PAPAL BLESSING UNLIKELY FOR MEXICAN SAINT OF NARCOS

CULIACAN, Mexico, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Pope John Paul may not know or
approve, but the country where he was due to arrive for a four-day visit on
Friday has a "Patron Saint of the Drug Traffickers" in its panoply of
unofficial icons.

In this capital city of Mexico's northern state of Sinaloa -- in the heart
of the country's traditional badlands of outlaws and hard-bitten cowboys --
a plaster image of a moustachioed man with a white shirt and black scarf
stands in a rudimentary "chapel."

The statue is in honour of Jesus Malverde, a Mexican-style Robin Hood who
robbed the rich to help the poor earlier this century and who now attracts
a following of misfits -- everyone from common crooks to big-time drug
dealers.

For centuries, Mexicans have put their faith in all kinds of divinities,
from Aztec gods to the God of their conquistadors, and their most revered
icon is the Virgin of Guadalupe, a dark-skinned Mary who represents a
fusion of the two cultures.

The faith extends to all areas of life. When Mexico's national soccer team
faced a key match in last year's World Cup in France, several Catholic
congregations dressed up Christ-child icons in the team's national colours
in a bid to give their side an added boost.

The chapel dedicated to Malverde is not recognised or approved of by the
Catholic Church. Yet it is festooned with crucifixes and images of the
Virgin of Guadalupe.

There is also a three-piece band and people selling reproductions of
Malverde's statue, candles and cassettes with the folk songs telling tell
the legend of the so called "Angel of the Poor."

It was built a block away from the place where, according to the legend,
Malverde was hanged from a tree in 1909 by authorities trying to set a
crime-fighting example.

Eligio Gonzalez, self-described chaplain and builder of the Malverde
shrine, would not rule out that drug traffickers visit. He lamented that
Malverde had been so closely linked to them.

"He is not the 'Saint of the Narcos', he is a saint of the poor, of the
rich, and of whoever wants," Gonzalez said.

"All kinds of people come -- 'federales' (federal agents), military. I
can't tell if they are narcos," he added.

Gonzalez said he decided to dedicate his life to the cause after he was
shot four times by robbers in 1973 and asked Malverde to help him pull
through.

A recent visitor to the shrine was typical of many of Malverde's followers.
A man about 25 years old he wore snake-skin boots, and a belt buckle with
images of an AK-47 -- drug traffickers' weapon of choice -- and a marijuana
leaf.

He wore a black baseball cap that read "The Lord of the Skies", the
nickname given to the late drug kingpin Amado Carrillo Fuentes for his
ability to move huge shipments of cocaine into the United States aboard
retired jetliners.

In 1982, the Diocese of Culiacan published a text in local newspapers
condemning the adoration of Malverde. But his popularity does not seem to
be waning.

"The priests used to get annoyed but now they do not say anything,"
Gonzalez said. "On the contrary, now they congratulate me because of the
good work I do. Only God knows why He put me here."