World Apostolate of Fatima, Asbury NJ 08802

As late as 1947 the message of Our Lady at Fatima was hardly known in the United States. The Blue Army spread quickly and soon became an international apostolate, the World Apostolate of Fatima, with millions of members and national centers in many countries around the world. In the United States, the Blue Army developed a beautiful National Center and Shrine to the shrine construction Immaculate Heart of Mary in Washington, New Jersey. It also built a beautiful pilgrim center, Domus Pacis (House of Peace)* in Fatima, to welcome English-speaking pilgrims. It has an excellent publication, SOUL Magazine, and active prayer cells and Diocesan Divisions throughout the country to promote Our Lady's message.
Now, more than fifty years after its founding, The Blue Army looks out on a world that has yet to respond adequately to our Lady's requests. At Fatima Our Blessed Lady foretold that God would punish the world for its offenses against Him by wars, hunger, the spread of Communism, persecution of the Church, even the annihilation of various nations. Through the praying of the Holy Rosary and the prayers of many faithful souls, Communism was overthrown in Russia following the consecration of the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary by Pope John Paul II in 1984. But we must acknowledge that the world has not stopped offending God; if anything, the world is worse by far than it was when Our Lady came in 1917. War, hunger, terrorism, outrageous crimes, and the annual slaughter of millions of innocent babies in their mother's wombs all over the world is the consequence.
Our Lady gave the means to change the world, to turn the hearts of men and women back to God, to end the wars and strife, to end the horror of abortion. We must renew our commitment to fulfilling the requests Our Lady made at Fatima. We must spread her message throughout the world and assist men and women of good will to respond to her requests. You can support us through your prayers and sacrifices for the success of our work. You can become a member of the Blue Army.

Founder Monsignor Harold V. Colgan

Monsignor Harold V. Colgan of St. Mary's Church in Plainfield, New Jersey founded the Blue Army of Our Lady of Fatima (World Apostolate of Fatima) in October of 1947. The Blue Army was created to battle the Red Army of Communism. Monsignor Colgan started the Blue Army after a near death experience in the hospital in 1946. On December 8, 1946, he promised Our Lady that if he got better, he would spend the rest of his life promoting devotion to her under her title of, “Our Lady of Fatima.” After making this promise, Monsignor Colgan left the hospital without being discharged. His doctor was present in church when Father Colgan unexpectedly came out for Mass. Afraid that the priest would have a heart attack, the doctor spoke to the Bishop, after which, Father Colgan was admitted to Johns Hopkins Medical Center for an evaluation that showed he was cured. Thanks to Monsignor Colgan, we now refer to St. Padre Pio as the Spiritual Father of the Blue Army. On October 21, 1961, Monsignor Colgan asked Padre Pio, "Will you accept the Blue Army members as your spiritual children?" Padre Pio agreed, saying, "May they only behave well." Msgr. Harold V. Colgan passed away on April 16, 1972.

In October 1947 Monsignor had his Parishioners at St. Mary's Church in Plainfield, NJ make a simple pledge as the first "Blue Army" soon after reading a magazine article about the Fatima Message.
On May 31, 1948 Monsignor Colgan explained the Blue Army for the first time to John Haffert.
By 1949 over a quarter million copies of the Blue Army Pledge, formulated by John Haffert and Sister lucia, spread by word of mouth from Monsignor's parish to all parts of America.
On December 8, 1949 a one-half inch splinter from the original holm oak tree that Our Lady appeared on at Fatima was sealed beneath her statue at Monsignor's Parish in Plainfield, NJ.
After being entombed in the Holy House USA Crypt Chapel since his death in 1972, Monsignor Colgan was laid to rest next to John Haffert in the newly built Shrine Cemetery on November 10, 2001.

Co-Founder John M. Haffert

John Haffert's life was dedicated to promoting the Message of our Lady of Fatima and the related Brown Scapular devotion. He was the Co-Founder of The Blue Army of Our Lady of Fatima (World Apostolate of Fatima), a Church-approved Catholic Apostolate with millions of members all over the world. In 1946, working with Sister Lucia, who saw Our Lady of Fatima as a child in 1917, Mr. Haffert developed a "Fatima Message Pledge." In 1948, that effort became known as "The Blue Army Pledge." At this time, John joined his successful Brown Scapular Apostolate to the fledgling Blue Army Apostolate, founded in 1947 by Monsignor Harold Colgan. From that point on, millions of people have learned about The Fatima Message through The Blue Army, with its National Headquarters at the Blue Army Shrine of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, in Washington, New Jersey, and it's International Headquarters at Domus Pacis in Fatima, Portugal.

John Haffert first met Monsignor Colgan when speaking of the Brown Scapular and the Fatima Message in Colgan's St. Mary's Parish in New Jersey.
Subscriptions for "The Scapular" a magazine that John Haffert created, grew from a few thousand to over a hundred thousand, in less than 10 years.
The Fatima Message Pledge that John developed with Sister Lucia's help, resulted in over one million pledges being signed within a year's time.
John helped to inspire the construction of the Blue Army's International Center in Fatima, and the acquisition of the actual convent of the First Saturday apparitions in Pontevedra, Spain.
John Haffert is the author of many books which include the trilogy, "Sign of Her Heart", "Sex and the Mysteries" and "The World's Greatest Secret." John also wrote, "Dear Bishop" which is his memoirs concerning the history of the Blue Army.
With the presence of the International Pilgrim Virgin Statue at his bedside, John Haffert passed away on October 31, 2001. Along with Monsignor Colgan, John Haffert was placed in the newly built Shrine Cemetery on November 10, 2001.