Strange Miracle story
Pedro Sicueros fakes paralysis after a train wreck in order to collect a huge insurance settlement. After collecting the money he doesn't want to stay in the wheelchair. He meets a young girl named Maria who is really paralyzed. He discovers that she has been going to a nearby holy shrine for years hoping for a cure. Pedro gets an idea. He visits the shrine and begins to pray. On the fifth day of his prayer he stands and pretends to be healed. After he stands, his legs collapse. He discovers that he is now paralyzed for real. At the same time, some distance away, Maria is cured. Directed by: Norman Lloyd. Story by: George Langelaan, Halsted Welles.
7 total · 1 choice · 5 major · 1 minor
| Theme | Level | Motivation |
|---|---|---|
| insurance fraud | choice | Pedro pretended to be paralyzed in order to cash in on insurance. |
| divine retribution | major | Pedro was struck down with paralysis by the Virgin Mary for his having committed insurance fraud. |
| husband and wife | major | Pedro let his wife in on the secret. |
| miracle | major | A miracle-working statue of the Virgin Mary was at the center of the story. |
| mobility impairment | major | Pedro pretended to be paralyzed in order to cash in on insurance. The little girl Maria was legitimately paralyzed. |
| poetic justice | major | Pedro tried to use the shrine to feign a miraculous recovery from his paralysis, but instead became paralyzed for real. |
| religious occupation | minor | The little girl Maria told a Catholic priest the story of the Virgin Mary state cured her paralysis of the legs. |