The Virgin Mary may have a penchant for the city of Medford.
Residents said she has appeared in their city on two occasions in the last three years, most recently in pictures taken by Medford resident Chris Capri.
On Sept. 22, Capri was photographing the newly bricked exterior of her house when she captured an unexplained image of a cloaked figure in her doorway, according to an article published in the Medford Transcript on Oct. 5.
"I looked right at the door," she told the Transcript. "I didn't know what it was, but when I brought it to work, everybody was saying it was the Madonna."
Capri said she thought it was a reflection of something across the street, but there are no statues in her neighbors' yards. "There is nothing across the street except for two new duplexes," she said.
She also dismissed the possibility that the sun was responsible for the image.
She said that she took the photo on her digital camera at 4:00 p.m., when the sun was not shining on her house.
She said that the memory card on her digital camera was full when she took the picture.
Many similar pictures she attempted to take that afternoon did not come out, she said, adding to the suspicion that the image is a sign from above.
Family, friends and co-workers who have seen the photo think that it is the Madonna or the pope, Capri said.
One person even went by the house and blessed himself, she added.
Capri is not as convinced as her neighbors. She said that, while the image doesn't appear in any of her other photos and isn't there now, she's not sure what to make of it.
"I'm hoping this is telling me that my house is blessed," she said to the Transcript.
"I don't think it's anything bad. I think it's something good."
Medford had its last visit from the Virgin on Feb. 9, 2004, when people reported witnessing a hand-painted statue of the Virgin Mary outside of Medford's Sacred Heart Church burst into tears.
According to many believers, the statue cried for over a month shortly before the Sacred Heart Church closed in 2004.
The statue reportedly received hundreds of visitors, many of whom left tokens such as Rosary beads, stuffed animals, prayer cards, flowers and candles.
Tufts University now owns the Sacred Heart Church on Winthrop Street.
-Jenna Nissan
