On Aug. 4 Steve Mills wrote a beautiful article on the image of the Virgin Mary supposedly appearing in Hanover Park (“Vision a blessing, say the faithful,” MetroDuPage).
In the article he mentioned an appearance by the Virgin Mary in Clearwater, Fla. I have not been to Hanover Park, nor do I know anyone who has. But I do know a little about the incident in Clearwater.
On Dec. 12, 1996, the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, a two-story image of Mary appeared on the windows of an office building in downtown Clearwater. Skeptics claimed that it was caused by the angle of the sun reflecting off moisture on the windows.
My daughter visited Clearwater in April and brought back beautiful pictures of the image. As far as I know, the image is still appearing daily. Obviously the angle of the sun and humidity have changed since December. Yet the image is still there.
Images of Mary, and even Jesus, are not only appearing in Clearwater and Hanover Park but are also becoming very common throughout the world. Yet skeptics continue to claim they are caused by Mother Nature.
I have a question. Why does the sun always reflect the image of Mary or Jesus? Why don’t we see images of Porky Pig, Bugs Bunny or even Michael Jordan? Could it be that the images we see are more than just a natural phenomenon? Could it be that God carefully places these drops of moisture in such a way that the image reflected is the exact one He wants us to see?
People react the same no matter where these images appear. Hundreds, if not thousands, fall to their knees and repent of their sins. Many return to God for the first time in years. In some parts of the world, Christians, Jews and Muslims kneel together in adoration.
I call images such as these miracles. Skeptics call them natural phenomena and freaks of nature. I say a rose by any other name is still a rose.
