It is easy to relate what happened at the Cova da Iria on October 13: the witnesses of the event were innumerable, their testimonies agree, and the documents they left us are abundant. First of all, there are the numerous accounts which appeared immediately in the Portuguese press. It is noteworthy that the first publications to bear witness to it were the anticlerical papers. From November 1917, the diocese of Lisbon ordered the parish priest to interrogate the witnesses. Also, a thorough investigation was made in view of the canonical process. To this we have to add the investigations of famous historians who all wrote books about the witnesses they could reach and interrogate. All these inquiries resulted in the collation of an impressive number of accounts of the event, which were published during the lifetime of numerous witnesses. In 1977, to commemorate the sixtieth anniversary of the apparitions, it was still possible to reunite more than thirty persons at Fatima who had attended the solar prodigy, and who were able to give their testimonies once again.

The reporter of the anticlerical newspaper “O Secolo” reports that at the arrival of the people he distinguished three groups: praying pilgrims, indifferent curious (to whom he counts himself), but also mocking unbelievers. One Portuguese historian, Leopoldo Nunes, notes that “at the moment of the great miracle there were present some of the most illustrious men of letters, in the arts and the sciences, and almost all were unbelievers coming out of simple curiosity”. Even the national Minister of Education for the masonic government was there.

The whole of 12 October it had been raining day and night. The days before it were marked by a very warm and dry gentle autumn, but suddenly the weather changed and brought that uninterrupted rain which transformed the dusty roads into muddy quagmires, and it became cold as in winter. At sunrise the weather looked threatening. Black clouds gathered right over Fatima. However, the people continued to swarm in. By ten o’clock the sky was completely hidden behind the clouds and it started to rain heavily. Swept by the strong winds and beating upon the faces of the people, it soaked the pilgrims, often without protection against the weather, chilling them to the marrow of their bones. Many people plodded through the mud to the famous oak tree praying and singing. How many came? One of the most important scientifically schooled witnesses, Dr. Almeida Garrett, posited the number 100,000.

A/ The series of miracles:

Eight different miraculous events had been observed by all who were present in the Cova da Iria that day. It is important to consider them together to get a fuller understanding of what the famous “miracle of sun” really was.

1/ A Column of clouds:

“It must have been about one thirty when on the very spot where the children were, a fine, slender, bluish column of smoke rose straight up to about six feet above their heads and vanished at this height. This phenomenon, which was perfectly visible to the naked eye, lasted a few seconds. Not having kept track of the time, I could not say whether it was less than a minute or longer. The smoke suddenly disappeared, and a few moments later the phenomenon took place a second and then a third time. All three times, and especially the last one, the beams went up and clearly disappeared in the grey atmosphere. I looked in that direction with my glasses. I was not able to see anything except the columns of smoke, but I remained convinced that they were produced by some censer with incense inside it being swung. Then some people worthy of faith told me that this phenomenon was a regular occurrence on the 13th of the five previous months, and that nobody had made any fire, either this time or the others” (Prof. Almeida Garrett).

2/ The sudden stopping of the rain:

The sudden change in the weather surprised all the witnesses: “It was a rainy day with a thin, but steady rainfall. But a few minutes before the miracle it stopped raining”. “At this moment, I got out of the car, and as I extended my hand to my wife to help her step out, suddenly all the clouds disappeared without the slightest breeze, and the sun was shining in a clear sky” (Prof. Ferreira Borges).

3/ The vision of the sun:

The reporter recalls: “Suddenly I heard a shout from thousands of voices and saw the multitude which straggled out at my feet here and there, concentrated in small groups around the trees, turn their backs and shoulders away from the point towards which, up to now, it had directed their attention, and turn to look at the sky on the opposite side.

Then they saw a unique spectacle, an unbelievable spectacle for anyone who did not witness it. From the road one could see the immense multitude turn towards the sun, which appeared free from clouds and in its zenith. It resembles a dull silver disc, and it is possible to look at it without the least discomfort. It might have been an eclipse which was taking place.”

