The Chapel Miracle of the Sun was located on the east side of the Square, nearby the Museum of Fatima.
The chapel had the dimension of ~50x70. On the altar, the Montrance of the Eucharist was at the hightest position. The chapel was full with people in adoration, yet in complete contemplative silence; all recording media were not allowed.

The apparition drew 70,000 people from all parts of Europe, and was seen by 25 miles away.




________________________MIRACLE OF THE SUN________________________________
"The sun's disc spun around on itself in a mad whirl -- then, whirling wildly, seemed to loosen itself from the firmament and advance threateningly upon the earth"
..."he fell on his knees in the mire shouting "Nossa Senhora! Nossa Senhora!"

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Mary allegedly appeared on the thirteenth of each month, and the children were there each time except for one apparition when they were locked away by government officials. Each time the children reported similar phenomena, and many messages and secrets were revealed to them.

At each successive apparition, word of the events at Fatima spread farther and wider, along with the story that the October apparition would be particularly dramatic. The October 17 miracle was predicted to be one that everyone would see. The apparition drew 70,000 people from all parts of Europe. The day was dark and rainy. Although the sun rose that day, soon dark clouds overshadowed it and threatened a severe storm. At around 10:00 a.m., the rains came. The pilgrims and the interested skeptics kept coming, however.

Noon came, and Lucia saw the flash that always preceded the vision of Mary. As she arrived, the rains ceased and the sun began to come out. The apparition of Mary settled over the tree as usual. Lucia inquired, "What do you want of me?" Mary said, "I want to tell you that they must build a chapel here in my honor; that I am the Lady of the Rosary; that they continue to say the rosary every day. The war will end and the soldiers will return to their homes soon."

Lucia asked Mary if she would grant some petitions, to which she replied, "Some I will, others I will not. They must mend their lives, ask forgiveness for their sins. Offend not Our Lord any more, for He is already much offended." As Mary left, she 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. Suddenly a cry of awe and wonderment came from the large crowd. The sun became pale as the moon.

As the children were watching this, the crowd was enraptured by other signs in the sky. As one witness said, "We could look at the sun with ease. It did not bother [the eyes] 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 colors, the people, the trees, the earth, even the air." Everyone stood still and quiet, gazing at the sun. At a certain point, the sun stopped its play of light and then started "dancing." It stopped again and then again started dancing until it seemed to loosen itself from the skies and fall upon the people. It was a moment of terrible suspense.
Dr. Almeida Garrett, professor of Coimbra, said, "The sun had broken through the thick layer of clouds. It seemed to be drawing all eyes and I saw it as a disc with a clean cut rim, luminous and shining, but which did not hurt the eyes;. The clouds did not obscure the light of the sun; one could fix one's eyes on this brazier of heat and light without pain in the eyes or blinding of the retina. The sun's disc spun around on itself in a mad whirl -- then, whirling wildly, seemed to loosen itself from the firmament and advance threateningly upon the earth as if to crush us with its huge fiery weight. There were changes of color in the atmosphere. Looking at the sun I noticed everything around was becoming darkened. All the phenomena which I have described were observed by me. It is for others to interpret and explain them."

As the sun appeared to hurl itself upon the crowd in a zigzag fashion, the people in the crowd cried out in terror, believing they were going to die. Some begged for mercy; others said the act of contrition. One lady confessed her sins aloud. Eventually the sun stopped its sudden dive and returned to its place in the sky. As the multitude sighed in relief they realized that the miracle predicted by the children had come to pass. Then they noticed that everything had suddenly dried from the heavy rains earlier -- their clothes, the ground, everything! Not only did the immediate crowd witness the miracle, but so did those in adjoining villages. Although there were some variations in what they saw, they all reported having seen something miraculous.

Incio Lourenco reported, "Near us was an unbeliever without religion, who had spent the morning mocking the blockheads who had made all that journey to Fatima to go and stare at a girl. I looked at him. He stood as if paralyzed, thunderstruck, his eyes fixed on the sun. Then I saw him tremble from head to foot, and raising his hands to heaven, he fell on his knees in the mire shouting "Nossa Senhora! Nossa Senhora!" (Our Lady! Our Lady!)

For those who might think that mass hallucination at the site produced the spectacle, it should be noted that the miracle was seen by many throughout the region, even as far away as 25 miles from Fatima, where the poet Afonso Lopes Vieira also saw the miracle of the sun from his house.


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