These images show the red stains on a statue of Jesus Christ on the cross which locals claim was “bleeding” from its feet in a “miracle” during a religious festival.
The incident took place at the end of a pilgrimage as part of the Festival of the Cross in the village of Carmen de la Venta, in the municipality of Liborina, in the northwestern Colombian department of Antioquia.
Local residents had built altars as part of the festival and decorated them with statues of Christ on the cross.
One of the believers, Leonardo Perez, says he went to his friend Julio’s house to look at his altar and he spotted “bloody water” dripping from the feet of the statue.
He said: “I asked him if he had seen this and he told me no and while looking at it again, a new drop came from the cross and spread. When you look at the cross you can clearly see the two drops taking different paths in the small piece of the cross under the little feet going down.”
Local priest Gustavo Calle said the owner of the cross said he had seen “a drop of blood or bloody water” coming from the cross and he confirmed that the Church was going to determine the validity of the claims.
Reports state the local residents are claiming the incident is “a miracle”.
The figure of Christ is over 50 centimetres tall and is currently on the altar of the owner’s house in the village.
For an event to be considered a miracle by the Catholic Church, the Vatican-appointed Miracle Commission, usually comprised of theologians and scientific experts, must confirm there is no scientific explanation for the incident.
Therefore, it is extremely rare for an incident to be confirmed as a miracle by the Church. For example, since 1862, only 66 of over 6,700 medical cures declared by pilgrims have been deemed “miraculous” by the Catholic Church.
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Story By: Ana Lacasa, Sub-Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News
