Crowds Drawn to Images of Mary in San Fernando Mission Display

The golden-robed Madonna, with hands folded in prayer and a serene expression, nearly made Lorenzo Pena cry.

Never mind that the ceramic statue was but one of more than 300 Madonnas lining several display cases at the San Fernando Mission.

That particular depiction of the mother of Jesus spoke to his heart.

“It was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen,” said a visibly emotional Pena, a Pacoima resident who recently viewed the Madonna exhibit. “That one has something like hope. Especially for me, because I’m Catholic, it touched my heart.”

If public response is any indication, the Madonnas of all shapes and sizes on exhibit strike a similar chord with many visitors.

Since the Madonna Room opened in the mission’s former jail last May, it has quickly become the most popular exhibit, attracting non-Catholics as well.

“It’s a great devotion to Mary,” said Monsignor Francis J. Weber, the mission’s director and archivist for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.

The treasure trove includes paintings, medallions, ceramic, wood and ivory figurines and U.S. postage stamps. Among the oldest works are a wooden frame containing the “Hail Mary” prayer carved by handsaw in the 1800s and a painting of the Virgin of Guadalupe housed in the mission since the 1790s.

The collection--believed to be the largest on display in Southern California--also includes 24 one-of-a-kind ceramic Madonnas that represent a range of countries or themes.

They run the gamut from “Our Lady of Ethiopia” to the “Madonna of the Prairies” to “Our Lady of Japan,” who is crowned with a halo of cherry blossoms.

“When you notice the different ways she’s portrayed, she seems to be multiethnic,” Weber said. “She appeals to our culture, race and religious expression.”

Even the Dodgers are not left out.

“Our Lady of Chavez,” who hovers atop a baseball with hands outstretched over four baseball players on a diamond-shaped field, is a favorite.

“This shows Our Lady under every possible title,” said Sister Mary Rose Cunningham, the mission’s associate archivist.

The idea for the display was born after three prominent collectors of Madonnas donated their artworks to the archdiocese.

Cunningham said there is not an exact count of the Madonnas because the collection grows by the month. As visitors stream in and out of the room, some of them are moved to donate their own treasured Madonnas to the archdiocese. They all end up at the mission at 15151 San Fernando Mission Blvd. in Mission Hills.

“We have them from so many different places, of so many different ages,” Cunningham said. “These are treasures.”