Cardinal Raymond Burke called on Catholics to prepare for the possibility of martyrdom for remaining faithful to Christ.
On July 13th, Cardinal Burke delivered a stirring homily at the World Apostolate of Fatima in Asbury, New Jersey, reminding Catholics to sacrifice for the conversion of sinners according to the message of Our Lady of Fatima.
“The instruction of the Mother of God resounds in our hearts today as we live in a world which is ever more beset by the rebellion against God and His plan for our eternal salvation through the Redemptive Incarnation of God the Son,” he declared.
Cardinal Burke’s homily was delivered at the Votive Mass of the Immaculate Heart of Mary hosted by the Knights of Columbus in Basking Ridge, New Jersey, and Our Lady’s Blue Army, a lay group that works to spread the Fatima message.
The cardinal referenced the Fatima apparition to the three young children, Saints Francisco and Jacinta Marto and Venerable Lucia dos Santos, that took place on July 13, 1917.
Cardinal Burke compared the vision of hell to “the rebellion within the Church herself, in apostasy from Christ, from the Apostolic Tradition.”
During the apparition, the Blessed Virgin requested that the children pray the Holy Rosary daily and offer sacrifices for the reparation of sins. Our Lady gave the children a vision of hell, where those who reject Christ burn for eternity.
Cardinal Burke compared the vision of hell to “the rebellion within the Church herself, in apostasy from Christ, from the Apostolic Tradition by which Christ continues to teach, sanctify, and guide us along the way of our earthly pilgrimage to our eternal home in Heaven.”
However, far from discouraging, he revealed that through prayer and sacrifice, the Church can be restored to her former beauty.
“Our responsibility is, as Our Lady of Fatima teaches us so clearly, to transform the situation of the world and the Church by overcoming in our lives any sin and darkness, by daily turning to Christ and seeking to follow him with all our heart,” he said.
Cardinal Burke suggested that Catholics practice devotions such as praying the daily Holy Rosary, acts of penance and reparation, and receiving the sacraments of Confession and Holy Communion.
“We must daily turn to Christ and embrace the white martyrdom of indifference, ridicule, and persecution,” he declared, warning that “some of us may even be called to give the ultimate witness of red martyrdom, of death in remaining faithful to Christ and to His plan for our salvation and the salvation of the world.”
However, just as the vision of hell was not meant to discourage the young Fatima children, Cardinal Burke encouraged Catholics to remain hopeful that the Immaculate Heart of Mary will triumph if Catholics offer their lives to Her.
“Each of us is called, with Mary Immaculate, to do our part in Christ’s saving work, according to our vocation in life and our distinct gifts,” he explained.
“Each of us is called to pray and do penance for the conversion of Russia, to make the First Saturdays of Reparation, and to pray the Rosary, keeping in our hearts, one with the Immaculate Heart of Mary, all that Our Lord has said and done for our eternal salvation,” he continued.
“May
we, one in heart with the Immaculate Heart of Mary, keep always in our
hearts the Mystery of Faith, so that we, with Mary, may bring Christ and
His saving work to the world,” the prelate prayed.