Many persons confuse the promise of the Five First Saturdays with the Sabbatine Privilege. Let us, then, review each of these promises and become familiar with their requirements, that we may obtain the wonderful blessings our heavenly Mother wishes to bestow upon those who honor her by their fulfillment.
The Sabbatine Privilege
To understand the Sabbatine Privilege, we must first explain the great promise of the Brown Scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. On July 16, 1251, our Blessed Mother appeared to St. Simon Stock, then general of the Carmelite Order, in Aylesford, England. She promised that those who die wearing the scapular of the Order (the Brown Scapular) would not suffer eternal fire. (This privilege granted to the religious of the Carmelite Order became accessible to the laity when the small scapular was approved.) Pope Pius XII referred to this apparition in 1951, when he stated: “Seven hundred years have passed since, according to the sacred traditions of the Carmelite family, Simon Stock was vouchsafed the vision of Our Lady of Mount Carmel” (AAS 43-589).
The Sabbatine Privilege was first granted, it is claimed, by Pope John XXII in 1322. According to the story, our Blessed Mother appeared to him and explained the conditions for receiving the privilege of being taken by her to Heaven on the first Saturday after one’s death. Although the authenticity of his decree has been questioned, there is no doubt about the decree of Pope Paul V in 1613, which states: “It is permitted to the Carmelite Fathers to preach that the Christian people may believe that the Blessed Virgin will help by her continued assistance and her merits, particularly on Saturdays, the souls of the members of the Scapular Confraternity who have died in the grace of God, if in life they had worn the scapular, observed chastity according to their state of life, and recited the Office of the Blessed Virgin or observed the fasts of the Church, practicing abstinence on Wednesdays and Saturdays.” The same decree is repeated in a summary by the Sacred Congregation of Indulgences, dated July 4, 1908.
The Sabbatine Privilege then, consists in the early liberation from purgatory, through the intercession of our Blessed Mother, of those who fulfill the following requirements:
- that they have been enrolled in the Brown Scapular and faithfully wear it,
- that they practice chastity according to their state in life,
- and that they recite daily the Little Office of our Blessed Mother.
For those who are unable to read, this third condition was fulfilled by observing the fasts of the Church and also observing abstinence from meat on Wednesdays and Saturdays, unless Christmas falls on one of those days. Priests satisfy this third condition by the recitation of the Divine Office. Finally, Pope Leo XIII granted the faculty to all confessors of changing this third condition, when there is a good reason, to other pious works, such as the recitation of the Rosary (Decree of the Congregation of Indulgences, June 11, 1901).
The Five First Saturdays
Having explained the Sabbatine Privilege, let us now turn our attention to the promise of Our Lady of Fatima concerning the observance of the Five First Saturdays. This promise was given to Sister Lucia, the oldest of the three Fatima children, on December 10, 1925, while she was at prayer in the chapel of the Dorothean Convent in Tuy, Spain. The Christ Child appeared together with His Mother, and it was Jesus Who first spoke: “Have compassion on the Heart of your Most Holy Mother, covered with thorns which ungrateful men place therein at every moment, while there is no one who does an act of reparation to withdraw them for her.”
Our Lady then addressed Lucia as follows: “Behold, my daughter, my Heart encircled with thorns, with which ungrateful men pierce it at every moment by their blasphemies and ingratitude. Give me consolation, you, at least; and make known on my behalf that I promise to assist at the hour of death, with the graces necessary for salvation, all who on the First Saturday of five consecutive months confess their sins, receive Holy Communion, recite five decades of the Rosary, and keep me company for fifteen minutes meditating on the mysteries of the Rosary, with the purpose of making reparation to my Immaculate Heart.”
Let us briefly examine these conditions:
- The conditions must be fulfilled on the first Saturday of the month, for five months in succession.
- Confession must be made on the day or within eight days before or after the first Saturday.
- The person worthily receives Holy Communion on that day.
- The person devoutly recites 5 decades of the rosary that day and
- spends an additional 15 minutes in meditation on the mysteries of the Rosary. Finally, all of these practices must be performed with the intention of making reparation to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
Those who have made the Five First Saturdays and who truly love Our Lady will not be content with doing so once in their life. Rather, they will be happy to fulfill these conditions on each first Saturday of the month, whenever possible. This promise of the Five First Saturdays reminds us of the wonderful promise of the Sacred Heart, for those who make the Nine First Fridays. May we all show our love and devotion to Jesus and Mary by fulfilling their requests, honoring them each month on the first Friday and Saturday.