The Vatican has released the text and commentary on the famous third vision of Fatima. This comes one month after the pope beatified two of the Portuguese children to whom the Virgin Mary supposedly appeared in a series of visions in 1917. Long held a secret in the Vatican archives, the third vision was thought to contain apocalyptic visions foretelling the end of the world.

A reading of the text seems to portray a bishop dressed in white who is killed amidst the bodies of other saints and martyrs. The vision is being interpreted as foretelling the attempted assassination of John Paul II on May 13, 1981. The pope has credited the Virgin Mary for sparing his life. It is interesting that the first of the Fatima visions occurred on May 13, 1917.

While the visions do not reveal any dramatic future events, the Vatican affirms the "personal revelatory" nature of the visions, thus giving credence to the role of visions to the church's faithful. Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, writing in a comment upon the visions said, "'the events to which the third part of the "secret" of Fatima refers now seem part of the past.' Insofar as individual events are described, they belong to the past. Those who expected exciting apocalyptic revelations about the end of the world or the future course of history are bound to be disappointed."

The first two secrets have been known for some time. They deal with the outbreak of World War II, divine punishment for human sin and Russian Communism's attempt to eradicate religion. All three visions are officially relegated to past events.

In the long-term, those within the Catholic Church, the present Pope included, who represent the cult of Mary worship will likely gain the most. (BBC News.)