Dr. Almeida Garretts: “I veered to the magnet which seemed to be drawing all eyes and saw it as a disc with a clean-cut rim, luminous and shining, but which did not hurt the eyes. I do not agree with the comparison which I have heard made in Fatima – that of a dull silver disc. It was a clearer, richer, brighter color, having something of the luster of a pearl. …

It was a remarkable fact that one could fix one's eyes on this brazier of light and heat without any pain in the eyes or blinding of the retina. The phenomenon, except for two interruptions when the sun seemed to send rays of refulgent heat which obliged us to look away, must have lasted about ten minutes”.

4/ The threefold dance of the sun:

Suddenly the sun began trembling, shaking with sudden movements, finally turning over upon itself with dizzying quickness, spraying out rays of light of all the colors of the rainbow.

“The sun trembles, the sun made sudden incredible movements outside all cosmic laws – the sun “danced” according to the typical expression of the people”. “It seemed like wheel of fire.” “At a certain moment the sun seemed to stop and then began to move and dance.” Thus, the “dance of the sun” was repeated three times.

5/ “All the colors of the rainbow”:

Dr. Almeida Garrett: “During the solar phenomenon, there were changes of color in the atmosphere. Looking at the sun, I noticed that everything was becoming darkened. I looked first at the nearest objects and then extended my glance further afield as far as the horizon. I saw everything in amethyst color. Soon I heard a peasant who was near me shout out in tones of stupefaction: “Look, that lady is all yellow”. Maria de Carmo recalls: “The sun took on all the colors of the rainbow. Everything took on the same colors: our faces, our clothes, the earth itself,” etc.

Father Ignacio Lourenco points out that objects took on different colors depending on their location: “objects around us turned all the colors of the rainbow. We saw ourselves blue, yellow, red …”

6/ The falling of the sun:

Dr. Almeida Garrett: “Then, suddenly one heard a clamor, a cry of anguish breaking from all the people. The sun, whirling wildly, seemed to loosen itself from the firmament and advance threateningly upon the earth, as if to crush us with its huge and fiery weight. The sensation during those moments was terrible”.

Other witnesses: “The sun began to move and dance until it seemed that it was being detached from the sky and falling on us. It was a terrible moment...” “It seemed like a wheel of fire which was going to fall on the people…” “The sun at its zenith whirled upon itself; it detached itself in descending towards the right, all the while whirling with sudden movements never seen before, to the right and to the left; having almost arrived at the horizon line, it went back up to the zenith on the left, tracing a sort of winding ellipse as it went.”

All spectators had the irresistible impression that the sun was going to fall on them. It was such a terrible moment that several people fainted. “Finally, the sun stopped and everybody breathed a sigh of relief.”

7/ Everybody's clothes were dry:

All these people, who were for the most part soaked to the bone, noticed with joy and stupefaction that they were dry: “It continues to rain so strongly that in spite of our umbrellas, nobody has a stitch of dry clothing left… The rain suddenly stops, the clouds split open, and the sun is visible in all its splendor. Our clothes were wet and our bodies cold: I still remember the delicious sensation that this warm caress of the sun gave me… Although it is true that the luminosity of the sun was diminished, its warmth lost none of its power. I feel my clothes almost dry now, although they were all wet only a few moments ago” (Dr. Pereira Gens).

8/ The vision at a distance:

A last marvelous fact is that the phenomenon could be admired as far as two or three miles from Fatima. There are even perfectly credible witnesses who were much further away from the Cova da Iria, who related how they had seen the unheard of spectacle of the dance of the sun, exactly as did the thousands of pilgrims gathered around the holm oak of the apparition.

On 13 October 1930, the ordinary of Leiria, Bishop da Silva, published his letter “A Divina Providencia”, which proclaimed the Church's official recognition of the authenticity of the Fatima apparitions. In this letter, the bishop explicitly mentions the solar prodigy and affirms its miraculous character: “The solar phenomenon of October 13 was the most marvelous of all, and made the greatest impression on all those who had the good fortune to witness it … And this crowd witnessed all the manifestations of the sun which paid homage to the Queen of Heaven and Earth”.

By the voice of the Bishop of Leiria, the authority of the Church solemnly confirmed the unanimous sentiment of the Portuguese people, formulated by the multitude at the very moment of the prodigy: “Miracle! Miracle!”

---

People before miracle of the sun

People during miracle of the sun

People look at for the sun