Cardinal Bertone’s new book reveals details of his encounters with the “last visionary of Fatima”

Rome, Italy, Oct 15, 2007 / 08:47 am

“The Last Visionary of Fatima. My Conversations with Sister Lucia,” is the title of a new book by Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, which reveals details of his encounters with the last survivor of the three shepherd children who were witnesses of the Marian apparitions in Fatima in 1917.

The book was released on September 21 at a reception hosted by the Pontifical Urbanianum University.

The cardinal’s encounters with Sister Lucia, who passed away recently, focused in detail on the miraculous events surrounding the apparitions, including the prophecies about the war and the future of Russia.  They also address the controversy surrounding the “third secret” of Fatima, which was revealed by John Paul II in the year 2000. 

Cardinal Bertone’s book includes a preface by Pope Benedict XVI, who was the prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith at the time the "third secret" was revealed.

Sister Lucia died on February 13, 2006, at the age of 97.  Her death came on the thirteenth day of month, as did the first apparition of Mary in May of 1917.

In 1948 she became a Carmelite nun at the Convent of St. Teresa in Coimbra. 

In the year 2000, the two other witnesses of Fatima, Francisco and Jacinta Marto, who both died at a young age, were beatified by John Paul II.