THE WORLD APOSTOLATE OF FATIMA

    The World Apostolate of Fatima (WAF) is an "International Public Association of the Faithful of Pontifical Right" operating under the jurisdiction of Pope Francis I. "Pontifical Right" means that the WAF is immediately and exclusively subject to the power of the Apostolic See in regards to internal governance & discipline.

    Only a "Public Association" can receive a mission to teach in the name of the Church or pursue a purpose which is reserved to ecclesiastical authority (canon 301 §1). As such, the WAF is the only apostolate that speaks with universal ecclestiastical authority on the Message of Fatima.

    Regarding this message, Pope John Paul II visited Fatima several times, beatified two of its three seers, accredited Our Lady of Fatima with preserving his life from an assassin’s bullet, published the “Third Secret”, called Fatima the, “Marian Capital of the World” and wrote a trilogy of social encyclicals (Laborem Exercens, Centissimus Annus, and Sollicitudo Rei Socialis) two of which he entrusts to the Virgin Mary in the mystery of the Holy Trinity.   

    Pope Benedict XVI continued to highlight the importance of the Churches’ social doctrine, evangelization, and the centrality of Fatima and Marian-Trinitarian spirituality.

    In relationship to Fatima, as Prefect for the Sacred Congregation of Faith, Pope Benedict, then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, presented the official interpretation or theological commentary on the Third Secret of Fatima (May 13, 2000). On May 14, 2010 while presiding as pope over mass at the Fatima Shrine, he revealed his personal conviction that the Fatima message has relevancy to the development of the modern world, “we would be mistaken to think that the prophetic mission of Fatima is complete”. He concluded by praying for the fulfillment of the Fatima message and the “Triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary”:

"May the seven years which separate us from the centenary of the apparitions (2017) hasten the fulfillment of the prophecy of the triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, to the glory of the Most Holy Trinity".

     Finally, on May 13, 2013, the Feast day of Our Lady of Fatima, Pope Francis I, following in the footsteps of his predecesors, had his new pontificate consecrated to the care of Our Lady of Fatima during a Mass at the Shrine celebrated by the Cardinal Patriarch of Lisbon, Jose de Cruz Policarpo along with 37 bishops, nearly 300 priests and 500,00 faithful.   

    The Executive Trustees for the country of India are headed by the International Secretary of the WAF, Dr. Celcio Dias, and Bishop Peter Machado, the National Eccelsial Advisor to the WAF-India, which is responsible for the development and growth of the International WAF Magazine, multimedia resources, including Fatima TV and promotional materials on Fatima.