Do not be misled: This is Our Lady’s moment.

As an ardent devotee of Our Lady of Fatima, I’ve been consumed with articles and podcasts about tomorrow’s historic Consecration of Russia/Ukraine. Will it be done as Our Lady requested, with all bishops throughout the world participating in unison?  Will it truly be a consecration of Russia? Or will it be yet another watered-down mention, focused on consecrating “humanity”, along with Russia?

Today’s inbox brings yet more speculation and opinion. At least one commentator questions whether Pope Francis is even qualified to make the consecration, arguing it must be done by the “real” Holy Father, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. I worry that the naysayers might succeed in suppressing our urgently needed prayer and fasting — on the Feast of the Annunciation and a Lenten Friday, no less! — as we mark the consecration tomorrow.*

I, too, have been somewhat skeptical.

Although ecstatic over the Vatican’s announcement that Pope Francis would at long last fulfill the century-year-old request from the Mother of God, I was nonetheless concerned:  No mention was initially made about the consecration being in unison with all bishops, as specifically instructed by Our Lady of Fatima to the Portuguese shepherd children in 1917. In an Open Letter to the World’s Bishops, which I mailed to the bishops in my home state, I pleaded for their participation and urged others to join me in doing so.

Within 48 hours, the world would learn that the Holy Father was, at least, inviting all bishops to the party. It’s Happening, I wrote — but not without with a cautionary note about the forces of hell doing their best to intervene. More letters to our bishops, I advised.

In the week that has passed since then, facts and opinions continue to bombard us. Much of what is being written and recorded remains pure speculation. Take this post by Ann Barnhardt, who adamantly states that tomorrow’s event will be a “faux consecration” because Jorge Bergoglio, she believes, is not the pope. We might agree that Pope Francis is a bad pope, but he is the Holy Father, for better or for worse.

Further, Barnhardt states that the real pope, Benedict XVI “ain’t gonna be anywhere near this thing.” Not true. It has been widely reported, including here and here, that the pope emeritus will join in the consecration from his home in Vatican City — actually very near “this thing.”

Still, Barnhardt’s post does carry some potentially concerns regarding the text of the Consecration Prayer. She points to two “dogwhistles”, as she calls them, that seem to undermine the intent of the prayer. In the first instance, she refers to this line, Queen of the Human Family, show people the path of fraternity. She makes a reasonable argument that these words invoke the Freemasonic ideology of a man-centric society striving not for eternal salvation but for liberty, fraternity and equality here on earth. She also notes an obvious departure from Our Lady’s traditional title of “Queen of Families”, suggesting that “Queen of the Human Family” transcends the biological family to include the entire spectrum of human relationships.

The other “dogwhistle” she cites has to do with the prayer’s various translations, particularly into Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Polish and German. In these languages, Barnhardt asserts, “Queen of Heaven” is translated as “Queen of the land in the sky”—a blatant nod to the pagan idol, Pachamama.

Barnhardt finishes her post with a dire prediction that the “faux consecration” will be deemed a success, thereby dispelling all doubts and concerns over the legitimacy of Pope Francis as he continues to lead us, like lemmings, over the cliff to a New World Order. And, she warns, First Saturday devotions “are going to DROP MARKEDLY as a result of this, and may even be declared illicit…”

What do we make of these and other negative speculations over tomorrow’s consecration? Here’s my take:

Heaven is orchestrating this climactic event. It is, indeed, happening.

Let us hearken back to Our Lady’s worlds to Sister Lucia in 1929 (all emphasis  mine):

The moment has come in which God asks the Holy Father to make, and to order that in union with him and at the same time, all the bishops of the world make the consecration of Russia to My Immaculate Heart, promising to convert it because of this day of prayer and worldwide reparation.

And Her lesser known words to Barbara Reuss, age 12, in 1946, after Pope Pius XII had consecrated the world, but not specifically Russia, in 1942:

I am the powerful Mediatrix of Graces. As the world can find Mercy only through the sacrifice of the Son with the Father, so can you find favor with the Son through my intercession. Christ is unknown because I am not known. It is true that the world was consecrated to my Immaculate Heart, but this consecration has become a fearful responsibility for many men. I demand that the world live the consecration.

Let these words finally take hold! With the untarnished faith of a child, let us be assured that Our Lady’s moment is now. She patiently and lovingly awaits our response tomorrow, regardless of what the world might tell us or the intent of the man who fills the chair of Peter.

And let us not only continue our First Saturday devotions but enlist others to join us in this much needed practice for the times to come. As a newly consecrated Russia and the world convert to the One True Faith, we can be assured of more persecution and suffering at the hands of evil. We must remain safely under Mary’s mantle, united in prayer!

Above all, please participate in tomorrow’s Consecration of Russia, whether in person at your parish or via livestream, at 6:30 PM* Rome time.

Our Lady of Fatima, pray for us!

* Many parishes, my own included, will recite the Consecration prayer at 5:00 p.m., Rome time, as originally announced. This has since been clarified by the Vatican to be the commencement of a penance service, followed by the Consecration at approximately 6:30 p.m. Surely Heaven, which exists outside of time, will forgive the time difference in our prayers!