King Louis IX, a saint who reigned as king of France in the 13th century was said to possess such a great faith that when he was informed that an image of a beautiful child believed to be Jesus Christ appeared on a communion wafer, the monarch said he did not need to see it.
“I believe that Christ, our Lord, is present in the Blessed Eucharist, and so firm is my belief, that I need not see Him with my eyes,” said Saint Louis, who was known for effective governance that uplifted the lives of the poor.
His statement may find an application in the curious case of a supposedly talking image of the Santo Niño in Lapu-Lapu City to which many of the faithful have come in droves.
Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma has ordered an investigation of the alleged miraculous phenomenon. The image was found by boys in the water. They thought it was a doll, but initially claimed that it spoke to them, leading to the realization that the statue is of the Santo Niño.
Early in the probe the boys recanted, saying they lied when they said that the image spoke.
What is interesting about this case is how swiftly word of the supposed miracle spread, and how the place where the image was enshrined became an instant site of pilgrimage.
This speaks of a great hunger among the people to find a connection with the divine everywhere, no matter that Cebu abounds with known miraculous sites from the south’s Theotokos shrine in Carcar City and Marian shrine in Sibonga town to the north’s church of Our Lady of Remedies in Bogo City.
“We believe in the Child Jesus, the Señor Santo Niño. Behind any image, we believe that the Lord loves us,” Palma said, while referring the judgment on whether the Lapu-Lapu Niño case is a genuine miracle to an expert on spirituality.
While Msgr. Rey Penagunda takes his time to look into the case the faithful would be well advised to look at the life of King Louis IX, who spent his faith caring for those who had less in life in his day rather than in seeking after extraordinary manifestations of divine providence.
Civil authorities and those working to help the marginalized should also examine how they can better serve the seaside community that is the site of the alleged miracle. Surely there must be a way to help them temporarily rather than leave them to hanker after dazzling experiences that make them for a moment forget their harsh living conditions.
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