I turned onto 8th street and before me was a HUGE Catholic shrine with marble statues. This stunning display is in the small village of Mio, Michigan. (east of Grayling) There are only 1,884 residents, yet there’s this impressive European structure. I slid my car to the side of the road and jumped out to have a look-see.

I have been raised Roman Catholic, attend mass infrequently, but still find solace in the rituals of faith. After being in Rome, Italy last February I have an appreciation for how the church has influenced and intermingled with history as well as art over centuries.

In early 1953 Father Rakowski was shoveling the walkway when he had a divinely inspired idea to construct a shrine for Mary and the apparitions that have happened around the world. An apparition is when people report a vision of Mary, the mother of Jesus, appearing to them in a bright light. Mary has spoken a message each time in the people’s own language. The Catholic church, however, has carefully reviewed each occurrence and has been extremely selective about acknowledging the authenticity of these sightings. There have been four confirmed locations of these apparitions.

Later I learned that the five steps represent the five decades (sections) of a rosary. A rosary is a set of beads with five sections that Catholics use when reciting prayers. The steps also represent the five continents of the world.

The rosary isn’t mentioned anywhere in the Bible. According to the Catholic church, Saint Dominic has been sited with starting this divinely inspired tradition about 1,170 years ago.

My mother says her daily rosary. At our family reunion the Bunek siblings (nine) render these prayers before lunch each day. (The reunion lasts a full week.) At a funeral, Catholics gather and recite these invocations.

In June of 1953 Father Rakowski borrowed two shovels and broke ground for this grand monument. Many local businesses and members of the community from all faiths donated time, talent and materials during the two years of construction. The foundations are eight feet deep and four feet wide to accommodate the 25,000 tons of Onaway shale.

As I walked around this masterpiece I realized there were grottos and niches. Each one had a theme with different statues and altars.

The four confirmed apparitions of Mary around the world have been in Guadalupe, Mexico (1531), LaSalette, France (1846), Lourdes, France (1858), Fatima, Portugal (1917).

It is reported that in 1531 Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe (Mary) appeared to an indigenous Mexican man in Guadalupe. The details are scarce, but the devotion is pure. The tradition of honoring of the lady of Guadalupe is still strong today.

On September 19, 1846 the youngsters, Maximin Giraud and Melanie Calvat were in the fields with their cows in LaSalette, France. A globe of fire appeared on the ground. The children said, “It looked like the sun had fallen there.” The globe enlarged and opened revealing a woman seated with her knees bent up to her chin and her head in her hands. The lady was weeping. She was dressed like the villagers of the day: long skirt, shawl and apron. The lady had roses adorning her head, shawl and shoes. The lady stated that people were not following God or his commandments. She told the children to warn the community that there may be a famine if the people didn’t change their ways. If the villagers were converted then stones and rocks would become wheat and potatoes. This apparition was accepted by Bishop Philibert de Bruillard of Grenoble on September 18, 1851.

February 11th to July 16th in 1858 fourteen year old Bernadette Soubiroux in Lourdes (southern France) had several visions of Mary. The message was “A chapel should be built here.” In 1862 the Roman Catholic church named the Massabielle grotto a holy place.

At that location there have been 18 reported apparitions of “a lady” believed to be Mary, the mother of Jesus. There have been four miracles on the site since 1978. For instance, an Italian woman with acute rheumatism was healed. Miracles need to be confirmed by two doctors, witnesses and approved by the church. There have been 386 claims of miracles in the 20th century where only 8 miracles have been approved.

The most captivating apparition story for me was from May – October 1917 in Fatima, Portugal. Mary appeared to Lucia dos Santos (9 years old) and her two cousins, Francisco (8) and Jacita (6) Marto while they were tending to their sheep. This occurred during the First World War.

According the the three children, Our Lady (Mary) told the children to pray the rosary daily and to come back on the 13th of each month where she would reveal more to them. Each time Mary appeared she guided the youngsters to share her messages with the people and three specific “secrets.”

These messages include that the good will be martyred. Hell is a real place as Mary shared a frightening vision with the children. The Holy Father will have much to suffer. Various nations will be annihilated. The Holy Father needs to consecrate Russia to me. (Immaculate Mary) It will convert the world to a period of peace.

On July 13th, 1917 Mary instructed the crowd to pray the rosary every day and added the following prayer to be said at the end each of the five decades of the rosary. This is known as the Fatima Prayer, “Oh my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fire of Hell. Lead all souls to Heaven, especially those who are most in need.”

On her last appearance, October 13, 1917 Mary fulfilled her promise to create a miracle so others would believe. A crowd of over 70,000 gathered in the mud and pouring rain. As Mary revealed herself, the sun shone radiating many stunning colors. It was reported that the light didn’t hurt one’s eyes. The hues were unlike any ever seen. The ground dried instantly.

This miracle was approved as, “The Miracle of the Sun,” on October 13, 1930 by Bishop Jose Alves Correia da Silva. (23 years later)

Sadly both cousins, Francisco and Jacita, died of influenza as children. Lucia became a nun. She continued her service to God.

Lucia revealed the first two “secrets” in 1941. They predicted the second World War as well as the rise and fall of communism. “Hell” had been revealed as a consequence for sinful lives in a vision to the three children.

In 1944 Lucia, who was gravely ill, was urged to share the third secret, but she told the Bishop that it is not to be revealed until 1960. Sister Lucia stated, “…because the Virgin Mary wants it to be so. It will make more sense in 1960.” She wrote it down and put it inside sealed a envelop. A photograph of Bishop da Silva holding the sealed envelop appeared in “Life” magazine in 1949.

