cover image The Last Secret of Fatima: My Conversations with Sister Lucia

The Last Secret of Fatima: My Conversations with Sister Lucia

Tarcisio Bertone, with Giuseppe De Carli. . Doubleday, $21.95 (171pp) ISBN 978-0-385-52582-4

The apparition of Mary, the mother of Christ, to three children in Fatima, Portugal, in 1917 has long fascinated Roman Catholics and others intrigued by the vision's prophetic messages, particularly the so-called “Third Secret.” Journalist De Carli explores the meaning of the visions and puts them in historical context in this extended interview with Bertone, the Vatican official charged with verifying the last secret. Before its release in 2000, Bertone met with the only surviving visionary, Sister Lucia, for confirmation. In subsequent meetings before her death, Bertone gained her assurance that no further secrets remained. This book also discusses the significance of the visions to the late Pope John Paul II, who believed his assassination attempt was foretold in the last secret and emphasized the visions' essential purpose of calling people to conversion. Included are a chronology, theological commentary written by Pope Benedict XVI when he was head of the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and the last secret's text. This guide will be of special interest to Fatima devotees. (May 6)