Almost a year after the original was destroyed by vandalism, a new statue of the Virgin Mary sits in a garden outside the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Northeast D.C.
The statue called “Our Lady of Fatima” was vandalized late at night on Dec. 5 and the damage was beyond repair, according to Monsignor Walter Rossi, Rector of the Basilica.
“Her hands were cut off, her face was disfigured and her crown was destroyed,” Rossi said.
This Sunday, Cardinal Wilton Gregory, Archbishop of Washington blessed a new statue, which sits in the spot where the previous stood since its installation in the Rosary Walk and Garden in 2017.
“Bless this statue of Our Lady of Fatima. As your faithful people honor this image of the Blessed Virgin Mary, may they be of one mind and heart with Christ and trace in their hearts the pattern of Mary’s holiness,” Gregory said during a prayer.
Among those in attendance for the dedication were former United States Ambassador to the Holy See Callista Gingrich and her husband, former Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich.
Rossi said the Basilica used specifications from the original statue to create its replacement.
The statue was built in Pietrasanta, Italy, where many of the other statues on the Basilica’s grounds were made, Rossi said. Once the perfect piece of marble was selected in Italy, Rossi said robots were used for the first half of the building process, which was followed by months of work by hand to complete.
“It’s a time-consuming process, which takes many, many months. This took at least nine,” Rossi said.
Over the past year, several churches in the area have seen vandalism at and around their houses of worship.
“My prayer today is that this dedication also brings an end to destruction such as that,” Rossi said.
As for the person responsible for damaging the Basilica’s statue, he said they have been identified, but charges will not be filed.
“The family identified the individual, someone who was troubled. We just hope that they’re getting the appropriate help that they need,” Rossi said.
For now, Rossi said he’s just happy to see “Our Lady of Fatima” up once again in the garden beneath the Basilica.
“I’m very happy that the statue turned out as good as the first one,” he said.
