Pope Francis has granted canonical coronation to the country’s national pilgrim image of Our Lady of Fatima, the same icon used during the People Power Revolution of 1986.
The news was announced Oct. 19 by the National Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima in Valenzuela City, where the image is enshrined, citing a decree from the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.
“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,” said Archbishop Vittorio Viola, the dicastery’s secretary.
A canonical coronation is a formal ceremony wherein a Marian image is crowned in the name of the pope.
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 Catholic nation as her image was at the forefront of the peaceful uprising at Edsa.
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.
The shrine has scheduled the rite of coronation for the image on Feb. 25, 2024, the 38th anniversary of the Edsa revolt. (Joseph Ryan Moscoso)
