A Norwich mother-of-two, who was named after a Portuguese shepherd girl, was celebrating this week after Pope Francis canonised St Jacinta of Fatima.
Jacinta Goode, a Eucharistic Minister at St George’s Catholic parish in Norwich, was named after the shepherd girl who was one of three young children that the Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus, appeared to in a series of visions, 100 years ago.
Jacinta Marto, along with her brother Francisco were proclaimed as saints by Pope Francis on Saturday May 13 in a huge Mass attended by around 500,000 at Fatima in Portugal.
Back in 1917, aged 7 and 9, they were tending the family sheep with their cousin Lucia (aged 10), when a vision of Our Lady appeared, asking them to pray the rosary for world peace and to make sacrifice for sinners.
More visions followed, and they have together become one of the Catholic church’s most important events of the 20th century. It means they are the Catholic church’s youngest saints who did not die as martyrs.
Jacinta Goode, who is a qualified hypnotherapist and flute teacher, said: “It’s not every day that the person you were named after becomes a saint. Many Catholics might be named after a saint, but my mother was so drawn to the message of Fatima that she wanted to name me after Jacinta even before the Church confirmed her presence in Heaven.
“It was very moving to join with the Pope via Youtube to pray the rosary at the vigil and to feel part of the Mass on Saturday. The warmth, and the feeling of the power of prayer, during the service at St George’s was palpable. It is a day that I will always remember.”
Jacinta celebrated by organising a well-attended service to recite all 40 decades of the rosary at St George’s in Norwich. The celebrations continued with a cake and a well-earned drink after the service.
Pictured above is Jacinta Goode with the celebration rosary cake made by her son Jamie.
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