Cova da Iria is a quarter in the city and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

of Fátima, in

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

. Most of the reported apparitions of the

Blessed Virgin Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...

to three shepherd children from the town took place here in 1917. This neighborhood is considered a high income area of the city as it hosts numerous attractions,

convent A convent is an enclosed community of monks, nuns, friars or religious sisters. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The term is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

s, hotels, and pilgrims’ hostels, and other tourist facilities. It is near the Aljustrel and

Valinhos Valinhos () is a Municipalities of Brazil, municipality (''município'') in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. It is the birthplace of Adoniran Barbosa. Valinhos is famous for its purple fig, the theme of its annual Fig Fest. It is part of the Met ...

, two sites also associated with the visions.

History

Cova da Iria was originally a field belonging to the family of Lúcia dos Santos in Fátima, Portugal. Lúcia and Francisco and Jacinta Marto were the three children who, according to the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

, received several apparitions and heavenly messages from the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God. The children frequently pastured their families' sheep on this land, and were responsible for their care. According to Sister Lúcia's memoirs written between 1935 and 1941, she and her cousins were at the Cova da Iria when they saw an apparition of a beautiful lady “made of light, holding a

rosary The Rosary (; , in the sense of "crown of roses" or "garland of roses"), formally known as the Psalter of Jesus and Mary (Latin: Psalterium Jesu et Mariae), also known as the Dominican Rosary (as distinct from other forms of rosary such as the ...

in her hand”. She seemed to stand just above a small holm oak tree, and heard her tell them not to be afraid, adding “I come from Heaven”. Sister Lúcia wrote they saw her a total of six times, the last on October 13, 1917, when the Miracle of the Sun allegedly occurred. The children heard her call herself “

Our Lady of the Rosary Our Lady of the Rosary (), also known as Our Lady of the Holy Rosary, is a Titles of Mary, Marian title. The Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, formerly known as Feast of Our Lady of Victory and Feast of the Holy Rosary is celebrated on 7 October ...

” telling them to pray the Rosary for the end of the

Great War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. A small chapel or ''Capelinha'' (later popularly called Chapel of the Apparitions) was built at the spot in the 1920s, as people were already making

pilgrimages A pilgrimage is a journey to a holy place, which can lead to a personal transformation, after which the pilgrim returns to their daily life. A pilgrim (from the Latin ''peregrinus'') is a traveler (literally one who has come from afar) who is o ...

there. In October 1930, the Bishop of Leiria, '' Dom'' José Alves Correia da Silva approved the reported phenomena of Our Lady of Fátima, writing in a

pastoral letter A pastoral letter, often simply called a pastoral, is an open letter addressed by a bishop to the clergy or laity of a diocese or to both, containing general admonition, instruction or consolation, or directions for behaviour in particular circu ...

“The visions of the children in the Cova da Iria are worthy of belief.” Since the

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

officially approved of the Fátima events and the messages given to the three shepherd children, the place has become a popular pilgrimage site. The chapel has been expanded, and nearby are two

minor basilica Basilicas are Catholic church buildings that have a designation, conferring special privileges, given by the Pope. Basilicas are distinguished for ceremonial purposes from other churches. The building need not be a basilica in the architectura ...

s in the Sanctuary of Fátima complex that covers the Cova da Iria. Also on the grounds are luxurious hotels, convents, and some medical facilities. The Cova da Iria has thus become a key international hub for

religious tourism Religious tourism, spiritual tourism, sacred tourism, or faith tourism, is a type of tourism with two main subtypes: pilgrimage, meaning travel for religious or spiritual purposes, and the viewing of religious monuments and artefacts, a branch o ...

, receiving six to eight million pilgrims by year."Fátima expects to receive 8 million visitors in 2017"
, in Sapo20, 15 December 2016.

Notes

External links

* – Official website
Sanctuary of Fatima
– Online transmissions
Pilgrims of Fatima
– Official website
''Fatima in Sister Lucia's own words''
– Free online version of the memoir book written by Sister Lucia, OCD
"The True Story of Fatima"
– Free online version of the book written by Father John de Marchi, IMC * Video documentary
''Portugal in 150 seconds: Fatima''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cova Da Iria Our Lady of Fátima Catholic pilgrimage sites Geography of Portugal

History

See also

Notes

External links