National Blue Army Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima

The National Blue Army Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima is nestled away on 150 acres of scenic farmland in New Jersey. It was built in 1978 and is dedicated to the message of Fatima, reportedly delivered directly from the Mother of God to three Portuguese children in 1917.

The Blue Army was founded in 1946 by Harold Colgan, a parish priest of St Mary in Plainfield, New Jersey. Colgan had fallen critically ill and was hospitalized. In the hospital, he prayed to Our Lady of Fatima that if she cured him, he would spend the rest of his life spreading devotion to her. Colgan recovered and began preaching about the Virgin Mary shortly after.

Towering 130 feet above the shrine is a bronze statue of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, with the roof representing her mantle flowing over and protecting her children. Sister Lucia de Jesus dos Santos, the last survivor of the original three children that the vision of Our Lady of Fatima was brought in as a consultant on the shrine.

There are many bronze statues dotting the grounds. Including an exact replica of the Chapel of Apparitions at Fatima, one of few such replicas in the world.

There is plenty of parking and please be respectful of the grounds.