The Captive Child

Far be it from me to cheat.  The photo I posted earlier today was actually a picture taken… I believe in December.  So it doesn’t count as one of my 30-photos-in-30-days.

Today Shari, Nathanael and I took Brittany (the photographer from Canada, as you may remember) downtown.  Among other things we visited the National Cathedral.

In the cathedral was a chapel to the "Captive Child" or Niño Cautivo.

The Captive Child is one of many "Child God" images, representing Jesus as a child.  Many people believe that each one has special powers, and so they invoke it for special things.

This particular image was actually captured by pirates in the early 1600s, while it was being carried to the cathedral.  After 7 years in prison, it was finally brought here.

So this image is invoked to receive physical or spiritual freedom.  In particular, people use it to try to get freedom for kidnapping victims, or for children suffering physical violence.

You can see the Captive Child in glass over the altar, among a collection of modern toys.  Just click to see larger images in the photo gallery.