.jpg)
Today we celebrate the birthday of Venerable Fulton Sheen, born Peter John Sheen on 8 May 1895 in the middle of nowhere, Illinois, also known El Paso. He would be 129 years old today.
He was born in the month dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, which took on greater importance during the visitations of Our Blessed Mother of Fatima. And he died in the month dedicated to Mary, The Immaculate Conception. In fact, he died on the very day of the original feast of the Immaculate Conception, December 9, which was the first day Our Lady of Guadalupe visited the Americas to begin its conquest for Our Blessed Lord.
Ponder these divinely orchestrated connections.
Who would have ever thought that this baby was destined to become one of the greatest evangelizers in the modern age, let alone the history of the Church. At the height of his evangelization through the media, he was reaching 30 million people a week in the United States alone. ALL of the proceeds of his show, which in our times would equate to over one hundred million dollars worked its way directly to the missions to support the missionaries, the poor and the vulnerable.
Through his 60+ books and thousands of articles he reached millions more.
Today, his telecasts, writings and recorded retreats continue to reach millions around the world thanks to the digital continent of the modern world.
Just one of his retreats changed my life forever in 1998. And his impact continues today.
What does God teach us through the life of Venerable Fulton Sheen? God often performs His greatest acts and calls His greatest saints from the most unsuspecting places. He did so with Our Blessed Mother and even with the Incarnation of His own Son: What good can come from Nazareth?
So, as we celebrate the life of this soon-to-be “Blessed” in the Church, remember that the secret of His greatness was the secret of His holiness — He always stayed close to the Lord and His Blessed Mother. And he did so in four simple ways that we can all do ourselves:
His priestly life was one lived as a victim making reparation and sacrifices for the salvation of souls
He intentionally lived his total consecration to Mary
He prayed the Rosary every day (with his family during his childhood
He made a daily Holy Hour before Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament.
In short, Fulton Sheen lived out to an heroic degree, the Our Blessed Mother’s message at Fatima.
Sheen’s life is another perfect example that no matter our origins, no matter the difficult circumstances that surrounded our coming into this world, God has called all of us to be great saints. Humbly and heroically live the message of Fatima and make the daily Holy Hour and Our Blessed Mother will mold you to become one of the prophesied greatest saints in this “final confrontation” between God and Satan before the era of peace.
That’s why we need Venerable Fulton Sheen to be proclaimed “Blessed.” He will rally and form these saints like no other as soon as the Divine spotlight is shined upon him. God left us through Fulton Sheen an inestimable intellectual and spiritual treasury and roadmap to remake man and the world
No wonder Satan is working hard to keep Sheen eclipsed from the world when we need him most.
Let’s honor Venerable Sheen today by praying the Rosary and making a daily Eucharistic Holy Hour in reparation for all the evil in the world and for the conversion of sinners, to which he dedicated his whole life.
Join our international Rosary prayer family today and every weekday at 11a Eastern for our live Rosary. It's on our Youtube Channel: @fultonsheeninstitute.
Share your petitions live for all of us to pray for and join in our prayers for his beatification proclamation and intercession for the miracles so many need!
Happy birthday, Venerable Sheen. We love you.
Please pray for us.