The women gazed upon the heart with tearful eyes, and as they
thought of Mary's sufferings and goodness they were emulated to
deeper acts of love and piety. One day the wind blew very strongly
through the open doorway, and the Sacred Heart began to sway to and
fro. Getting more and more momentum with every oscillation, the heart
finally struck against a sharp cornice, when lo - all the sawdust
fell out of the canvas bag they had worshipped as the heart of flesh
of their goddess. How they reconciled the existence of the heart of
the Virgin with their belief that she ascended to heaven in a bodily
form I do not pretend to imagine. It may be remarked that this is
surely Romanism corrupted. Nay, it is rather Romanism developed.
"Andacilli is a hamlet, at which there is an image of the Virgin.
Every year pilgrims resort thither, and a great feast to the Virgin
is celebrated, the most important day being December 26th. During the
last few years there has been a falling off in the number of
pilgrims, especially those of the better class, but this last year
the clerical authorities have left no stone unturned in order to get
together more people than ever. Six bishops were advertised to come,
and they were to crown the Virgin with a crown which cost thousands
of dollars. These proceedings rouse an incredible enthusiasm in the
people." [Footnote: "Regions Beyond."]
Sometimes Mary's image is baptized in the river, while men and women
line the bank, ready to leap into the holy water when she is lifted
out. Afterwards the water in which she was immersed is sold as a cure
for bodily ills. Sometimes the earth from under the building where
she is kept is also sold for the same purpose.
Imagine a church like that in Tucuru! "It consists of a palm-leaf
hut, with a bare floor and no furniture whatever. Round the sides
stand twelve life-size figures, made of canvas and stuffed with husks
of corn, which some one of the Indian worshippers has painted with
the features and dress of his own race. When I went in two women lay
prostrate on the floor, and one of them screamed in agonizing tones,
'My Lords, send the rod of your power to heal him!' - evidently
praying to these apostles on behalf of some sick relative. Here, once
a year, a priest celebrates mass, and when he last came he stuck a
paper over the entrance, which read: Hoec est Domus Del et Porta
Coeli (' This is the House of God and the Gate of Heaven.') In San
Jose we have the four walls of a new church, consecrated to the
'Virgin,' where, recently, a raffle was held on behalf of the
projected edifice.
