Francisco and Jacinta Marto facts for kids
Quick facts for kids SaintsFrancisco and Jacinta Marto |
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Photograph of Francisco and Jacinta taken by Joshua Benoliel, c. October 1917
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| Born | Francisco: 11 June 1908 Jacinta: 5 March 1910 Aljustrel, Fátima, Ourém, Kingdom of Portugal |
| Died | Francisco: 4 April 1919 (aged 10) Aljustrel, Fátima, Portugal Jacinta: 20 February 1920 (aged 9) Queen Stephanie's Hospital, Lisbon, Portugal |
| Venerated in | Roman Catholic Church |
| Beatified | 13 May 2000, Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary, Fátima, Portugal by Pope John Paul II |
| Canonized | 13 May 2017, Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary, Fátima, Portugal by Pope Francis |
| Major shrine | Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary, Fátima, Portugal |
| Feast | 20 February |
Francisco de Jesus Marto (born June 11, 1908) and Jacinta de Jesus Marto (born March 5, 1910) were a brother and sister from a small village in Portugal. With their cousin, Lúcia dos Santos, they reported seeing visions of an angel and later, the Virgin Mary, in 1916 and 1917. These events led to the famous story of Our Lady of Fátima, and their village became a very important place for Christian visitors from all over the world.
Francisco and Jacinta were made saints by Pope Francis in 2017. They are the youngest Catholic saints who did not die as martyrs (someone who dies for their faith).
The Lives of Francisco and Jacinta
Francisco and Jacinta were the youngest children of Manuel and Olimpia Marto. They grew up like most village children in Portugal at that time. They did not learn to read or write.
According to their cousin Lúcia, Francisco was a calm and thoughtful boy. He enjoyed music and liked to spend time alone. Jacinta was loving and enjoyed singing and dancing.
After their special experiences, their personalities remained much the same. Francisco liked to pray by himself. He said this would "comfort Jesus for the sins of the world." Jacinta was deeply affected by a vision of Hell. This vision was shown to the children during one of their meetings with Mary. She became very determined to help save sinners. She believed this could be done through prayer and sacrifice, as the Virgin Mary had told them. All three children, especially Francisco and Jacinta, made many personal sacrifices for this goal.
The Apparitions
Francisco and Jacinta, along with their cousin Lúcia, looked after their family's sheep. They were in the fields near Fátima, Portugal. In 1916, they reported seeing an angel several times. Lúcia later wrote down the prayers the angel taught them.
In her writings, Sister Lúcia said that she and her cousins saw the first vision of Mary on May 13, 1917. At that time, Francisco was 8 years old, and Jacinta was 7.
During this first vision, the children said Mary asked them to pray the Rosary. She also asked them to make sacrifices. They were to offer these sacrifices to help sinners change their ways. Mary also asked them to return to that same spot on the thirteenth of each month for the next six months.
Illness and Death
The brother and sister became sick during the great influenza epidemic that spread across Europe in 1918. In October 1918, Jacinta told Lúcia that Mary had appeared to her again. Mary had promised to take them to heaven soon.
Both children were sick for many months. They still insisted on walking to church to pray. They would also kneel for hours with their heads on the ground. They said the angel had taught them to pray this way.
Francisco refused hospital treatment on April 3, 1919. He died at home the next day. To try and save her life, Jacinta was moved to a hospital in Ourém. She believed it would not help. Her health got worse. She was then moved to an orphanage in Lisbon. This was an attempt to get her into a children's hospital there.
Jacinta developed a serious lung infection. She had an operation where two of her ribs were removed. Because of her heart condition, she could not be fully put to sleep. She suffered terrible pain. She said this pain would help many sinners change their lives. On February 19, 1920, Jacinta asked the hospital priest for Holy Communion and Extreme Unction. She said she would die "the next night." The priest told her she was not that sick and would return the next day. Jacinta died the next day, alone, just as she had often said she would.
In 1920, shortly before her death, Jacinta Marto spoke with her cousin Lúcia. Jacinta was nine years old at the time. She talked about the Alliance of the Hearts of Jesus and Mary. She said:
When you are to say this, don't go and hide. Tell everybody that God grants us graces through the Immaculate Heart of Mary; that people are to ask her for them; and that the Heart of Jesus wants the Immaculate Heart of Mary to be venerated at his side. Tell them also to pray to the Immaculate Heart of Mary for peace, since God entrusted it to her.
Jacinta and Francisco are both buried at the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary of Fátima.
Becoming Saints
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The process to make the siblings saints began in 1946. When Jacinta's body was moved in 1935, her face was found to be preserved. Francisco's body had naturally decomposed. By 1951, Jacinta's body had also begun to decompose.
In 1937, Pope Pius XI decided that children could not become saints. He believed they could not fully understand or practice heroic virtue. This is a necessary step for sainthood. However, in 1979, the bishop of Leiria-Fátima asked bishops around the world to write to the Pope. They asked him to make an exception for Francisco, who died at age 10, and Jacinta, who died at age 9. More than 300 bishops wrote letters. They said the children were "known, admired and attracted people to the way of sanctity." They also said that making the children saints was important for children and teenagers today.
In 1979, a group of church leaders met. They discussed if children could show heroic virtue. They decided that some children could be "spiritual prodigies." This means they could be very special in their faith, like some children are geniuses in music or math. In 1989, Pope John Paul II declared them "venerable." This is an important step towards sainthood.
On May 13, 2000, they were declared "blessed." This is another step towards becoming a saint.
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When Pope John Paul II first visited Fátima in 1982, he explained why he came. He said that exactly one year before, on the same date, someone tried to harm him in Rome. This event strangely happened on the anniversary of the first vision at Fátima, May 13, 1917. He felt this timing was a special invitation for him to visit Fátima.
Another miracle was believed to have happened because of their prayers. The investigation into this miracle was approved in 2013. On March 23, 2017, it was announced that Pope Francis would make them saints. He did this during his visit to Portugal on May 13, 2017. This was exactly 100 years after the first vision.
Francisco and Jacinta are the youngest saints in the Catholic Church who did not die as martyrs. Jacinta is the youngest of them.
