EDITORIAL

Faith Amidst the Rubble

Posted

Two weeks ago, a powerful 7.8 magnitude earthquake devastated parts of Ecuador. More than 650 people were killed and 12,000 injured, and more than 25,000 are still in shelters. The quake, which had the northern coast as its epicenter, was the strongest to hit the country in nearly 70 years.

Oftentimes, in the midst of crisis, people turn to faith. This has been true for the Ecuadorian people, and a consoling sign for the country was recently discovered at a school run by the Oblates of Saint Francis de Sales. The religious sisters recounted that the entire school was turned to rubble, except for a glass-encased statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Blessed Sacrament.

The statue was discovered as workers began to clear the rubble. The sisters were amazed that the statue and the glass case remained intact. They also rejoiced that they found the Blessed Sacrament, buried, but intact in the destroyed chapel.

St. John Bosco once had a vision of the pope, standing on the helm of a ship, leading it through stormy waters and surrounded by enemy ships. The pope eventually led the ship to safety through two pillars, with Mary standing atop one pillar and the Eucharist atop the other. Ironically, St. John Bosco was the founder of the Salesians, which he named after St. Francis de Sales, the saint to whom the sisters of the school in Ecuador have a particular devotion.

During this time of trial for the Ecuadorian people, may they find solace in the abiding presence of Christ in the Eucharist and in the maternal care of the Blessed Virgin Mary.