Schools are burned and people punished as sect tightens grip on 'New Jerusalem' in Mexico
It is a painful memory for the young Mexican -- four hourslocked up in the jail cell at the age of 14. His crime? Playing football."It was forbidden," Cirilo Ceferino recalls. Founded in 1973, theVirgin of the Rosary, a nominally Catholic cult that the Vatican does notrecognise, shuns sports because they require the wearing of"indecent" clothes. Men wear long pants and shirts with long sleeves,while women wear long dresses with bright colors and head scarves. Make-up isbanned. At the village entrance a sign lays out the dress code: "Womenwearing short skirts or low-cut dresses and without sleeves are forbidden toenter."
Modern items like cell phones, televisions and radios areforbidden, as well as alcohol and non-religious music. There was no electricityuntil 2000. The village, located in Michoacan state, some 430 kilometers (270miles) west of Mexico City, has been an offbeat tourist attractionfor years.
But that changed when community leader Rosa Gomez, allegedlyacting after receiving a vision from the Virgin Mary, ordered a state-runpre-school and elementary school in the town destroyed. "The Virgin of theRosary visited me, she wants us to destroy the schools because that is wherethe devil lives," she said. About 100 community members armed with pikesand mallets heeded Gomez's call, smashing down the building walls then settingthe remains on fire.
On a recent visit, one of the sect's priests who gave hisname only as Father Luis said that the villagers acted spontaneously becausethey did not want the schools. "There had been protests. the governmentdid not want to resolve the problem, so it reached the point that the peoplesaid, “If they do not pay attention to us.” For Father Luis, it's all verysimple. "If you don't agree, you can leave," he said. "The goalof coming here is because you want to change."
