World Cup Churches 11. Mexico

Continuing a series of blogs heading round the 32 qualifying countries in the 2022 World Cup - I will pick out one church in each one.  I am not going to choose only churches that are to my liking.  This is an exploration not a recommendation! To see all in the series select the label 'World Cup Churches' below.

The three countries with the most self-identifying Christians are at this World Cup.  We have already seen a church in the nation with the most - the USA.  Here is the nation with the third most Christians - Mexico.  Overwhelmingly - though cracks are showing - Mexico is a Roman Catholic country.  Like some of its cousins in this respect Mexico entertains some of the more unlikely Christian features of overwhelmingly Catholic communities.  The local expression of this we are featuring is Iglesia del Honguito.

If your Spanish is no better than mine you may feel that this is the Church (Iglesia) in the town of Honguito.  But this Church is in Chignahuapan.  

Honguito is the Spanish for 'mushroom'.

The Church of the Mushroom is not very big (though Mexico has plenty of vast churches).  It gets more visits than might be expected though because it contains - you guessed it - a mushroom (which is itself not very big).  Found in 1880 by a local farmer it has markings that, with the help of a magnifying glass, has a representation of the crucified Christ:

To answer the obvious 140 year old question, the mushroom is now petrified.  It is a popular object of veneration in true Mexico-Catholic fashion and, whatever it does for local Catholics, it leaves an English Protestant like me with nothing left to say but with eyes slightly agog.