A Rejoinder to my Catholic Buddy

[Dimmesdale]

Let's see, why would a statue of Mary literally cry blood?

Many possible reasons:

It could mean that Catholicism is true.

OR:

It could mean that some other God is signalling He exists. For example, because he wishes human beings to have faith in the supernatural, regardless of religion.

It could be that some entity (a demon or alien) is tricking us so as to have fun or deceive us into thinking only one religion is correct. (this is the easiest one to come up with, but its still a valid possibility -- especially if you are a Christian who thinks demons do, in fact, exist....)

It could be that the phenomenon of bloody tears is due to a psychic feedback loop where, the Universe and its laws respond to the prayers and mental energy emitted by believers. It could be a noetic thing where the universe itself, in some ways, consists of mind. This is hinted at by philosophies like Idealism and Non-dualism which have actually been explored at length by many Western thinkers. Quantum mechanics also indicates that mind can effect matter, perhaps in ways we can't even fully conceive.

It could be that Mary really is a supernatural reality, but that she doesn't believe in Christianity herself, but simply uses it in order to, again, foster faith in the needy masses.

It could be that the souls of the departed have some supernatural agency, and wish to communicate themselves to believers here and now in the only way they can or know how to -- without disrupting the primitive faith in traditional religion which humans are still attached to.

Any others?

[Dimmesdale]

Yes, I have another.

For instance:

A representation of Mary may tap into a Goddess Archetype -- to the effect that the statue acts like an official "mail box" that is officiated to hold and display the affections of a being like Mary but not her-- rather another being who is actually a Goddess. Perhaps Mary isn't even crying her own tears.