The image of Saint Jude Thaddeus stands imposingly amidst the mountains. It is a 28-meter-tall statue of epoxy resin and devotion, a figure that dominates the horizon of Badiraguato and which, on October 28th, once again drew hundreds of believers.
They came from Culiacán, Durango, Sonora, Coahuila, and even Mazatlán, driven by a faith that, they say, is unshaken by fear.
While the conditions for celebration exist in the municipal seat where the monumental figure of the saint is located, the reality in the mountainous region is different.
In recent weeks, drone attacks and armed clashes have disrupted life in the communities, causing displacement and fear.
The Besieged Mountains
The governor of Sinaloa himself, Rubén Rocha Moya, acknowledged this Tuesday, October 28, that drone attacks have been registered in the mountainous region of Badiraguato, an unprecedented event in the state’s recent history.
“There have been drone attacks there, and that’s why we saw a sudden displacement phenomenon, which we’ve been addressing in Badiraguato and here. We have a record of both those who are there and those who arrived here.
“It’s already been addressed; there’s an operation underway there, many drones have been seized, indeed, and people were afraid of the drones,” the governor stated during his meeting with the media. The attacks, he explained, caused several families to flee the mountains, and they are now taking refuge in safer communities or in the town itself.
In the town, amidst prayers, candles, and promises, devotion to Saint Jude Thaddeus is experienced as an act of resistance.
Believers say that coming to the sanctuary is a way of showing they are not afraid.
“I’ve come three times now,” says one devotee, “but right now, you see how crime is rampant, business and many other things are complicated.” But here we are.”
“What motivated you to come?”
“The help I’ve received these past few days, the opportunity to address the problems in the port, because I’m from Mazatlán, and it motivates me to move forward.”
For many like him, each step toward the monument, each lit candle, and each prayer represent more than a religious rite: they are a declaration of hope in a state where violence has ceased to be news and has become commonplace.
