GOD HAS NO HANDS BUT OURS
The popular story says that following World War II some German students volunteered to help rebuild a cathedral in England, one that had been badly damaged by the Luftwaffe bombings. As the work progressed, they weren't sure how to best restore a large statue of Jesus with has arms outstretched and bearing the familiar inscription, "Come unto Me."
They were able to repair all the damage to the statue except for Christ's hands which had been completely destroyed. Should they even attempt to rebuild these?
Finally, the workers reached a decision that still stands today. They decided to leave the hands off and changed the inscription to read: "Christ has no hands but ours."
The phrase "Christ has no hands but ours" is a reference to this prayer by St. Teresa of Avila. Let it be our prayer:
Lord Christ,
You have no body on earth but ours,
No hands but ours,
No feet but ours.
Ours are the eyes through which your compassion
Must look out on the world.
Ours are the feet by which you may still
Go about doing good.
Ours are the hands with which
You bless people now.
Bless our minds and bodies,
That we may be a blessing to others.
AMEN
This story originated at Christ the King Catholic Church in San Diego, CA. At that time, the story was told on their website as well, but that site has since been closed.
The statue did exist outside the church, but the hands were broken off by vandals around 1980, not by bombing.
Instead of repairing the hands, the church decided to put up a plaque at the base that states, "I have no hands but yours."
This is a reference to the poem by St. Teresa of Avila.
The statue is still there, without hands.
“I have no hands but yours,” read the plaque below the statue of Jesus outside Christ the King Catholic Church in San Diego, CA. No tengo mas manos que las tuyas. And it was literally true — Jesus’ outstretched arms ended at the sleeve.
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