The Our Lady of Fatima pilgrim image enshrined at the national shrine in Valenzuela City. (Photo courtesy of National Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima Facebook page)
MANILA – The National Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima in Valenzuela City has scheduled the rites for the coronation for the image on Feb. 25, 2024.
A canonical coronation is a formal ceremony wherein a Marian image is crowned in the name of the pope.
Pope Francis granted canonical coronation to the country’s national pilgrim image, the same icon used during the 1986 EDSA revolution.
“We are confident that this canonical coronation will contribute to an ever-deepening devotion to the Mother of God on the part of God’s holy, faithful people which will, in turn, assist them in their spiritual growth,” Archbishop Vittorio Viola, Secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, said in an article posted on the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines website Friday.
The coronation acknowledges the specific image’s local significance while also recognizing its universal importance within the Catholic Church.
The practice began in the 17th century but became increasingly popular in the late 1800s.
Our Lady of Fatima holds a special place in the nation as her image was at the forefront of the peaceful uprising at the EDSA Shrine.
In 1999, the image was entrusted to the care of the National Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima and has been enthroned there ever since.
The pilgrim image received an episcopal coronation on May 13, 2017, marking the centenary of the Fatima apparitions. (PNA)
