Thousands of Sri Lankan Christians gather at the sacred Madhu Shrine, located in a former war zone that is 144 miles northeast of the capital, Colombo
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At the shrine, visitors speak of the statue as a symbol of hope for all Sri Lankans. "You see people from all religions flocking here," says Mahavilachchiye Wimala Thero, a Buddhist monk from the central district of Anuradhapura. "This is the miracle--that this statue can bring together all Sri Lankans." As the Virgin was paraded around the compound, many worshippers wept. Fathers lifted their young children to their shoulders to get a better view, while the compound reverberated to tens of thousands of voices singing "Ave Maria." "The Virgin has brought us together. She has given us hope," says Singarayan Celestine, 70, a Tamil who lost two sons in the war and has a third still missing. "It is now up to us to live together."
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