Word: warring
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There was, however, no escaping the after-effects of the war on the road to Madhu. There were armed personnel on either side of the road, bunkers with dugouts manned by soldiers, occasionally a bomb-damaged building. The railroad that ran parallel to the trunk road had been reduced to a long mound of earth, as if it were the trail left by some giant worm. The iron tracks had long been removed to construct the many bunkers...
Though the main church has survived almost unscathed, the side church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus on its right still bears the marks of years of war. Its roof was blown off and at the end is a ruined statue of Jesus Christ, destroyed by something that hit the building. Worshippers have tied coins to the statue as part of their vows. You can see the sides of its pedestal pockmarked with shrapnel. (See pictures of a deadly attack on Sri Lanka's cricket team in Pakistan...
...last year of the civil war was particularly perilous for the shrine. The military had begun a multipronged advance into the Tiger-controlled area in late 2007, and Madhu was about six miles (10 km) north of the line. Earlier that year, 10,000 people were still taking refuge in the church compound, believing the Virgin would protect them. But by February 2008, recalls the Rev. S. Emilianuspillai, then caretaker of the shrine, it was clear that the shrine itself was in danger - and part of the war. On April 3, 2008, fighting had isolated 17 people at the shrine...
...shrine's grounds, people spoke of how the statue was a symbol of peace and hope for all Sri Lankans, even during the darkest hours of war. "What you see is a miracle. The church has not been damaged; it has survived. So has the statue, and you see people from all religions flocking here," says the Rev. Mahavilachchiye Wimala Thero, a Buddhist monk from the central district of Anuradhapura. "This is the miracle, that this statue can bring together all Sri Lankans - that is the hope it gives these people." As the statue was paraded around the compound, many...
...believed in our Mother to bring us hope and peace. Now we can hope for a better country," says Singarayan Celestine, 70, a Tamil who brought his extended family to Madhu. His life had been devastated by the war: two of his sons were killed in cross fire, another went missing while crossing the front lines during the last hours of the fighting. "I am old," he says. "I can't look after my family for much longer. I have lost children to the war." Holding one of his grandchildren while the others played, he says, "We need a better...