CV NEWS FEED // The Pilgrim Virgin statue of Our Lady of Fatima, known as the “Weeping Madonna,” is visiting the Diocese of Youngstown, Ohio.
The Weeping Madonna was sculpted in 1947 by “the Michelangelo of Portugal,” Jose Thedim, who followed the instructions of Fatima visionary Venerable Sister Maria Das Dores (born Lucia,) according to the Catholic Echo. After Pope Pius XII blessed the statue in 1952, the Pilgrim Virgin Statue started touring internationally.
On July 16, 1972, photographs captured the statue allegedly weeping, and since then, the statue has been known as the Weeping Madonna. It first visited the Diocese of Youngstown in 1986.
On August 1, 2024, the Byzantine division of Our Lady’s Blue Army (the World Apostolate of Fatima USA) welcomed the statue to Ohio. The statue has toured parishes, convents, and shrines in its three-week visit.
Katie Moran, the president of the Byzantine Division of Our Lady’s Blue Army, was responsible for organizing the tour.
“This is one of the most miraculous images today,” she said. “You can look at other images of Our Lady and get your fill, but it’s very hard to take your eyes away from the statue because you are in the presence of Our Lady mystically.”
Moran is also a speaker, radio personality, and author of Mary’s Gentle Path. She had a mystical experience with the statue on August 2. She took photos where the statue seemed to be closing its eyes.
“I was sitting there, just praying, and she’s closing her eyes,” Moran said, and reflected on the shared experiences of motherhood between herself and Our Lady. “I think it’s because, as a mother, and I’m a mother, Our Lady is like, ‘What more can I do? My heart is aching. My children are not changing their ways. They’re not stopping offending God by sin.”
The Vicar of the Diocese of Youngstown, Monsignor John Zuraw, acknowledged the positive effects of the statue on people’s spiritual lives but warned about focusing too much on alleged mystical experiences.
“Church teaching about apparitions, visions and voices is clearly nuanced. The Church officially deems very few of thousands of revelations as worthy of human belief,” he said.
Monsignor Zuraw continued, “Authentic messages produce four signs in people’s lives: God-centeredness, deeper love for others, living the cross and simplicity of lifestyle. If one’s focus moves from being God-centered, there is trouble. Authentic Marian messages lead us to live in total dependence on God.”
