The Apparitions

It is almost certain that we would not have celebrated the canonizations of Jacinta and Francisco Marto were it not for the apparitions which they experienced. 

Yes, every Catholic has the possibility to attain to the measure of sanctity which this honor represents, however, in God's Providence it was the tutelage of an angel and of the Blessed Mother that led these two young children to holiness in just a few short years. That tutoring began in the spring of 1916 with three visitations of the Guardian Angel of Portugal, apparitions which served as preparation for the visits the following year of the Mother of God.