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Marian statue a reality for Tempe parish
By Rebecca Bostic, The Catholic Sun
March 6, 2008
TEMPE — Fr. John Bonavitacola has been dreaming of a statue of Our Lady of La Salette for many years.
After a relative shared the story of the 1846 Marian apparition in La Salette — where Mary appeared to two shepherd children in France, crying for the sins of humanity — the Our Lady of Mount Carmel pastor considered the story unsettling, but profound.
Images of Our Lady of La Salette feature Mary with a diadem of light surrounding her head as she cries, oftentimes with her head in her hands. This is also known as the first of the three stages of the apparition.
Statues of Our Lady of La Salette, like those found at the shrine of La Salette in France, are not mass-produced and Fr. Bonavitacola could not find a sculptor who could carve a replica. His dream sat unfulfilled for many years until Kathleen Whittaker, a fallen away Catholic and large-figure marble artist, came into his office.
Whittaker, who lives close to Our Lady of Mount Carmel, had not attended Mass for years, but when her son began the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults classes at the parish, an employee encouraged him to have his mother show her work to Fr. Bonavitacola.
There are few, if any, artists in the world who carve large figures out of marble by hand, according to Whittaker. So, when she had the opportunity to work with a 35,000-pound piece of marble, Whittaker was thrilled with the prospect.
“I just wanted to do it a whole lot,” Whittaker said of carving the statue of Our Lady of La Salette. “It all came together; it was really something. The whole project felt guided.”
After working on the figure for nearly a year, Whittaker completed the statue in October 2007. It now resides in front of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish, where Whittaker is now an active parishioner; through the process of carving the statue she returned to the Church.
Flanking the statue is a list of sins against God that violate human life and that Our Lady of La Salette is grieving: murder, abortion, assisted suicide and euthanasia, embryo destruction, genocide, terrorism, capital punishment and war.
The statue was blessed by Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted during a ceremony prior to Mass Feb. 23.
“I told Our Lady for years that if she wanted this she had to provide the sculptor, the marble and the funds to have it done,” Fr. Bonavitacola said. “She did! I received 95 percent of the funds for the shrine without ever asking for a dime!”
The Our Lady of Mount Carmel community is very excited to have the marble statue added to the campus.
“It adds to the spirituality of the parish because people are more inclined to be spiritually associated with this statue,” said Sal Consiglio, a Mount Carmel parishioner of more than 30 years. “It calls out to people because Our Lady of La Salette is mourning for the sinners of the world.”
Although Whittaker doesn’t normally attach herself to the prospect of attaining a specific reaction to her art from viewers, she admits her expectations have changed for the statue of Our Lady of La Salette.
“In this particular case it’s been one of the most humbling experiences of my life,” Whittaker said. “People have come to me to tell me how that statue is changing their life.”
People go to the statue to feel comforted and pray. Many have told Whittaker about their personal spiritual growth that has been influenced by the statue.
“It’s a shock,” Whittaker said. “I’ve never had this kind of feedback before and it’s very humbling, very beautiful. I feel very honored.”
Beyond its contribution as a beautiful piece of spiritually inspired art, Fr. Bonavitacola hopes the statue of Our Lady of La Salette serves as a “visible sign of the parish’s long-term commitment to life issues as well as a visible reminder to all the parish of our need to work to promote a culture of life.”
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