Posted on 02/27/2007 10:29:55 AM PST by Gamecock
HOUSTON, Feb. 24 (UPI) -- A metal baking sheet from a Houston elementary school has become an object of veneration for hundreds of Catholics who see an image of the Virgin Mary.
The pan bearing what many believe is a miraculous religions image is now on display in the yard of Sylvia Calderon, a member of the PTA at Pugh Elementary School, the Houston Chronicle reported. Calderon gave the baking sheet a home after officials at the school said they could not accommodate the crowds who wanted to see it.
Guadalupe Rodriguez, a cafeteria worker at the school, discovered the image on Ash Wednesday as she cleaned off baking trays. She showed it to other workers who agreed that they saw the Virgin.
By Thursday, word of the find had gotten around and visitors started arriving at the cafeteria in droves. The pan was moved to Calderon's house.
School officials also believe it is a miracle, even though they can't accommodate it.
"I think someone was watching over us," said Lyda Guerrero, Pugh's principal. "I think someone is watching over this community and this school district and this school."
Gives new meaning to a supreme pizza.
I'm speechless!
That's odd. That image, and others like it, have rendered some folks extremely loquacious.
Ma-DOH-na!
Venerating a baking sheet? Might I suggest God would be the proper focus of worship?
"AveCado"
Reminds me of the old SNL skit with Fr. Guido Sarducci and his "Finda da Pope ina da Pizza" contest.
At least that smudge does actually look like an image.
The human body, particularly the face, is among the most recognisable objects ... part of the art of personal camouflage is an attempt to partially invert the features of the face, in order to make it less recognisable. Finding 'faces' in natural phenomena is quite common ... the Cydonia feature is merely famous. This doesn't mean that the perceived 'face' means anything ... other than if something looks even remotely like a face, people will notice it. We're designed that way.
BTW, why do you think I would be saying that?
It looks like a phallus symbol to me.
*shrugs*
Yeah, but if you were a phallic symbol appearing on a baking sheet, wouldn't you make yourself a bit bigger? It looks kinda like a thumb, even.
Gee, the headline seems so positive. If the headline writer gives their imprimatur, I guess it's a done deal.
I guess if it brings some people peace and happiness than I don't see the harm. I agree that it looks like a thumb though or at least a finger pointing. Our world is so serious that people seek out things to calm them down. As a Catholic, I think it is cool that people get some happiness out of it.
'Virgin Mary' toast fetches $28,000
The toast is not intended for consumption
A decade-old toasted cheese sandwich said to bear an image of the Virgin Mary has sold on the eBay auction website for $28,000.
An internet casino confirmed it had purchased the sandwich, saying it had become a "part of pop culture".
Goldenpalace.com says it will take the sandwich on world tour before selling it and donating the money to charity.
Diane Duyser, from Florida, says the sandwich has never gone mouldy since she made it 10 years ago.
By the time the sandwich auction closed on Monday the sale had received over 1.7 million hits on the auction site.
'Mystical power'
"We will definitely use the sandwich to raise money for charity, and we hope it will raise people's spirits as well," said Richard Rowe, the casino's CEO.
"With the... thousands of search engine queries, it is obvious that this is something people want to know more about... and Golden Palace will help spread the word.
"We believe that everyone should be able to see it and learn of its mystical power for themselves."
Last week, Mrs Duyser told reporters the sandwich had brought her luck - including winnings of $70,000 at a casino near her Florida home.
I went to take a bite out of it, and then I saw this lady looking back at me. I hollered for [my husband]. It scared me at first
Diane Duyser
Mrs Duyser says she noticed the image burned into her sandwich as she was about to tuck into it in autumn 1994.
"I went to take a bite out of it, and then I saw this lady looking back at me," she said, according to the Chicago Tribune newspaper.
"I hollered for him," she said, gesturing to her husband, Greg. "It scared me at first."
She says she has done nothing to preserve the sandwich except keeping it in a plastic box, but "it doesn't fall apart or crumble or anything".
Nevertheless, before auctioning her sandwich Mrs Duyser cautioned buyers that it was "not intended for consumption".
The item has inspired sellers to place dozens of spin-off items on the online auction site, including attempts at replica burnt toast, T-shirts, ornamental plates, and domain names.
One seller is even offering a "Virgin Mary" sandwich toaster - though the item description includes the caveat that the item "may or may not reproduce the Virgin Mary image".
If people need to see a silhouette of the virgin mary on a cookie sheet to validate their faith then perhaps there isn't a whole lot of faith there to begin with. Just my humble opinion.
You posted a pic, sans comment. I wasn't sure what your point was, so I went for the most humorous guess.
Oddly, someone has already suggested something similar, namely that there's a connection between the Cydonia "face" and the Shroud of Turin.
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