What Would Jesus See?

Better Than A Plastic Jesus

2009-11-05T14:32:00.000-08:00

You might remember Joe Isuzu from TV commercials years ago. Well now there's Jesus Isuzu. Two weeks ago Jim Stevens of Jonesborough, Tennessee, spotted an image of Jesus' face on the driver side window of his Isuzu pickup truck. Since then, whenever there's morning dew the visage reappears, only to vanish later in the day when the dew evaporates. He's tried rolling the window up and down but that hasn't stopped it. “Of course, I’m not going to wash it,” he says. Of course.

The 40 Million Year Old Virgin

2009-10-15T21:17:00.000-07:00

When David Nunez' father found a 14-pound boulder while looking for landscaping rocks in an orchard, "Everybody thought it looked like a turtle shell, but once he brought it home, we saw a figure on it." Looking closer they saw a bluish-black stain that looks like the Virgin of Guadalupe. Father Harvey Fonseca, of Saint Jude Thaddeus Roman Catholic Church, is skeptical, saying "It's usually just a coincidence when something looks like something else." Rob Rogers, a professor of geology at Cal State Stanislaus in Turlock who says the rock is between 40 and 140 million years old, said he couldn't see the image in the photos he'd been emailed. "I must lack imagination," he said.

Truckin' Along With Mary

2009-09-28T20:58:00.000-07:00

A woman named Sharon emailed ABC-7 in El Paso, Texas, to let them know she and her family saw an image of the Virgin Mary at a Petro truck stop. The TV station sent a crew out that found the water stain and took a photograph of it. Good thing too, since the truck stop's maintenance crew washed the stain off within days.

Ukraine Your Neck, You See Jesus

2009-09-18T09:36:00.000-07:00

Early this summer some discolorations appeared on the outer wall of a timber factory in Velyky Berezny, a town in western Ukraine. Probably caused by mold or dampness, people immediately saw in them the image of Jesus' head and body. The factory has become a tourist attraction, with visitors leaving flowers, taking photographs, and even kissing the image. So far there's an increased police presence but no plans to build a gift shop.

Samoa Sightings

2009-09-16T20:47:00.000-07:00

Last week Samoans across the country prayed to ensure that the country's September 7 switch to driving on the left side of the road would be a safe one. Seemingly in response, an image appeared on the wall of the Congregational Christian Church in the capital city of Apia that many say is Mary with a rosary in her hands. Others claim it looks more like Jesus Christ. Roman Catholic Archbishop, Father Spatz Silva, says he's still investigating but has no doubt it's a general message to steer clear of sin. Still others feel it's a sign that they should drink more Coke.

MRI Is Not Pronounced Mary

2009-08-17T16:05:00.000-07:00

An unidentified woman from Levittown, Pennsylvania, contacted a local news station and gave them a copy of the imaging from an MRI she'd recently performed, pointing out that instead of a heart, there appeared to be the image of a long-haired man she claims is Jesus. The MRI is awaiting analysis by a radiologist and a priest.

This One Will Stump You

2009-07-10T09:44:00.000-07:00

A number of parishioners at St. Mary's church in Rathkeale, Ireland, noticed the outline of the Virgin Mary in a tree that was cut down to clean up the grounds. Over 2,000 townspeople have signed a petition asking that the stump remain where it is, calling it a "divine intervention," but a local priest, Fr Willie Russell, thinks otherwise, saying, "There’s nothing there, it’s just a tree. People shouldn't worship a tree.”

Window On Salvation

2009-07-02T20:48:00.000-07:00

A few months after moving into their house in Jesup, Georgia, in 2005, Gregory and Deborah Sapp noticed a crack in a garage window. Before long it began to look like an image of the Virgin Mary. They took the window out and moved it to their bedroom, where it sits today. But since they think they should share it with the public, they started a website named Visions of the Virgin Mary, where you can learn about the window and see photographs of the window, but if you want to see a streaming video of it you have to subscribe. Five bucks for one day, $10 for 30 days, or $20 a year. No one ever said salvation was free.

Pressing Religious Concerns

2009-06-10T08:20:00.000-07:00

No sooner had Janie Guerra, a pants presser at Comet Cleaners in Harlingen, Texas, returned to her station after lunchtime prayers than she noticed a familiar image on the press head pad. “I pick up the pants and I see the Virgin Mary,” she says. Store owner Buddy Fischer didn't want to sell the press pad, nor turn it into a shrine and have the store flooded with pilgrims, so he printed up copies of the photograph Guerra had taken with her cell phone, handed them out, and kept using the press. Before long the image faded. “I had to,” he says. “I had 700 pairs of pants to press."

