

JULY 11, 1977: CONVERSATION WITH HEAVEN’S MESSENGER

On Monday, July 11, in the morning, Cardinal Luciani travelled to Coimbra with the Venetian pilgrims. After he had concelebrated Mass in the Carmelite Sisters’ chapel, «Sister Lucy indicated, through her Mother Prioress, that she ardently desired to speak to him; he, surprised and at the same time delighted, replied that he would gladly say hello to Sister Lucy»¹⁷.

The moment was a solemn one. It was Our Lady who had wished to arrange this conversation between Her servant and Her messenger, for he himself, in his extreme modesty, had never dreamed of asking for this private talk.

Did the seer already know the Patriarch, at least by reputation? One may presume so. For Mrs. Olga do Cadaval had been Sister Lucy’s regular interpreter since 1970: she used to visit her twice a month to help her with her correspondence, thanks to a special permission of the Holy See. Now the Marquess do Cadaval held the Cardinal in high esteem. So it is quite possible that she had spoken to Sister Lucy of his virtues and merits.

As he entered the Carmel cloisters, Cardinal Luciani asked his secretary, Don Diego Lorenzi, to wait for him in the lobby: «I’ll be back in a moment», he told him¹⁸. «Sister Lucy apparently greeted him by calling him Holy Father», reports Andrea Tornielli¹⁹.

As the Patriarch of Venice understood Portuguese, Mrs. do Cadaval slipped away «as soon as the conversation became a little too private». She told me this personally when I met her in February 1993. So the Cardinal remained alone with Lucy for a long conversation which lasted almost two hours.

When he left the Carmel, the Venetian pilgrims had already gone back to their restaurant, and the prelate arrived there very late. «He sat down almost opposite me», recounts Miss Luisa Vannini. He was sparing of his words, quipped about his conversation with Sister Lucy²⁰, and ate little and rapidly. I could read on his face, which was very pale, his heightened emotion²¹.

«All the priests, who passed close to him, greeted him, and some of them questioned him hoping to learn something about his long conversation, but I noticed that he did not reply and that his smile, normally so spontaneous, was as though fixed. I had the impression that Cardinal Luciani had experienced a powerful emotion and that he was still under the effect of the emotional shock.²²»

He similarly eluded the questions of his secretary, Don Diego Lorenzi, who had expressed surprise at the unusual length of his conversation with the seer²³.

«In Fatima», continues Miss Vannini, «he had promised that he would have a short talk with me. I wanted to speak to him about my life. He excused himself saying, “I can’t do that now. It will have to be in Venice. I must go back to Fatima. I want to speak to the Madonna.” Those were his actual words: “speak to”. “Sister Lucy has left me feeling a great unease. From now on I will never be able to forget Fatima.”

«Those are the words he said to me – I remember them very clearly – as he was leaving the restaurant to get into the car that the Marquess do Cadaval had arranged to take him back to Lisbon.

«I knew that Cardinal Luciani was expected back in Venice, for he was to preside at a solemn Eucharistic celebration at the Convent of the Capuchin Sisters of Christ the King. Certain people made out that he had returned early to avoid having to reply to indiscreet questions about his conversation with Sister Lucy.²⁴»

On the road to Lisbon, after stopping at Fatima, he said the Rosary with Don Diego Lorenzi, his secretary, and Don Giuseppe Carbone, both priests from Don Orione’s Order. In Lisbon the Patriarch did not want to meet anyone. He was agitated, although he did everything in his power to hide it.

Before we go on to reveal the reasons for his emotion, let us remark the significance of certain confidential remarks he would later make to Sister Vincenza, his personal servant at the Venice Patriarchate. They reveal how impressed he was by the seer’s personality and holiness. After his meeting with her, he knew exactly what to think about Dhanis’ theories: no longer could he doubt the absolute truth of Sister Lucy’s testimony.

One morning, at 5 o’clock, as he took his cup of coffee, the Cardinal said to Sister Vincenza:

«After her death, Sister Lucy will be known and loved the whole world over, just as Saint Bernadette of Lourdes was. The whole world will learn of the extraordinary deeds and conversions effected by Our Lord and Our Lady through Sister Lucy’s prayers. When her solitude was at its bitterest and public hostility at its height, during the very time of the apparitions, the Blessed Virgin was with her in a visible manner.

«“Lucy, do you suffer much?” She said to her. “Do not be disheartened. I will not abandon you. My Immaculate Heart will be your refuge and the way that will lead you to God. Jesus wishes to make use of you to make Me known and loved”.²⁵»

On another occasion, reflecting on Fatima, Cardinal Luciani declared:

«Sister Lucy is an extraordinary woman, strong and trustworthy; she’s very much a country woman and has a quite amazing memory. She speaks in short, broken sentences, which go straight to the heart of problems and events. At seventy, she still retains the freshness of a young girl. Her eyes are clear. She is simple, spontaneous, calm and smiling. She lives as though she were the least of the Carmelites. She speaks with an open heart, without searching for her words, profoundly convinced of what she says, and saying it with passion. Sister Lucy of the Immaculate Heart of Mary is a cherished daughter of the Church.²⁶»

The Patriarch published an account of his conversation, entitled «At Fatima… with Sister Lucy», in Venice’s Catholic weekly, Gente Veneta, of July 23, 1977. We will quote the full text in the appendix to this chapter.

Let us retain here just one particular statement in his article: «Sister Lucy did not talk to me about the apparitions.» Therefore she cannot have explicitly revealed the Third Secret to him²⁷. She kept to the very strict orders of the Holy Office which forbade her from disclosing it.

How then are we to explain Cardinal Luciani’s deep emotion? What is this “secret” that the seer communicated to him, and which so profoundly disturbed him?

