5 Statues That Somehow Got Treated Like Living People

May 16, 2023

Let's not pretend religious fervor over statues was just something in the distant past. Look to all the various cases of people reporting that statues are bleeding or crying, proof that God or the saints are revealing themselves. Very rarely are any of these supposed miracles supported by the actual Church — the theology says nothing about these icons coming to life, and the Church knows that these sightings have natural explanations. One time, when people spotted blood on a Virgin Mary statue in Italy, the bishop quite reasonably called the police. The blood turned out to belong to a janitor.

Verne Ho

That janitor was charged with high sacrilege. Sometimes, though, it's the person debunking the miracle who faces such charges. In Mumbai in 2012, people thought they saw tears falling down the face of a huge Jesus crucifix. The Catholic Church never labeled it a miracle, and a TV station brought out established skeptic Sanal Edamaruku to take a look at it. He demonstrated that the water originated from a nearby toilet. A drainage pipe was clogged, water zipped up the statue through a natural process called capillary action, and the dampness appeared on the statue's face.

Prosecutors pursued Edamaruku for violating blasphemy laws. Fearing prison, he fled to Finland.

Stay strong, Sanal Edamaruku. There was another righteous man, not so long ago, who was persecuted for blasphemy. His name was Jesus.

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