Fatima secret was kept too long

Most Catholics, especially those over 40, have heard of the Fatima secret and wondered about its apparently dire contents, so dire, it was thought, that the Vatican dared not release its contents. As rumor built on rumor, some people assumed the secret predicted the end of the world.

In finally releasing the text of the secret and issuing a reflective commentary on it this week (see page 1), Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, prefect of the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, made several significant admissions:

* "There does not exist an official definition or official interpretation of this vision on the part of the Church." Despite explications earlier this year which said the secret concerned the assassination attempt against Pope John Paul II, it could be understood in other ways, even to refer vaguely to the general struggle of the Church against 20th-century oppression.

* As with any private revelation, Catholics are not obliged to pay attention to it.

* The secret is not a prophecy in the sense of a prediction but a caution.

Cardinal Ratzinger was correct when he admitted that the secret "will probably prove disappointing...after all the speculation it has stirred. No great mystery is revealed; nor is the future unveiled."

So why couldn't the people of God have known that years ago? Instead of releasing the truth, the Vatican permitted idle speculation, wild guesses and cultic rumors to preoccupy many of the faithful. As for individual Catholics, insofar as they allowed something so ephemeral to capture their attention, they, too, share part of the blame for detracting from what should be at the center of their lives: not speculation and fear, but faith and hope.

Many aspects of Catholic culture -- the Shroud of Turin, relics, visions, sacramentals -- can deepen faith when used properly. But when Church authorities or individual believers allow them to supplant the core of our faith, they are being misused.

(06-29-00)