Church lets statue's tears remain a mystery for now

Church officials express no urgency to conduct an investigation at this point.
SACRAMENTO BEE
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- The source of Mary's tears will remain a mystery -- at least for now.
The Catholic Diocese of Sacramento has no plans to investigate why red streaks appeared this month on a Virgin Mary statue at a church, said the Rev. James Murphy of downtown's Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament.
"They're letting it sit for now," said the Rev. Mr. Murphy, noting that proper testing for miracles requires field investigators and lab experts. He said if the phenomenon continued, the church might reconsider. "There's no rush," he said. "The church thinks in terms of centuries, not tomorrow's news."
Attracting attention
The supposed miracle at Vietnamese Catholic Martyrs Church has drawn hundreds of visitors. Mary's tears have attracted CNN and NBC's "Today" show.
As cameras rolled, the faithful looked upward at the red stain below Mary's left eye, which the day's rain had not washed away. Onlookers brought flowers, candles -- even bottles of water they hoped would be blessed.
Over the years, some investigations into weeping statues have proved dispiriting.
Catholic officials in Australia last year investigated allegations of fraud following reports of a weeping statue in southern Brisbane. The investigation found no wrongdoing but noted a $41,000 spike in church donations and sales of statues and other religious items, according to news reports.
Closer to home, parishioners in San Joaquin County, Calif., ridiculed church investigators after a 1983 probe at a church found a weeping Mary statue more likely to be a prank than prophetic. The Stockton, Calif., Diocese commissioned the investigation with help from forensic experts in Oakland.
Mr. Murphy said such considerations played no role in Sacramento's decision not to investigate.
"If people view this as a miracle and it brings them closer to God, then that's a good thing," he said.