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THE SAINTS AND US
Mafalda Martinho, asm
Novice of the Covenant of St. Mary


SAINT ANGEL OF PORTUGAL


Yes, angels do exist! Let's go back to the last century and fix our gaze on the small village of Aljustrel (Fatima). It was in this small village, between April and October 1916, that the little shepherds Francisco, Jacinta and Lucia were visited three times by an angel: the Angel of Portugal. The first apparition took place in the spring, when the little shepherds were playing near Loca do Cabeço. When he came to them, he told them that he was the Angel of Peace and invited them to pray with him, teaching them a prayer. In the second apparition, which took place near Poço do Arneiro on a summer's day, the Angel once again invited them to pray and to offer sacrifices as an act of reparation and supplication for the conversion of sinners. The third and final apparition took place in the fall, again at Loca do Cabeço. The Angel taught the little shepherds a new prayer and gave them Holy Communion. Finally, calling for reparation ("comfort your God"), disappeared, leaving the little shepherds' souls completely focused on God.

Given all this, Francis' attitude after each of these apparitions is curious (and questioning). Although he could see the Angel, he was the only one of the three who didn't hear his words. For this reason, at the end of each apparition, he would ask Lucia and Jacinta everything the Angel had told them. Francisco wasn't afraid to ask questions - Who is the Most High? What does it mean: the Hearts of Jesus and Mary are attentive? Etc. - And when he didn't understand, he would ask again. And then, welcoming the answers and the silences, he was the first to say: "The Angel is more beautiful than all that. Let's think about him."

And what about us? Do we dare to ask what these apparitions mean? What do the Angel of Portugal and his apparitions tell us today?... I believe that the Angel essentially shows and teaches us three things:

  1. Prayer as a school for growing in the knowledge of God
  2. The offering of daily life as a plea for the conversion of sinners
  3. Worship as an act of reparation and consolation


Let's look at prayer as a school for growing in the knowledge of God. When the Angel first appeared to the little shepherds, they were engaged in their routine work with the sheep, which they were doing between games. The Angel then appeared to them in the ordinary of their lives and the first thing he asked them to do was pray with him. The Angel of Portugal is a praying angel who prays and teaches how to pray, which makes him an authentic pedagogue. The Angel becomes a mystagogue for the little shepherds, initiating them into faith, hope and charity - the three theological dimensions of Christian existence. In other words, the Angel signals a sudden and unexpected change in everyday normality and mediates between the human and the divine. Constantly calling for prayer and teaching us to pray - by praying with us -, the Angel of Portugal presents us with a spiritual itinerary to grow in our relationship with God. As a teacher, he introduces us to the school of prayer, with the aim of getting to know the One who sent him better. As he got closer, the little shepherds could make out his features. And the one they had never seen before was surprisingly revealed to be of great beauty. Prayer as a school for growing in the knowledge of God allows us to live this same experience with God himself. As we draw closer in prayer, the beauty of God's face is revealed and presented to us.

Along with the request for constant prayer, the Angel asks for sacrifices to be offered as a plea for the conversion of sinners. The little shepherds asked him how they could sacrifice and, in response, the Angel told them to offer sacrifices of everything they could. In this way, he taught them that everyday sacrifices please God, and that there is no need for flashy actions. The Angel of Portugal thus deepens the spirituality of everyday life, which leads us to understand how God loves us and wants to be loved. The spirituality of the offering of daily life leads us to the heart of the message brought by the Angel and, therefore, to the heart of the whole Gospel: the universality of the possibility of salvation. The offering of our daily lives becomes a plea for the conversion of sinners when, out of love, we transfigure ourselves into incarnate charity. That is, when we become the incarnation of God's charitable act, with small offerings to the offering of our lives, we become a means of salvation for all those who do not believe, do not worship, do not hope and do not love.

And this brings us to adoration as an act of reparation and consolation. In his third apparition, the Angel asked the little shepherds to make reparation for the crimes of the world and to console God. Unfortunately, outrages, sacrilege and indifference against God's heart continue to offend him. The seriousness of the sin demands the urgency of reparation. Therefore, the Angel of Portugal - who is also the Angel of Adoration - shows us adoration as a way to consolation. To worship God is to accept his love. It's about recognizing ourselves as beloved sinners. To repair and console God is to accept being a creature and, with kneeling words, to unburden the heart of the Creator.

This is what the Angel of Portugal shows and teaches us. This is his message to us today. However, more important than decoding and interpreting the Angel's message is welcoming it and putting it into practice in our concrete lives. Let's make the Angel of Portugal a companion and friend. Let's take part in his school and offer our lives in an attitude of adoration. Let's walk with him along the path he proposes, because it's a safe path and the only goal is heaven.

January 2024
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