Posted on 11/28/2005 9:03:31 AM PST by laney
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Carrying rosary beads and cameras, the faithful have been coming in a steady stream to a church on the outskirts of Sacramento for a glimpse of what some are calling a miracle: A statue of the Virgin Mary they say has begun crying a substance that looks like blood.
It was first noticed more than a week ago, when a priest at the Vietnamese Catholic Martyrs Church spotted a stain on the statue's face and wiped it away. Before mass on Nov. 20, people again noticed a reddish substance near the eyes of the white concrete statue outside the small church, said Ky Truong, 56, a parishioner.
'Big event in the future'
Since then, Truong said, he has been at the church day and night, so emotional he can't even work. He believes the tears are a sign.
''There's a big event in the future -- earthquake, flood, a disease,'' Truong said. ''We're very sad.''
On Saturday, tables in front of the fenced-in statue were jammed with potted plants, bouquets of roses and candles. Some people prayed silently, while others sang hymns and hugged their children. An elderly woman in a wheelchair wept near the front of the crowd.
A red trail could be seen from the side of the statue's left eye to about halfway down the robe of concrete.
''I think that it's incredible. It's a miracle. Why is she doing it?'' asked Maria Vasquez, 35.
It's much too soon to say whether there is anything in this one, but I must say that, at least from this report, this doesn't seem to be another instance of the Virgin's picture on a concrete underpass or a piece of toast.
It has some of the earmarks of the real thing. That said, I think I'll wait for further evidence. The new Bishop of Sacramento, thank God, is an orthodox Catholic and a good man. I think I'll wait to hear what he has to say about this. But it doesn't sound like the kind of thing you can dismiss with a laugh, like most of these stories.
"Why is she doing it?"
Look at the world today.
It just seems to me that if we followed directions we would not find ourselves in this situation.
There's been plenty of signs that California is a disaster area. That last set of referendums was a sign that CA continued to embrace evil.
Leni
I'm with you on the following directions bit. I might also add that I can't figure out why so many folks want to pray to the Virgin Mary or other Saints that have been declared Saints by living men. Why pray to what were once mere humans when the Living God exists?
Something like this happens every so often, usually it can be explained quite simply. However many things in the Bible can be explained simply too . It doesnt mean God didnt use a simple method to send a message.
Too bad it always seems to mean something vad, I mean wouldnt it be great if this meant all the lawyers in the ACLU were to become mute? Or perhaps it would mean all Homosexuals would be cured? Or perhaps Islam would be recognised as the religion of hate that it is.
Did the statue start crying when Elvis left the building?
"You shall not make for yourself a carved image - any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth"
If we followed that injuction to the letter our art would resemble that of Mecca and Medina.
As for the last part of the quote, Catholics don't worship statues - they revere the individuals they represent. As a matter of fact, even the pagan Romans and Greeks didn't actually worship the statutes of their gods - they recognized them as representations. The Ancient Egyptians, on the other hand, appear to actually have believed that their Gods like Amun, resided in statues.
Hasn't anyone done an analysis on the re substance, to see what it really is?
Well, orthodox Catholic teaching goes something like this.
You pray to the Saints or the Virgin as they are in Heaven and close to and beloved by God. SInce they are, they can intercede with Him directly on your behalf. On the other hand, there is nothing in orthodox Catholic theology which precludes Catholics from praying directly to God.
I think they are going to this week...
It would probably have been crying too.
Elvis was an inherently decent Country boy who was seduced and ruined by wealth and the corruption of the entertainment industry.
Because it's in the Bible?
Revelation 5:8And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.
Sermons this weekend: "Watch! Wake up!"
You do not pray to the statues or the people they represent. When praying the rosary for example or to any Saint you are asking for their intercession, meaning that they help you to speak with god. They are not icons but rather models of how to live a good Christian life. And, at least when it comes to Mary the Mother of God, She is known to carry some weight with the big guy. He raised her body to heaven, otherwise known as "The Assumption", and generally agreed upon by all Christian faiths.
Who's bowing down or serving? Not Catholics.
The important point. Otherwise God would be contradicting himself when he commands the carving of images:
Numbers 21:8The LORD said to Moses, "Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live."
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