http://www.cfnews.org/page88/files/6b91dba9f582769f2ebf36669c61b048-404.html


"World Apostolate of Fatima"
Hides Our Lady of Fatima's Words
in English Translation of New Lucia Biography

In two previous columns (August 27, 2014 and April 10, 2015) I noted an explosive revelation in a new biography of Sister Lucia, Um Caminho Sob a Olhar de Maria (A Path Under the Gaze of Mary) published by the Convent in Coimbra. To recall the facts, at page 266 of the original Portuguese edition there is a quotation from a diary of Sister Lucia’s, not yet published, in which she recounts the Virgin’s direction to be at peace and write down the Third Secret after the seer’s long struggle to commit it to paper. The crucial phrase is “be at peace, and write what I have commanded you, but not, however, that which has been given to you to understand its meaning.” In Portuguese the key phrase is “está em paz e escreve o que te mandam, não porém o que te é dado entender do seu significado.”

The clear import of the Blessed Virgin’s words is that, on the date reflected in the biography, January 3, 1944, she directed Lucia to write down the vision ultimately published by the Vatican on June 26, 2000, whose four-page text is dated January 3, 1944, but not the Virgin’s own explanation of its meaning, which She had given to Lucia. The Virgin’s explanation of the vision’s meaning would have to involve a separate but still unpublished text—a text whose existence has been obvious since the moment the vision alone was published, eliciting Mother Angelica’s famous response on live television (May 16, 2001): “I happen to be one of those who thinks we didn’t get the whole thing.”  No, we didn’t.

Now “The World Apostolate of Fatima” (WAF), which used to be the Blue Army before it surrendered to the Vatican Secretary of State (cf. False Friends of Fatima, Ch. 4), has produced an English translation of the biography.  And what do we find on page 243 but this curious English rendering of the crucial Portuguese phrase: “Be at peace and write what they order you, but do not give your opinion of its meaning.”  The Portuguese original says nothing whatever about Lucia’s opinion, but rather refers to an extrinsic explanation of the vision that could only have come from Our Lady Herself.

The WAF “translation” employs the words “your opinion” to replace what the Portuguese original records as Our Lady’s actual words: “que te é dado entender do seu significado”—“that which has been given to you to understand its meaning.”  Thus, amazingly enough, the WAF “translation” removes six words from the Portuguese original (que te é dado entender do) and replaces them with two words nowhere to be found in the text.

I have confirmed with two Portuguese speakers, one of them a native of Portugal, that the original Portuguese has been mistranslated to give the false impression that Our Lady was directing Lucia not to write down Lucia’s “opinion” on the meaning of the vision. The latter advises me as follows: “It’s [que te é dado entender do seu significado] a passive voice, meaning that someone else did explain something to Sr. Lucy. And, because it’s a passive voice, it’s not possible for anyone to think that it was Sr. Lucy own opinion she should keep secret.

Furthermore, the WAF “translation” is nonsensical on its face.  Why would Sister Lucia even consider writing down her “opinion” of what the vision means? Why would her “opinion” be the least relevant? Would not the Virgin have simply told her what the vision means, just as she as she had done with the vision of Hell? Are we supposed to believe that the Mother of God directed the seer to write down an obscure vision, provided no explanation whatsoever of its meaning, and then—just to be sure no one could ever be certain what the vision depicts—told Lucia not to write down her own “opinion” of its significance? Thus leaving the Church and the world to rely upon Cardinal Sodano—a Vatican fixer who covered up the Father Maciel scandal for decades—to provide his ridiculous “interpretation” 56 years later as the self-appointed oracle of Fatima?

The “World Apostolate of Fatima” has a lot of explaining to do. I will be very interested to see how they defend this “translation” of the words of the Mother of God, which replaces six of her crucial words with two of theirs.

The Third Secret cover-up continues.

Being fluent in Portuguese, I would have to say that there are some important inconsistencies in the translations that Chris Ferrara has obtained.. <<The crucial phrase is “be at peace, and write what I have commanded you, but not, however, that which has been given to you to understand its meaning.” In Portuguese the key phrase is “está em paz e escreve o que te mandam, não porém o que te é dado entender do seu significado.”>>

Firstly "be at peace" is in the imperative mood, and "está em paz" is in the present indicative.  Then, "what I have commanded you" is in the present perfect with a first person singular subject.  "O que te mandam" is in the present indicative with a third person plural case. This conjugation in the third person plural cannot be interpreted in any way whatsoever as being an "I" in reference to the Holy Virgin.  I would give a serious look at the Portuguese texts again to see that they are copied correctly, and if they are then I would get a different translation.