Devout worshippers are flocking to see a patch of algae growing under a leaking pipe that they’re convinced looks like the Virgin Mary.
The alleged miracle — which one lad claims to have seen moving — was spotted on a street in Nobsa, in Boyaca, central Colombia.
Worshippers have said this patch of algae looks like the Virgin Mary.
A young boy was the first to discover the water running down the side of the brick wall of a canal, with algae growing resembling the robed virgin.
The mother of the young lad reported her son’s story to local media.
She said: “He says that when he crossed the bridge, he heard a sound as if there were a small animal trapped there. When he turned to look, my son saw the image of the Blessed Virgin of Guadalupe.”
“He says that he immediately walked through the stream and began to take pictures of the image. At that moment, the image moved and he was afraid.”
“He knelt and prayed and then he ran out to tell me.”
“I was in the warehouse and I went to check it with my own eyes because initially, I did not believe him. But it turned out to be true.”
Our Lady of Guadalupe is a title used for the Virgin Mary associated with an image of her in a church in Mexican capital Mexico City.
Word of the appearance rapidly passed through the community and people came flocking to see the “miracle.”
Local man Hugo Fuertes told Colombian media: “The people there were shocked, almost paralyzed.”
“The news spread everywhere and began the procession of people praying the holy rosary to the image of the Virgin.”
But the local church is asking for people to wait for the miracle to be certified.
Father Victor Leguizamon said: “When there is an apparition, one must act prudently until the competent authority certifies the authenticity.”
While the church is carrying out all the necessary protocols to determine if it is indeed a miraculous apparition, the image has attracted a pilgrimage of hundreds of parishioners and tourists.
The incident is not the first claimed sighting of the Blessed Virgin, with thousands sighted around the world since 40AD.