Francisco and Jacinta Marto were brother and sister, and they lived in Aljustrel, a small village near Fatima, in Portugal. Francisco was born in 1908, and Jacinta in 1910. They were cousins of Lucia dos Santos. They were children like so many others: poor, with no schooling, spending their days in the fields watching the sheep. But God chose them for something extraordinary.

In 1917, Our Lady appeared to them six times, and those apparitions completely changed their lives. Yet it was not only the apparitions: it was what they did afterward that made them saints.

Francisco: The Quiet Contemplative

Francisco was a gentle, calm boy who liked to play his flute for the sheep and to gaze at the countryside. During the apparitions, something curious happened to him: he could see Our Lady, but he could not hear her. Only Lucia spoke with Our Lady and heard her; Jacinta heard but did not speak; and Francisco saw without hearing anything. No one knows exactly why. But this shaped the way Francisco loved God: since he could not hear the words, he devoted himself to contemplating, to staying quiet in God's presence, loving in silence.

After the apparitions, Francisco changed completely. He said that Our Lady had told them Jesus was very sad because of sins, and that he wanted to console him. He began slipping quietly into the church and would kneel for hours before the tabernacle, the place where the Eucharist is kept.

"What are you doing there?" people would ask.

"I am consoling Jesus," Francisco would answer. "He is very sad, because sinners make him suffer. So I stay here, keeping him company."

He was a nine-year-old boy wanting to console God.

Francisco also made sacrifices for sinners. He gave his food to the poor and went hungry, and he went without water on hot days. Once, the children found a piece of thick rope lying on the ground and decided to tie it around their waists, under their clothes, as a penance. The rope hurt, and Francisco wore his day and night; sometimes it hurt so much he could not sleep.

"Francisco, take that off," Lucia begged. "It's hurting you."

"I won't," he answered. "I want to suffer for Our Lord, to console his heart."

Jacinta: The Little One Who Loved Much

Jacinta was the youngest: she was only seven at the time of the apparitions. She was a cheerful little girl who loved to dance and play. But after seeing hell in the July vision, she was different. What she wanted most of all was to help save souls.

"Lucia," she would say, crying, "so many souls are lost. We must pray and make sacrifices for them."

Jacinta made her sacrifices with a determination all her own. Once, on a very hot day, the three children were terribly thirsty and found fresh water in a well. Just as they were about to drink, Jacinta said:

"Let's not drink. Let's offer this thirst to Jesus, for sinners."

And the three of them spent the whole day in the hot sun without drinking a drop. Another day, Lucia brought sweet grapes for them to share. Jacinta looked at the grapes, thought for a moment, and said they would give them all to the poor and go hungry for Jesus. And that is what they did.

Jacinta also prayed constantly for sinners, repeating the prayer Our Lady had taught them:

She said this prayer many, many times a day, offering every weariness and every little ache. She prayed in a special way for priests, for people who spoke badly of God, and for those who did not yet love Our Lady. The children used to say that even a single drop of water, offered with love, could help convert a sinner.

The Spanish Flu Arrives

In 1918, a terrible illness called the Spanish flu reached Portugal. All over the world, millions of people died. Francisco and Jacinta fell ill too, and became very sick. But instead of complaining, the two of them offered their suffering for sinners, as they had always done.

Francisco grew weak, with high fever and a heavy cough, and even so he kept his gentle smile.

"Francisco, are you suffering very much?" people asked.

"I am," he answered softly. "But I offer it all to console Our Lord."

Jacinta suffered as well, and said she was willing to suffer even more, if it would help save more souls.

Francisco knew he was going to die. Our Lady had promised she would soon take him to Heaven, and he was not afraid at all. He was even glad, because he was going to see Jesus and Our Lady up close. Before leaving, he asked everyone's forgiveness, went to confession, and received Jesus in Holy Communion for the first time, already in bed, on the eve of the end.

On April 4, 1919, at ten years of age, Francisco was nearing the end. His whole family was gathered around his bed. He smiled, said he could see a beautiful light near the door, and then, gently, in peace, he died. His face grew calm, like someone looking at something wonderful. He had gone to console Jesus forever.

Jacinta became even sicker than Francisco had been. The flu brought a painful infection in her chest, and the doctors attempted difficult operations. She suffered greatly, but she offered everything, whispering that it was for sinners. Our Lady appeared to Jacinta several times during her illness, to console her and give her strength. Before she died, Jacinta also spoke of things that would happen in the future, such as new wars and persecutions of the Church — and time showed that she was right.

Jacinta was taken to a hospital in Lisbon, far from her family. She died in a hospital room, with no one from her home nearby, on February 20, 1920, at nine years of age. But she was not truly alone: Our Lady was with her, as she had promised. Shortly before the end, Jacinta told the nurse that she was going to Heaven, to see Our Lady. And she went in peace.

Fifteen years later, when her coffin was opened, Jacinta's face was found preserved, with an expression of peace.

The Legacy of Francisco and Jacinta

These two children lived very short lives, of ten and nine years, but they loved God with extraordinary intensity. Francisco teaches us silent contemplation: not many words are needed, only to be with Jesus, keeping him company. Jacinta teaches us sacrifice for sinners: to offer the small difficulties of every day out of love. And together they teach us that holiness belongs to children too — there is no need to wait to grow up to love God truly.

On May 13, 2017, exactly one hundred years after the first apparition, Pope Francis canonized the two of them. They are now Saint Francisco Marto and Saint Jacinta Marto, the youngest non-martyr saints in the history of the Church. Millions of people visit their tombs in Fatima, ask for their intercession, and learn from their example. They showed that holiness is not a matter of age, but of love.