Makeshift shrines have sprung up by the tree in West New York. People have been praying, crying and leaving flowers and candles as they look at the small opening where the bark was stripped away.
A fence and other barricades also have been set up around the tree, which is in a sidewalk along a commercial strip.
According to CBS2, residents say the carving appeared after a man from Mexico was killed in a crash in the area.
What does it mean? "It's something special for the people of West New York," said one onlooker, Jose Alequin, to The Jersey Journal. "I think it's a message for the good people to take care of their families."
As of this writing, The Archdiocese of Newark has not found the tree to be anything other than a "phenomenon," cautions CBS2, though priests at nearby churches will happily speak with anyone in need of counsel.
