Buffalo council president calls saint's broken statue 'symbolic'

He thinks whatever is developed and built in Buffalo should stay there. "It's like taking Martin Luther King Jr.'s house and moving it to Buffalo," he said.

The statue and a Paschal candle stand arrived in Georgia on Saturday. The first stop was the Cathedral of Christ the King in Atlanta, where both were given a ceremonial blessing by Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory. Next came Mary Our Queen church and a welcome by parishioners.

The statue fell from the crate as it was being removed.

Off came St. Gerard's head.

Fortunately, no one was injured, said the Rev. David Dye, of Mary Our Queen, who recounted the accident. He's already talked with people who specialize in restoration work and said St. Gerard could be in one piece as early as Saturday.

The Diocese of Buffalo offices were closed for Easter Monday, and officials could not be reached for comment.

The Norcross church wants to buy St. Gerard's Roman Catholic Church, which closed in 2008, dismantle the structure and move it to Georgia. The total project could cost as much as $15 million, of which about $3 million has been raised, according to the Archdiocese of Atlanta.

"I'm not happy it happened, but what a golden opportunity for the Easter message," Dye said Monday. "That which was broken has been restored. That which was fallen has been lifted up."

Dye said in a previous interview that it would probably cost around $40 million to build a new church with the same quality.

At least this St. Gerard may have a happier ending than the real one, who Dye said was martyred when enemies placed him in a barrel with spikes and rolled him down a hill in Hungary. He survived the descent, according to Dye, but was tortured and later died of his injuries.