The Vatican has given details for the first time of the so-called third secret of Fatima. It said the secret - revealed by the Virgin Mary to three young children in a series of visions - related to the failed 1981 assassination attempt against Pope John Paul II. The statement was issued by the Pope’s secretary of state to pilgrims who had gathered for a special mass to beatify two of the three shepherd children who reported seeing the visions in 1917 on a hillside near the town of Fatima, in Portugal. Fatima secrets First secret: A vision of Hell said to refer to the two world wars Second secret: Predicted Russia would one day return to Christianity Third secret: Involves martyrdom and suffering, including a man "clothed in white" who "falls to the ground apparently dead" While two of the so-called "secrets of Fatima" are well known, the third has never been revealed to anyone but Popes and a few top Vatican officials. Cardinal Angelo Sodano said the third part of the secret involved martyrdom and suffering, including a man "clothed in white" who "falls to the ground apparently dead, under a burst of gunfire". The cardinal said that, after the 1981 assassination attempt by Turkish gunman Mehmet Ali Agca, "it appeared evident to his Holiness that it was a motherly hand which guided the bullets past, enabling the dying Pope to halt at the threshold of death." Special feeling He added that the entire secret would be made public after "appropriate" preparation for the faithful. Pope John Paul believes Fatima saved his life Pope John Paul II is reported to have had a special fondness for Fatima since the 1981 assassination attempt, which occurred on 13 May - the anniversary of the first apparition. After recovering from his gunshot wounds, he left one of the bullets in the crown of the statue of the Madonna at the Fatima shrine. Despite his physical frailty, he travelled to Portugal to conduct Saturday's historic ceremony. It was ...