There's just something about Mary

Yesterday, I visited a town two hours north of São Paulo called Aparecida and commonly referred to as Aparecida do Norte. Today is a very important day for the people in that town and all Catholics in Brazil as it is the Festa de São Benedito or Saint Benedict's Party. That's right, the saints know how to get down in this country.

The town of 40,000 will swell to over 100,000 today as people arrive from all over Latin America to pay homage to Saint Benedict and Nossa Senhora de Conceição Aparecida (Our Lady of the Conception who Appeared). The story of Aparecida is unique in that the entire community is built around the tourism generated by Nossa Senhora Aparecida - a small statue of the Virgin Mary.

As the story goes:

In 1717, three fishermen were sent out by the local authorities to find fish in the Paraíba River. They went down the river and found nothing. After many unsuccessful attempts they arrived at a place called Porto Itaguaçu. João Alves threw his net into the water and brought back a statue of Our Lady of Conception, but the head was missing. He threw his net in again and soon reeled in the head of the statue. After that, according to the legend, the fish arrived in abundance for the three humble fishermen and their nets were full. (wikipedia)

Since then, devoted Catholics have flocked to the town where Our Lady appeared. The number of annual visitors is over 6 million today.

I visited the Basilica of Apercida, one of the destinations of the Pope when he arrives in Brazil in May. It is second only to St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City in sheer size and can hold 45,000 people at once. Just think how long communion would take for that service.

Inside the Basilica is housed the original statue of Nossa Senhora which appeared nearly 300 years ago. It is viewable in an embedded glass display on one end of the church, and people pass through and take pictures or offer a prayer. It is one of the most underwhelming things you will ever see. Kind of like seeing the Mona Lisa, so I am told. Nossa Senhora Aparecida stands about 30 cm, with a cute little cape and crown. She kind of reminds me of a bottle of Aunt Jemima syrup. This truly must be a Catholic thing.

Below, the sanctuary is an offering room filled with the personal affections of people who wanted to give back to Our Lady for the answering of prayers. The 2002 World Cup jersey of Ronaldo hangs in that room along with dolls, tools, steering wheels and eating utensils. Things you see at garage sales. In fact, it looked like a really cool garage sale.

Outside the basilica is a food court with a McDonalds that contains an aquarium. The town is an interesting mix of commercial and Catholic.

Aparecida was packed during my visit as it was a festival weekend. Small groups dressed in brightly-colored traditional garments and lugging percussion instruments would dance down the streets, and the street vendors and open store fronts dominated the sidewalks. There was a horse parade in the late afternoon. Just a whole bunch of people riding a whole bunch of horses through town and leaving a whole bunch of horse manure behind.

It was an interesting place to visit nevertheless. Even if I don't understand the importance of an Aunt Jemima bottle without syrup.