America Needs Fatima is a campaign of the
American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property (TFP), a Catholic 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. It advocates faith and morals based on the teachings of
the Virgin Mary
Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother ...
, particularly based on the
visions of an apparition of her reported by three children in
Fátima, Portugal
Fátima () is a city in the municipality of Ourém and district of Santarém in the Central Region of Portugal, with 71.29 km2 of area and 13,212 inhabitants (2021). The homonymous civil parish encompasses several villages and localities o ...
in 1917.
Structure
America Needs Fatima was founded in February 1985. C. Preston Noell III was its first executive director. Leadership passed in 1996 to Robert E. Ritchie, who remains executive director.
Activities
America Needs Fatima is a
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
advocacy group that opposes
abortion
Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pre ...
,
same-sex marriage,
euthanasia, and
socialism
Socialism is a left-wing Economic ideology, economic philosophy and Political movement, movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to Private prop ...
. It applies its interpretation of the message of Our Lady of Fatima to what it sees as the moral crisis in society.
Fatima home visits
Since 1994, the primary activity of America Needs Fatima has been the "Mary in Every Home" program. It consists of a Fatima custodian taking a four-foot tall statue of
Our Lady of Fátima to a person's home, with a crowning and enthronement ceremony, a short audio-visual about the story of
Fátima, Portugal
Fátima () is a city in the municipality of Ourém and district of Santarém in the Central Region of Portugal, with 71.29 km2 of area and 13,212 inhabitants (2021). The homonymous civil parish encompasses several villages and localities o ...
, and the praying of the rosary.
Anti-blasphemy protests
America Needs Fatima has protested films, plays, and art exhibits it considers blasphemous or otherwise offensive to Catholicism. Protests consist of sending protest cards, making phone calls, and sending mass e-mails as well as proximate street demonstrations.
Films, plays, and art exhibits that America Needs Fatima has protested include:
* ''
The Da Vinci Code
''The Da Vinci Code'' is a 2003 mystery thriller novel by Dan Brown. It is Brown's second novel to include the character Robert Langdon: the first was his 2000 novel ''Angels & Demons''. ''The Da Vinci Code'' follows symbologist Robert Lang ...
''
[Blue, Miranda. "Religious Right Abandons Brooklyn Museum Protests – Anti-Da Vinci Code Group and Pro-Censorship Artist Carry on the Fight", ''Right Wing Watch'', November 21, 2011]
/ref>
* '' The Crime of Father Amaro''
* ''Dogma
Dogma is a belief or set of beliefs that is accepted by the members of a group without being questioned or doubted. It may be in the form of an official system of principles or doctrines of a religion, such as Roman Catholicism, Judaism, Isla ...
''
* '' Jesus Has Two Mommies''
* '' Jerry Springer: The Opera''
* '' A Fire in My Belly,'' by David Wojnarowicz, at the Brooklyn Museum of Art [
* '' Our Lady'' by Alma Lopez
America Needs Fatima protesters showed up at the Uptown Players production of ''The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told'' in December 2013. Actor Stan Graner commented, “I appreciate the protesters exercising their right to protest, and they seemed to be doing it in a sincere and peaceful manner. But I can’t help but think that by helping to draw attention to the controversial production they are also in fact supplying free advertising for the show. ”
ANF also organized protests in 2017 against Out Front Theater's production of ''The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told'' in Atlanta, GA.
]
Public Square Rosary Crusade
Since 2007, America Needs Fatima has organized an annual "Public Square Rosary Crusade," consisting of ANF "Rally Captains" organizing prayer vigils in public places, such as a sidewalk or street corner, in their local town or city. The first campaign was held on October 13, 2007, the 90th anniversary of the "Miracle of the Sun."
According to its website, approximately 2,000 rallies were held in 2007, 3,500 in 2008, 4,337 in 2009, 5,963 in 2010, and 7,515 in 2011.
See also
* Our Lady of Fátima
* Sanctuary of Fátima
The Sanctuary of Fátima ( pt, Santuário de Fátima), officially titled Sanctuary of Our Lady of the Rosary of Fátima (''Santuário de Nossa Senhora do Rosário de Fátima''), is a Marian shrine dedicated to Our Lady of Fatima located in Fáti ...
* American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property
Notes
External links
America Needs Fatima Home Page
America Needs Fatima Official Blog
Trott, Josephine. "Does America Really Need Fatima? Fordham Event Dialogue Faces Discrimination", ''The Observer'', Fordham University, September 21, 2011
{{Authority control
Catholic advocacy groups
Our Lady of Fátima
Tradition, Family, Property
Catholicism
Conservatism