Law Enforcement Advising Schools to Curb Wearing of Crosses, Rosaries
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BROWNSVILLE, Texas -- In a twisted caricature of the Catholic rosary, some local gang members are sporting their own crudely handmade versions of the prayer beads around their necks, tied at the waist or wrapped around their heads.
Police investigation shows that certain gangs are using rosary beads to identify themselves — a phenomenon that has caused law enforcement to advise area schools to tell students to tuck the crosses and beads into their shirts, said Oscar Garcia, police chief for the Brownsville Independent School District.
“The rosary is a time-honored tradition, a very sacred type, but these kids have taken this and twisted it,” Garcia said
Brownsville Police spokesman J.J. Treviño said on the streets, wearing the rosary is not necessarily a gang identifier. Wearing the beads can signal that the person has a family or friend in jail.
While people can wear the rosary for various reasons, the Rev. Greg Labus, pastor of Our Lady of Mercy Church in Mercedes, said the beads are a tool for prayer and are not meant to be worn at all.
“It’s not intended to be worn as necklace or any kind of jewelry,” he said. “We see the rosary as sacramental. It’s a tool that should be used for prayer and meditation.”
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