Reportedly, the olive oil tears smell like roses.
A Virgin Mary statue in a New Mexico church is weeping olive oil tears.
The statue is located at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church in Hobbs, a city in Lea County, New Mexico, United States.
Speaking with the Las Cruces Sun News, Bishop Oscar Cantú of the diocese, shared the results of the analysis of the tears which have been determined to be a rose-scented olive oil.
"Some of the witnesses claimed it smelled of roses. So something similar to the oil I bless and consecrate each year that we use for baptism, for confirmations and for ordination of the priests," he said.
Church tests sculpture's tears
He revealed that the diocese has done a thorough examination of the sculpture of the Virgin Mary.
"We examined the interior of the hollow statue," Cantú said. "There's nothing on the interior that's not supposed to be there, except for cobwebs. So we took pictures; we examined it."
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In order to determine the source of the tears, he also said that the diocese reached out to the manufacturer of sculpture. They contacted the manufacturer to see if any fluids could have remained inside the sculpture from the manufacturing process.
Cantú said while the wax is used in the casting of the bronze, the process is "so hot that all of the wax melts away. In that process, they assured us there would be no possibility of any moisture to remain in the bronze. So those are some of the facts that we have established."
Concerning the possibility for a hoax, he said, "But even if it were (a hoax), we are not sure how it would be done, physically. Because it is hardened bronze. We've examined the interior, and there's nothing on the interior."
The sculpture has attracted worldwide attention with visitors flocking to the church since the tears were first reported in May 2018. Reportedly, many reported have "beautiful, positive fruits" since touching the oil.
"I've read most of those written testimonies, and they are stories of tremendous faith, people who have been dealing with terrible suffering in their lives and have felt a tremendous spiritual consolation that Mary walks with us in our tears," Cantú told the Sun News.
"I can't help but think of my own shedding of tears for the poor people who come to our border, fleeing life-threatening situations. The tears of those children who are separated from their parents. There are many reasons we would shed tears, and God stands with us in those moments," he added.
Still, the church officials are yet to determine if this is a miraculous occurrence from God or an evil spirit.
"I'm checking best practices. Certainly, I have a final say, but I would defer to the wisdom of Pope Francis," Cantú concluded.