"And when they were come
into the house, they saw the young child with Mary, His mother, and
fell down and worshipped Him."
The South American version of Matthew 11:28, as may be seen carved on
a stone of the Jesuit Church in Cuzco, is: "Come to MARY, all you who
are laden with works, and weary beneath the weight of your sins, and
she will alleviate you," A literal translation of one of the
prayers offered to her reads: "Yes, beloved Mother! of thee I
supplicate all that is necessary for the salvation of my soul. Of
whom should I ask this grace but of Thee? To whom should a loving son
go but to his beloved Mother? To whom the weak sheep cry but to its
divine shepherdess? Whom seek the sick, but the celestial doctor?
Whom invoke those in affliction but the mother of consolation? Hear
me then, Holy Queen!"
The statues of the "Queen of Heaven" are often of great magnificence,
the dress of one which I know having cost $2,000. In the poor Indian
churches a bag of maize leaves, tied near the top to make a neck, and
above that an Indian physiognomy, painted with some vegetable dye,
serves the same purpose. The Bishop of La Serena, in Chili, has
received as much as $40,000 a year for keeping up the revered image
in that church, and these images are worshipped.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 301 of 313
Words from 80143 to 80393
of 83353