A Chip Off The Holy Block

2009-06-05T21:44:00.000-07:00

When a group of students at Blessed Sacrament Catholic School in Burlington, North Carolina, came inside after hearing thunder during soccer try-outs, teacher and coach Nancy Evans saw what looked like a sticker on the wall that looked like the Virgin Mary. When she got closer she realized it was chipped paint, probably caused by a ball that had been bounced against the wall or a chair scraping against it. Principal Sal Trento agreed, as did many of the students, though one described it as "a fish with an antler." The wall is scheduled to be repainted, though before it is Principal Trento plans to have an art teacher make a tracing of the chip for posterity.

Spreading The Word

2009-05-28T22:04:00.000-07:00

Claire Allen of Ystrad, Rhondda, South Wales, was making toast for her youngest boy Robbie when she opened a jar of Marmite and on the underside of the lid saw an image of Jesus. "It wasn't a new jar, but I’d never noticed that before," she says. Her other children and husband agreed that it looked like Jesus so they went public with it. "I often see Jesus’ face in a lot of things I do," she says. "And there are a few times I can think of when I've seen the face of Jesus in a window. But he’s never appeared in my food before." Especially not in a jar of Marmite.

Cheeses Priced

2009-05-19T09:05:00.000-07:00

Dan Bell of Preston Hollow, Texas, and his wife Sara were heading out of town on a trip last week when they decided to stop in a gas station for road snacks. Sara had eaten most of the Cheetos when she noticed the one left in her hand looked like a praying Jesus. A quick fried to a crackly crunch Jesus with a missing right arm. They've nicknamed it "Cheesus" and are keeping it in a plastic box while they decide its fate.

Trial By Fire(place)

2009-05-11T10:17:00.000-07:00

It was Easter Sunday and Connie Lopez of Refugio, Texas, was crying and praying in her dining room. When she looked up she thought she saw an image of the Virgin Mary in a stone above the fireplace. "It wasn't there in December when we were decorating it," she says. She was called inside and forgot about the image until April 19 when fellow parishioners came over for a spaghetti dinner and one of them saw it. Since then more than 200 people from at least 26 Texas cities have dropped by to see the stone. Some see Jesus, other angels, Our Lady of Guadalupe, or the pope. Viewing hours are 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Saturday and 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday, at 406 Ymbacion St., Refugio, Texas.

No Bologna. Salami.

2009-05-07T08:49:00.000-07:00

For 20 years Nancy Simoes of South Florida has been frying salami for her family's breakfast. Until now it's just been, well, fried salami. But recently when cooking three pieces, she flipped the first one over to see a perfect letter "G" burned into it. When she flipped the second piece it had an "O on it. The third a "D," though it looks a lot like the "O." "Never before has there been anything on it," she said. "It's just been fried salami." Now she's trying to decide how best to preserve the G-O-D salami—glass case or Zip-Loc bag. No word on what brand it was, but since she's Catholic it's a safe bet it wasn't Hebrew National.

Gimme A Break, Gimme A Break...

2009-05-05T20:46:00.000-07:00

On Good Friday, a reader of the Dutch website NU.nl was on the way to work when he took a bite of his KitKat bar. As he was about to take another, he looked down and noticed the image of Jesus Christ in the layers of wafer and chocolate. He stopped and took it to work, where he showed two colleagues who agreed that it indeed looked like Jesus. No word on whether he finished eating the candy bar or not.

Hot Off The Griddle

2009-04-30T15:20:00.000-07:00

While cleaning a griddle at the Las Palmas restaurant in Calexico, California, last week, a chef looked down to see what appeared to be an image of the Virgin Mary on the metal. The next day the Rev. Gerardo Fernandez of Our Lady of Guadalupe Church confirmed that the image was indeed a likeness of the Virgin. The griddle has been taken out of the kitchen and put on display in a storage room which the restaurant's manager says will be renovated so people can continue to check out the griddle for free. So far more than 100 people have dropped by to view the ghostly griddle, including Renegado and Mr. Tempest, two Mexican wrestlers who were in town for an appearance at the local swap meet.

