Devotion brings peace to Tubac Catholics, reparation to Blessed Mother

By Carissa Krautscheid

Three dozen Catholics gather in Tubac, AZ, over the course of five months on the first Saturday. Their pastor, Fr. Joseph Esson, celebrates Mass and leads the community in a set of special prayers. 

Their purpose?

To fulfill a request made by the Blessed Virgin Mary at Fatima.

“See, my daughter, My Heart surrounded with thorns with which ingrates pierce me at every moment with blasphemies and ingratitude. You, at least, make sure to console me and announce that all those who for five months, on the first Saturdays, go to confession, receive Communion, say five decades of the Rosary and keep me company for 15 minutes meditating on the mysteries of the Rosary, with the purpose of making reparation to Me, I promise to assist them at the hour of death with all the graces necessary for the salvation of their souls." — Our Lady to Fatima visionary, Lucia, on December 10, 1925

Julie Grotheer was among the St. Ann’s parishioners who asked their pastor to “consider having a special Mass and devotions in honor of Our Lady’s request at Fatima,” she said. “Fr. Joseph was willing to lead us in this devotion. We started on January 1, 2022, which landed on a Saturday and the Feast of the Solemnity of Mary! Our parish has made the Five First Saturdays several times now and we will continue to do so.”

Though this devotion can be done individually, the Tubac community has grown closer by practicing it together. Twenty-five to 40 Catholics attend each month.

“On the first Saturday of each month, Father Joseph celebrates Mass at 9am and sings Marian hymns throughout. Father Joseph brings his own Fatima statue to place in front of the altar. We place fresh roses at the foot of Fatima statue, symbolizing our love for our Heavenly Mother. Before the final blessing, the participants kneel, and we pray the rosary together with scripture meditations before each decade. We say the prayer to St. Michael the Archangel, then Father Joseph leads us in the act of Consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, with three short prayers of reparation that we recite altogether. Father then gives us the final blessing. We commit to praying the rosary every day.”

Typically, Catholics pray devotions like novenas in a series of nine. So why did the Blessed Mother ask for this devotion to be done over five months? Grotheer elaborated, “Jesus explained to Lucia that there are five offenses and blasphemes spoken against the Immaculate Heart of Mary.”

1. Against the Immaculate Conception
2. Against her virginity
3. Against her divine maternity and refusing to receive her as the Mother of mankind
4. Instilling indifference, scorn, and hatred towards the Immaculate Mother in the hearts of children
5. Direct insults against her sacred images

When the Blessed Mother appeared at Fatima, she was seen with a boy. The child Jesus told Lucia, “Have pity on the Heart of your Most Holy Mother which is covered with thorns with which ingrate men pierce it at every moment with no one to make an act of reparation to pull them out.”

Reparation is an act of making amends for a wrongdoing.

“Now more than ever,” said Grotheer, “we need to step up our prayers to fight the battle of evil that desires to take over our homes, country, and the world. Wars are still going on and attacks against Christians and the family are daily common occurrences. Mary is the Mother of peace. Our Lady has promised that, in the end, her Immaculate Heart will triumph. We choose to be her loyal children and spread grace and healing in our broken world. 

“She in return leads us ever closer to her Son,” said Grotheer. “Mary will just not be outdone in her generosity to each of us who respond to her call. This has brought about peace in our hearts and also a deeper love and devotion to the Holy Eucharist and Reconciliation – for us and other parishioners. Those who practice this devotion look forward to the first Saturday of the month and experience her graces that she generously gives each of us! It is not something that you want to ‘finish.’ We always encourage others to join us for this one hour of incredible blessings to us individually, as a parish, our nation, and the world. Our Lady has definitely blessed us by encouraging us in this devotion and providing us with peace.”

You too can make an act of reparation to kindly pull the thorns out of Mary’s Immaculate Heart. Whether you take up the Five First Saturdays devotion personally or reach out to your pastor about starting the devotion as a group like they did at St. Ann, you will experience the generous graces of the Blessed Mother.