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A miraculous downpour
May 15, 2010
The village of El Espinal, Peru, in the Motupe district, Lambayeque region, was experiencing a severe drought which threatened to destroy the local economy and the livelihood of the inhabitants, who live by growing crops and raising livestock.
The people of El Espinal have very little money or resources. What they do have is initiative and a determination to end their grinding poverty.
The power of the prayer-cards
Devotion to St Josemaria Escriva was born from what is most characteristic of Opus Dei: work. The villagers needed the drought to end so that they could work at their crops. A priest who provides pastoral care for the district brought them some prayer-cards of St Josemaria so that they could pray for the drought to end. Against all forecasts, it began to rain that very same day. The villagers took this as the answer to their prayers.
The priest suggested they could get a statue of St Josemaria. They build a chapel dedicated to him, and during its construction the statue was kept in Motupe. For the next two years the villagers of El Espinal would walk to the town on foot, or ride on donkeys or mules, to see the statue of “their Saint”. They didn’t mind the sacrifices involved in every journey. The roads of the mountain zone were mud and stone tracks, that often skirted dangerous precipices.
September 11, 2008, when the construction of the chapel was finally finished, the village held an inauguration ceremony, dedicating it, as their parish church, to Saint Josemaria, patron saint of little things and ordinary work. The statue of St Josemaria was brought from Motupe, and was welcomed by a group of children with flags, songs, prayers and firecrackers. Mass was celebrated for the dedication of the chapel, and the statue was solemnly blessed. The inaugural celebrations were attended by, among others, the students and staff of Chiclayo School, and the mayor of Chochope, the neighbouring district, who had supported the building of the chapel from the start.
No electricity
A group from Ferreñafe, who had heard about the village’s devotion and also about its needs, decided to join in the first anniversary celebrations of the dedication of the village church. This was the starting-pistol for a regular social project in aid of mothers, though other interested people such as the schoolteacher also take part.
There is still no electricity in Espinal. When the parish priest wants to show a film of St Josemaria he has to bring a motor from another village to supply the power. In spite of the cumbersome set-up the villagers never miss the film shows and are moved by and grateful for St Josemaria’s words, which go straight to their hearts.
The procession in Espinal with the statue of St Josemaria
The power of the prayer-cards
Devotion to St Josemaria Escriva was born from what is most characteristic of Opus Dei: work. The villagers needed the drought to end so that they could work at their crops. A priest who provides pastoral care for the district brought them some prayer-cards of St Josemaria so that they could pray for the drought to end. Against all forecasts, it began to rain that very same day. The villagers took this as the answer to their prayers.
The priest suggested they could get a statue of St Josemaria. They build a chapel dedicated to him, and during its construction the statue was kept in Motupe. For the next two years the villagers of El Espinal would walk to the town on foot, or ride on donkeys or mules, to see the statue of “their Saint”. They didn’t mind the sacrifices involved in every journey. The roads of the mountain zone were mud and stone tracks, that often skirted dangerous precipices.
El Espinal, Motupe, Peru
September 11, 2008, when the construction of the chapel was finally finished, the village held an inauguration ceremony, dedicating it, as their parish church, to Saint Josemaria, patron saint of little things and ordinary work. The statue of St Josemaria was brought from Motupe, and was welcomed by a group of children with flags, songs, prayers and firecrackers. Mass was celebrated for the dedication of the chapel, and the statue was solemnly blessed. The inaugural celebrations were attended by, among others, the students and staff of Chiclayo School, and the mayor of Chochope, the neighbouring district, who had supported the building of the chapel from the start.
No electricity
A group from Ferreñafe, who had heard about the village’s devotion and also about its needs, decided to join in the first anniversary celebrations of the dedication of the village church. This was the starting-pistol for a regular social project in aid of mothers, though other interested people such as the schoolteacher also take part.
There is still no electricity in Espinal. When the parish priest wants to show a film of St Josemaria he has to bring a motor from another village to supply the power. In spite of the cumbersome set-up the villagers never miss the film shows and are moved by and grateful for St Josemaria’s words, which go straight to their hearts.
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