A California family is holding on to the faith after a statue of the Virgin Mary survived a wildfire.
A California family’s unshakable faith is revealed in a solitary statue of the Virgin Mary — undeterred by the Southern California wildfires — whose resilience amid the smoky wreckage makes them sing in praise.
“It was amazing how everything was fried, but the statue of the Virgin Mary and the statue of St. Joseph were in perfect condition,” family patriarch Peter Halpin told “Fox & Friends Weekend” on Sunday.
“Of course they sang a little, but we just used that opportunity to pray,” he continued. “Our house is the Sacred Heart of Jesus and always has been and all the members of my family, members of my family, so we said a prayer to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, then we sang a special hymn that our whole family knows. For decades to the Blessed Virgin, and it was amazing.
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A statue of the Virgin Mary stands in ash and rubble after a 37-year-old wildfire destroyed residents of Southern California. (Jackie Halpin)
According to Halpin, the family “broke the law” last week by visiting their home of 37 years. In a viral video posted on Instagram, they leaned on faith, joined their six children and other loved ones in singing praises after learning that the deadly Eaton fire had reduced the rest to rubble.
“Our intention was not for this thing to go viral,” he continued. “It’s been a great family thing, but the response from the community has been incredible and heartfelt.”
Peter’s wife, Jackie, dropped to her knees in emotion after her son-in-law snuck into the mansion the day before, snapping a photo of the statue still standing.
She knew that they should make their own pilgrimage to the place to thank God for the years they had spent.
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Peter and Jackie Halpin (Fox and Friends Weekend)
“That was my intention,” she said. “We pray. We thank God that we are safe, and we have had a lot of fun over the years. We feel very strongly in the spirit of hospitality, so we just pray and say. If we could do it again, that would be great.’
“The song (in the video) kind of came on its own, so I just wanted to pray. I want to be as thankful as I can for what we had.”
Wildfires are raging endlessly through Southern California, destroying communities and claiming 16 lives so far.
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