"Ms. Galvez, who has studied Mexican devotional practices, said the custom of the statues echoes indigenous rituals that marked an infant’s surviving its first critical weeks. It also has parallels to more recent customs in which couples from Mexico bring their child to church for a blessing seven weeks after birth.
Such practices assume greater importance among those far from home, making these church rituals a unifying experience. “A lot of people said they never went to church before,” Ms. Galvez said, “but when they came here they learned that was where the action was.”
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