"'. . . I wish to ask you to tell us who you are, and to perform a miracle so that everyone will believe that you have appeared to us!'

"'Continue to come here every month,' answered the Lady. 'In October I will tell you who I am and what I wish, and will perform a miracle that everyone will have to believe'"(1)

This promised sign was to be taken as confirmation of the Lady and her message of reparation, salvation and peace.

Four months later, on the 13th of October, the day of the miracle dawned as thousands of pilgrims streamed into the Cova da Iria through pouring rain and the mud it produced. By noon, the promised time of the apparition, some 70,000 people had gathered. John De Marchi, author of The Crusade of Fatima, describes the events:

"Silence, silence, Our Lady is coming,' Lucia cried out as she saw the flash. The rain having ceased, the sun began gradually to appear, and Our Lady came"(2).

" . . . opened her hands which emitted a flood of light. While she was rising, she pointed towards the sun and the light gleaming from her hands brightened the sun itself.

"'There she goes; there she goes!' shouted Lucia. . . .

"The echo of Lucia's shout came back in a hume [huge], immense cry of wonder and astonishment from the multitude. The sun was now pale as the moon. To the left of the sun, Saint Joseph appeared holding in his left arm the Child Jesus. Saint Joseph emerged from the bright clouds only to his chest, sufficient to allow him to raise his right hand and make, together with the Child Jesus, the Sign of the Cross three times over the world. As Saint Joseph did this, Our Lady stood in all her brilliancy to the right of the sun, dressed in the blue and white robes of our Lady of the Rosary.

"Meanwhile, Francisco and Jacinta were bathed in the marvelous colours and signs of the sun, and Lucia was privileged to gaze upon Our Lord dressed in red as the Divine Redeemer, blessing the world, as our Lady foretold. Like saint Joseph, He was seen only from His chest up. Beside Him stood Our Lady, dressed now in the purple robes of Our Lady of Sorrows, but without the sword.Finally, the Blessed Virgin appeared again to Lucia in all her ethereal brightness, clothed in the simple brown robes of Mount Carmel.

"As the children stared enraptured by these most beautiful heavenly visions, the countless thousands of people were amazed and overpowered by other miracles in the skies. The sun had taken on an extraordinary colour. The words of eye-witnesses best describe these stupendous signs. 'We could not look at the sun with ease.' Ti Marto testified, 'it did not bother [us] at all. It seemed to be continually fading and glowing in one fashion, then another. It threw shafts of light one way and another painting everything in different colours, the people, the trees, the earth, even the air. But the greatest proof of the miracle was the fact that the sun did not bother the eyes.' . . . Everybody stood still and quiet, gazing at the sun,' he went on. 'At a certain point, the sun stopped its play of light and then started dancing. It stopped once more and again started dancing until it seemed to loosen itself from the skies and fall upon the people. It was a moment of terrible suspense.'

"maria da Capelinha gave . . . her impressions of this tremendous miracle. 'The sun cast different colours, yellow, blue and white. It trembled constantly. It looked like a revolving ball of fire falling upon the people.' As the sun hurled itself towards the earth in a mighty zigzag motion, the multitude cried out in terror, 'Ai Jesus, we are all going to die here; Ai Jesus, we are all going to die here.' Some begged for mercy. 'Our Lady save us;' many others made acts of contrition. One lady was even confessing her sins aloud.

"At last the sun swerved back to its orbit and rested in the sky. 'Everyone gave a sigh of relief; we were still alive, and the miracle promised by the children had come to pass'"(3).