This today from the New York Times, of all places: “MONTECRISTI, Ecuador—The earth shook and the steeple fell, taking most of the bell tower with it. A white facade gave way, leaving the pews open to the street. But amid the wreckage at the basilica, one object remained untouched: Our Mother of Monserrate, the statue of the Virgin Mary for which the church was named.
“Dressed in gold robes and wearing a tiny crown, she is only about three feet tall. But the statue, which landed on these shores from Spain in the 16th century, has long played an outsize role in the history of Montecristi.
“She survived bombardment by pirates and became a rallying point for Catholics when a secular government expelled priests generations later. Every November, hundreds of thousands of pilgrims trek from across Ecuador for nine days of festivities in her honor.
“Now, after a 7.8-magnitude earthquake upended the nation last weekend, the survival of Our Mother of Monserrate has become a symbol of the persistence of this hillside town.” FULL STORY HERE
REMNANT COMMNENT: As the world falls further and further into apocalyptic chaos, and the Catholic Church hoists the white flag of surrender, it becomes more obvious every day that there will be no human solution, that heaven waits for man’s repentance, and that only God can save us now.
Is it so surprising, then, that even as His mother stood at the foot of the Cross at His crucifixion, she should emerge again for the world to see at the crucifixion of His Mystical Body? God is showing us where the hope of the whole world can be found–in the Statat Mater on the Monte Christi.
O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.