Only with the greatest difficulty would the Patriarch open up to the members of his closest family. In February 1977, at the beginning of Lent, he came to preach in his birthplace, the village of Canale d’Agordo. His brother Edoardo and his sister-in-law, with whom he was staying, noticed how absorbed he seemed, how worried and impenetrable. On February 27, at dinner, his sister-in-law remarked that he was very pale and seemed distressed. He excused himself, picked up his breviary and, without any explanation, retired to his room. The following evening he displayed the same indisposition. Mrs. Luciani asked him whether the food she was serving him was the cause. The Cardinal answered:

«I was thinking about what Sister Lucy told me at Coimbra.»

Twice he repeated, «Sister told me…», without completing his sentence²⁸.

In the course of this same mission to his native village, Cardinal Luciani was questioned by several of the youth. «One of them wanted to know if he had ever been engaged. “No”, he replied. “Ever since I was a child, I have always thought about and wanted to be a priest.” Another asked him whether he would like to be Pope. The Cardinal’s face contracted. He remained silent for a moment, which surprised the young people. Then he replied: “Pray to Our Lord and the Virgin Mary that your Patriarch may not become Pope”.²⁹»

A photograph, taken over these same days at Canale, reveals his anguish. He can be seen alongside Msgr. Augusto Bramezza and several priests. However, unlike the latter, he is not smiling. The gravity of his countenance and his bearing are striking. «He looks», comments Regina Kummer, «like someone who knows he is going to die.³⁰»

His relatives and friends in Canale were struck by the way he said goodbye to them. They saw in this his last will and testament. «We are ourselves pilgrims on the road to Heaven… Our Lord does not abandon us, He gives us His grace to reach sanctity.³¹»

Following his meeting with Sister Lucy, Cardinal Luciani preached and wrote on several occasions about death, which had not previously been an habitual theme of his preaching. Thus, on December 31, 1977, he spoke about it for the first time in a homily devoted to New Year resolutions:

«Hope makes us look towards Paradise […]. “What does it profit a man to win the whole world, and yet come to lose his own soul?” That is what Jesus said, but do we act accordingly? Jesus also said, “Be prepared. I will come upon you like a thief.” Do we remind ourselves of this? In Hamlet, Shakespeare has his first gravedigger sing the following song:

A pick-axe and a spade, a spade,
For and a shrouding sheet;
O, a pit of clay for to be made
For such a guest is meet.

«It is brutal; a Christian’s death is not like this, it is accompanied with joy and paschal alleluias. And yet there is truth in these verses, just as there is truth in the reflections made by Hamlet at the cemetery as he looks upon a lawyer’s skull. “Where be his quiddits now, his quillets, his cases, his tenures, and his tricks?” he says to his friend Horatio “This fellow might be in’s time a great buyer of land, with his statutes, his recognizances, his fines, his double vouchers, his recoveries: is this the fine of his fines, and the recovery of his recoveries, to have his fine pate full of fine dirt?”

«Pardon me for quoting this, but a Christian must think at least occasionally about his own death.» And he concluded: «Let us promise Our Lord to make good use of the year 1978, if, that is, He should grant it to us in its entirety.³²»

Did the Patriarch have a presentiment of his imminent death? Undoubtedly! And Don Lorenzi, his secretary, was convinced that his premonitory intuitions were connected to the revelations made to him by Sister Lucy³³.

In his homily for Easter Sunday, March 26, 1978, he spoke of his conversation with the seer as though memory of the words of Heaven’s messenger had awakened in him the thought that, at the end of his way of the cross, would come the paschal alleluia:

«The third reading (Jn 20:1-9) shows us Saint Mary Magdalen at the tomb. It reminds me that, in the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ Passion and Resurrection, the women show themselves superior to the men. They are more courageous at the foot of the Cross, more enterprising on Easter morning, and it is upon them that Our Lord relies to notify the Apostles that the Resurrection has taken place.

«Jesus did not send women to preach like the seventy-two disciples or the twelve Apostles. On the other hand He wanted them to step in to help and stimulate the Apostles. Throughout the centuries, Jesus would apply the same method: He would send a Catherine of Sienna, a Teresa of Avila, a Bernadette, a Lucy dos Santos, an Armida Barelli to encourage bishops and Popes…

«Last July I spent an hour and a half conversing with Sister Lucy at Coimbra. It never occurred to me to think that Sister Lucy was lower in status than myself, a bishop and cardinal. On the contrary, I thought: what good luck for me to be able to speak with this little sister who has seen the Madonna! The only real greatness in the Church is not to hold such or such a position, but to be a saint.³⁴»

Edoardo Luciani treasured in his heart the words and gestures of his beloved brother-in-law at their last meetings together. «When we put together all the allusions made by my brother over the course of our various conversations», he would explain, «everything became clear; the seer had told him something that concerned not only the Church, but his own personal life as well, the destiny that God was preparing for him.³⁵»

Let us preserve the conclusion of the journalist who recorded these confidential remarks: «Is this a case of a mysterious prediction concerning the papal election, followed by a tragic and sudden death? That certainly seems to be the thinking and even the conviction of John Paul I’s brother.»³⁶

Albino Luciani remained inwardly gripped by the recommendations and revelations made to him by the holy Carmelite, the witness and spokesman of the wishes of the Queen of Heaven. Their souls had understood each other and were forever united for the service and salvation of the Church.

APPENDIX

«IN FATIMA… WITH SISTER LUCY.»

NDER the above title, Patriarch Luciani published an account of his conversation with Heaven’s messenger, in the Catholic weekly Gente Veneta, of July 23, 1977. Here is the full text: