The three theological virtues of the cathedral of Mexico City

At the top of the Metropolitan Cathedral of Mexico City there are three statues that enrich the most representative temple in the country. These sculptures represent the three theological virtues: faith, hope and charity.

In 2017, a 7.1 magnitude earthquake with its epicenter in the state of Puebla shook the central area of ​​Mexico. This movement caused the sculpture of La Esperanza to fall from the temple’s clock cube, dedicated to the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven.

As a result of this incident, it was decided to lower the other two sculptures, works by the sculptor Manuel Tolsá, placed in 1813 when the cathedral was consecrated.

The sculptures were restored and reinstalled in their original location. Finally, in February of this year, they were unveiled. In addition, during the work the cathedral towers were reinforced and the bells were restored.

History of sculptures

According to the website of the Metropolitan Cathedral of Mexico, in 1524 the first Main Church was ordered to be built in what is currently Mexico City. In 1573, Don Pedro Moya de Contreras, third Archbishop of Mexico, laid the first stone of what is today the current cathedral. In 1672 the first section of the first tower was completed, and between 1787 and 1792 both towers were built. In 1808 the clock on the façade was installed.

It was not until 1813, with the Theological Virtues sculpted by Manuel Tolsá, that the cathedral was considered completed.

The theological virtues

According to him Catechism of the Catholic Churchthe theological virtues are those that “refer directly to God”, that is, they prepare Christians to “live in relationship with the Holy Trinity. They have as their origin, motive and object the One and Triune God.” These virtues are faith, hope and charity.

The Catechism points out that faith is the theological virtue “by which we believe in God and in everything that He has said and revealed to us, and that the Holy Church proposes to us, because He is the truth itself.”

The sculpture of La Fe, created by Tolsá, measures 2.65 meters high and weighs 1.64 tons. It represents a woman with a helmet on her head and blindfolded. He holds a gold-plated copper cross and lacks his left arm, which is presumed to have come off over time.

As explained in a video Father José de Jesús Aguilar, deputy director of Radio and Television of the Primate Archdiocese of Mexico, the blindfold symbolizes that “faith is capable of seeing what is not seen, it is blindfolded, and to indicate that the “faith achieves great victories has a helmet on its head.” For the priest, the cross is “a sign of the triumph of Christ.”

The priest also explained that faith can be represented with a chalice, which refers to the sacrament of the Eucharist, or with a book that alludes to the Holy Scriptures. However, there are no records of what the sculpture’s missing left arm was holding.

The Catechism describes hope as the virtue “by which we aspire to the Kingdom of heaven and eternal life as our happiness, placing our trust in the promises of Christ and relying not on our own strength, but on the help of the grace of the Spirit.” Holy”.

“Hope is ‘the anchor of the soul’, sure and firm, that penetrates… ‘where Jesus entered for us as a forerunner’ (Hb 6, 19-20),” he adds.

The sculpture of La Esperanza, represented by a woman with a gold-plated copper anchor, was the one that required the most intervention after the 2017 earthquake.

According to the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), the sculpture spun in the air before hitting the cathedral atrium. This caused the loss of two-thirds of his head, but the rest of his body suffered minor damage. After its restoration, it was completely recovered.

Charity is described as the theological virtue “by which we love God above all things for His own sake and our neighbors as ourselves for the love of God.”

The Catechism explains that this virtue “is superior to all the virtues” and that it “articulates and orders” the exercise of the others. “Charity has as its fruits joy, peace and mercy. It demands the practice of goodness and fraternal correction; It is benevolence; provokes reciprocity; She is always selfless and generous; It is friendship and communion,” the document adds.

The sculpture of La Caridad, the work of Tolsá, represents a woman with a golden fire on her head. In his arms he holds an apparently sleeping child, while another child protects himself in his clothes.

According to Father Aguilar, charity is usually represented in other works “like a mother with several children” and as a symbol of her love “a burning heart or a flame above her head” is added. In his interpretation, the child protected at his side is giving him “confidence and security because he feels afraid to be on the shore while looking down into the void.”

These three sculptures are located under the clock and a flag of Mexico, which, according to the priest, “can remind us that, thanks to them, life and time can be sanctified and also bless our nation.”