Lets Give God A Big Hand

2009-04-27T08:52:00.000-07:00

When some rocks fell in Paul Grayhek's backyard in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, during Lent, it left a 9' x 4' hand-like rock formation that he calls the "Hand of God Rock Wall." Not being selfish, he's decided to share it. With the highest bidder on eBay, of course. (Current bid, $1,575.) The posting says "some disassembly required" and shipping isn't included, but the winner will be "buying the rights, complete and exclusive rights" to the rock, including literary and movie rights. Hopefully once word gets, uh, upstairs that Grayhek is selling the rocks more of them won't fall leaving only one finger on the hand extended.

Jesus On The Half Shell

2009-04-02T22:48:00.000-07:00

In 1972, Joan Reed Carter and a friend were walking along a beach in Fort Lauderdale when they looked down and saw a seashell that looked like Jesus Christ. Her friend didn't want to take it home because her husband was an atheist, so Joan kept it. Over the years she kept thinking she should make the shell public. "I kept thinking I should do something around Christmastime. But I didn't," she said. But now with Easter coming, she decided it was time. Of course there are those who say it's the skull of a catfish. Then again....

Want To Buy A Used Mercury Saviour?

2009-02-08T14:33:00.000-08:00

As with any car dealership these days, sales are slow at Jarrett Ford Lincoln Mercury Dade City, Florida, but hopefully they're about to pick up. A 3-foot tall stain has appeared on the used car sales manager's office door that many think looks like Jesus Christ. Can wrist bands with WWJB (What Would Jesus Buy) be far behind?

Why Do You Think They Call Them Stones?

2009-01-19T21:04:00.000-08:00

The counter of a clothing store in Redlands, California, called Cali Style, is made up of rocks held together by mortar. About two months ago the store's handyman noticed that near the bottom was a stone that, if viewed from a few yards away, looks like Jesus' face. "I really don't know what I think," store owner Jonathan Hernandez said, who perhaps not coincidentally also owns the store next door: THC Smoke Shop.

Hunka Hunka Burnin' Holy Love

2009-01-15T20:14:00.000-08:00

About a year ago, a man who identifies himself only as John Smith of Sydney, Australia, turned on a brand new lava lamp and saw a blob form that looked like Mary holding the baby Jesus. "It took my breath away," he says. He turned the lamp off to preserve the image, built a shrine, and within a couple of weeks his life turned around and he met his "angel on earth." He recently built a web site to spread the word and hopes they don't get a heat wave in Sydney so the wax won't melt.

The Afterworld Can Be Your Oyster

2008-10-30T19:59:00.000-07:00

While walking near Johnny Mercer's Pier in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, a man looked down and saw an oyster shell he thought looked like the Virgin Mary. Some say it looks more like Jesus. Others think it's an angel. The guy who found it thinks he has a bonanza so he put it on eBay where as of this writing, the high bid is only $36. Plus $5 shipping, of course.

Watching From Above

2008-09-21T20:49:00.001-07:00

Three weeks ago a client at the One Stop Body Shoppe in Arkansas City, Kansas, was laying on her back doing exercises when she noticed a water stain that looked like Jesus Christ on a ceiling tile above her. Since then, all the ceiling tiles that had been damaged by a leak in the roof have been replaced except that one. "Maybe he'll be the only tile we won't replace," said Dominique Sartin, Body Shoppe staff member. And yes, they're considering selling it on eBay.

Going Out On A Limb

2008-08-27T11:38:00.000-07:00

Christopher Moreau was having a drink in his garden in the Toronto suburb of Scarborough when he spotted the likeness of the Virgin Mary on a tree, standing in her traditional open-armed pose. "It raises the hair on your neck, it gives you chills," he said. His neighbor, and owner of the tree, Eulalee Hamilton says it's just scarring from a limb that was lopped off a year ago. Moreau has invited people to come by and see it. Hamilton says, "Chris can have all the people he wants on his back deck but I don't really want people trampling on my garden."

Rock 'n The Baby Jesus

2008-05-16T09:08:00.000-07:00

Dena Patterson of Brooksville, Florida, was walking through the woods in West Virginia in 1996 when she came upon a rock near a stream with what she though was the image of a veiled Mary cradling the baby Jesus in her arms. She's looking to sell the rock because her health is declining and she wants the money to go back to West Virginia to see her family. Peter Harries, associate professor of geology at the University of South Florida in Tampa, says the rock is shale and doesn't think the image significant. "Things that mimic (other things) are pretty constant in nature," he said. Perhaps, but there is a striking resemblance to Mrs. Butterworth.