Also, The 13th Day made it's DVD debut yesterday. Today.
Courtesy of the National Catholic Register
'The 13th Day' Released on DVD
Posted by JOSEPH
PRONECHEN
Wednesday, December 02, 2009 11:36 AM
The 13th Day,
the first major film on Fatima in 50 years, kicked off its official release on
DVD on Dec. 1 with a lively teleconference.
“The film is a great gift from
God,” said Fatima expert Father Andrew Apostoli of the Franciscan Friars of the
Renewal, who is featured on the DVD’s supplemental hour-long bonus documentary.
The DVD package also includes a fact-filled companion booklet, Fatima prayer
card and a rosary.
Anthony Ryan of Ignatius Press, The 13th Day‘s North
American distributor, called it “a great combination of entertainment,
catechesis and evangelization all in one film.”
“We’ve gone all out to make
this a powerful tool for evangelization,” he said, because the promises of Our
Lady of Fatima can change the lives of many people worldwide. She gave “dire
prophecies if we did not respond,” he said, but “there’s hope if we do
respond.”
The accurate retelling of the Blessed Mother’s appearances to Lucia
(later Sister Lucia) and her young cousins (Blesseds) Francisco and Jacinta from
May 13 to Oct. 13, 1917, is “a relevant wake-up call for a culture torn about by
so many evils today,” said Ryan. Because the message needs to reach as many
people as possible, Ignatius is doing more to promote this film than they’ve
done for any other they’ve licensed.
Father Apostoli pointed out Our Lady’s
message “is something our people need to be called to and people of the world
need to hear.”
“What comes across powerfully,” he said, “is Our Lady
reminding us through the children to pray and sacrifice. Many souls are lost to
God because there’s no one to pray and offer sacrifices for them. The basic
message is Mary calling all of us to the co-redemptive mission we have through
our baptism. Jesus has won for us the merits of salvation, but he wants all of
us to join with him in the work of bringing the message of salvation to
others.”
Father Apostoli also noted the film’s vision of hell makes an
impact. “It’s an important part of the message,” he said, “a reminder to all of
us.”
The theme of the children’s need to have courage comes out very
powerfully, too. Seeing what they went through has got to affect people, he
said. “I was a little child when the first movie came out. Fatima has made an
impact on my whole life.”
Father Apostoli and Ignatius noted that the film
also is relevant for relations between Catholics and Muslims. Archbishop Fulton
Sheen said one of the most powerful ways to reach Muslims is through the message
of Mary. Since they venerate Mary, she is the link. In fact, the film is booked
for a festival in Iran in February.
Working on the film affected the lives of
everyone connected with it, including directors Ian and Dominic Higgins and
executive producer Natasha Howes. She had been a lapsed Catholic, but finds it
“virtually impossible not to respond to the Marian call to faith.” She recounted
amazing divine interventions and blessings during production she can only
describe as divine assistance. Howes works daily toward a more in-depth
faith.
“This is a message everybody really needs hear — Catholic, Protestant,
non-Christians,” said Ignatius CEO Mark Brumley. “The Holy Father’s upcoming
trip to Fatima (on May 13, 2010) and this film underscores this relevance. …This
isn’t simply a movie: This is a message — the message of Our Lady, the message
of transformation and the message of peace.”
Parishes, schools and
organizations can have screenings with complete packages from Ignatius. (See
Ignatius.com for more information.)
“The message is timeless,” concluded
Father Apostoli. “The world is on the brink of catastrophe if we don’t work for
peace,” he said, adding Mary’s promise: “‘In the end, my immaculate heart will
triumph.’”
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