“In May of 1952 Our Lady appeared to Sister Lucia saying: “Make it known to the Holy Father that I am always awaiting the Consecration of Russia to my Immaculate Heart. Without that Consecration, Russia will not be able to convert. Without that consecration, the world cannot have peace.”

In 1960 the third secret was read only by the Pope and tucked away in the archives. It was said that an interpretation had been written and kept in the Papal residence. Secrecy surrounded these documents for decades!

On November 21, 1964 Pope Paul VI consecrates the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, with no mention of Russia.

1967 Sister Lucia’s memoirs are published. She met with the Pope and requested that he fulfills Mary’s request to consecrate Russia and release the third secret. The Pope refuses not wanting to upset the Russian Orthodox church. He does not release the third secret, either.

Pope John Paul II begins his leadership of the Roman Catholic Church in 1978. On May 31, 1981 an assassination attempt is made and three people were injured including Pope John Paul II.

On June 7, 1981 he consecrates the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, but doesn’t include Russia specifically. The third secret remains in the Holy Office archives. This was the beginning of the whispering of scandals of sexual abuse to youngsters by priests and the Bishops simply re-assigning these men to other parish communities.

On May 13, 1982 Pope John Paul II consecrates the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary while in Fatima, Portugal. He doesn’t mention Russia. The Bishops of the world did not participate.

On March 25, 1984 “Pope John Paul II, before 250,000 people in Rome, consecrates the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Immediately after he pronounced the words of consecration, he departs from his prepared text and prays “Enlighten especially the peoples of which You Yourself are awaiting our consecration and confiding.” The Pope thus publicly acknowledges that Our Lady of Fatima is still awaiting the Consecration of Russia.”

In July of 1989  Father Messias Coelho reports that Sister Lucia received anonymous instructions to confirm that the consecration of Russia took place on March 25, 1984 when Pope John Paul II went “off script.” She does not confirm this version of the consecration of Russia.

In 1995 in a personal communication from a long time theologian at the Vatican, Cardinal Mario Luigi Ciappi to Professor Baumgartner in Salzburg, Austria, revealed, “In the Third Secret it is foretold, among other things, that the great apostasy in the Church will begin at the top.”

The New York Times wrote an article where “The Vatican Discloses ‘Third Secret'” (May 14, 2000) It is shared that the message was about the 1981 Pope John Paul II ‘s assassination attempt.

February 13, 2005 Sister Lucia passes away, two months short of her 98th birthday. Several books about the Fatima secrets show up on book shelves and are marketed with speculations.

On May 11, 2010 “Pope Benedict XVI, on his pilgrimage to Portugal, stunned the press and the Catholic world by saying that the Third Secret of Fatima tells us that “not only from the outside come the attacks against the Pope and the Church, but the sufferings of the Church come from right inside the Church, from the sin that resides inside the Church… we see this today really in a terrifying way: the greatest persecution against the Church doesn’t come from its enemies outside, but starts from the sins within the Church.” Cardinal Bertone added, “The Lord told us that the Church would constantly be suffering, in different ways, until the end of the world.”

In 2012 European politicians meet and urge Pope Benedict XVI to consecrate Russia in Our Lady’s name. Their hope is for peace.

On February 11, 2013 Pope Benedict XVI steps down from as the leader of the Roman Catholic church.

March 13, 2013 Pope Francis is elected in a conclave by the Cardinals. The Cardinals secluded themselves in the Sistine Chapel at Vatican City where discussions and voting occurred. The selection for a new Pope was made by casting ballots, choosing one of the Cardinals to become the new leader of the Roman Catholic church. White smoke from the chimney signified that a new pope has been elected. The crowd in St. Peter’s Square erupted with joy as the white smoke emerged from the small chimney pipe. Catholics around the world were tuned to their televisions for live coverage of the event.

On October 13, 2013 Pope Francis conducts a ceremony of ‘entrustment’ where neither Our Lady or Russia were even mentioned.

The right side of the tribute structure is dedicated to Michigan. (Not pictured . . . I was talking to fellow travelers and got distracted. Imagine that?) It honors Father Marquette who was a missionary in Michigan. There are five water falls representing the Tahquamenon Falls, the AuSable River and Mio Pond. St. Hubert, I learned, the patron saint of deer hunters is featured. I grew up Catholic, but had no idea there was a patron saint for deer hunters. It’s time to find a statue of St. Hubert and prayer cards for the Bunek family hunting shack!

Finding this shrine was incredibly inspiring. I learned a lot about Our Lady’s apparitions. Last week at my Uncle John’s rosary (the night before his funeral), the Fatima Prayer was recited between each decade of the rosary. At the time, I was curious about this prayer. I didn’t remember learning this prayer of the rosary as a child. I tried to decipher the wording at the ending, but couldn’t make out the speech patterns as the crowd recited prayers through their masks. I didn’t ask about it as we had many memories to share about Uncle John. I thought I’d ask my mom about it later. Then, right here in my research, I discovered the origin of this certain remembrance. It warmed my heart.

Tour groups come to Our Lady of the Woods Shrine by the bus load! If you’re interested in a guided tour, please contact the office two weeks prior to your planned visit. (Contact information is below) Michigan is full of these hidden gems. Thank you for coming along with me on this excursion.

References:

The Complete Fatima Timeline

https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/library/world/global/051400pope-fatima-secret.html

St. Mary / Our Lady of the Woods Shrine
201 W. 8th Street
Mio, Michigan 48647
Phone (989) 826-5509

https://www.olwshrine.org/