The image appeared on 10 May 2000 on the east side of the church after the structure underwent its first cleaning since it was built in the early 1970s. "I am very humbled by it," says Alice Leonards, an 11-year member of the church.

Last fall, Palma Sola, a 900-member congregation, held a fund-raiser to clean the church. About 20 minutes after the cleaning crew finished their work, the figure emerged. Before telling the pastor what they found, the crew tried to get rid of the image. "They were so afraid I would think they did this during the spraying," says the Reverend Richard Dennis. Dennis went outside, looked up and was astounded. "They asked: 'What do you see?' I said: 'I see the face of Jesus,'" says Dennis, who believes it is a sign that his church is doing good things.

The church has received numerous telephone calls, but Dennis says not all the calls have been good. Some people are concerned about the church's use of water - to keep the image visible, the building has to be wet: approximately every hour, a church employee has been wetting the wall. Dennis says he's trying to be mindful of water restrictions. "We're aware of the drought," he says. "We are trying to be as careful as possible." John Zimmerman, the county's water manager, says he also has received a few complaints.