THE INCORRUPTIBILITY OF SAINTS (◄ Psalm 16:10_
For Thou wilt not abandon my soul to Sheol; Neither wilt Thou allow Thy Holy One to undergo decay.)
The body of Mary of Jesus de León y Delgado , Monastery of St. Catherine of Siena found to be incorrupt by the Catholic Church ( Tenerife ,
Spain).
Incorruptibility is a Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox belief that divine intervention allows some human bodies (specifically
saints and beati ) to avoid the normal process of decomposition after death as a sign of their holiness. Bodies that undergo little or no decomposition, or delayed decomposition, are sometimes referred to as incorrupt or incorruptible.
Incorruptibility is thought to occur even in the presence of factors which normally hasten decomposition, as in the cases of saints Catherine of Genoa, Julie Billiart and Francis Xavier. [1]
Roman Catholicism
In Roman Catholicism, if a body is judged as incorruptible after death, this is generally seen as a sign that the individual is a
saint . Canon law allows inspection of the body so that relics can be taken and sent to Rome. The relics must be sealed with wax and the body must be replaced after inspection. These ritual inspections are performed very rarely and can only be performed by a bishop respecting canon law. A pontifical commission can authorize inspection of the relics and demand a written report. [2] After solemn inspection of the relics, it can be decided that the body is presented in an open reliquary and displayed for veneration. Catholic law allows saints to be buried under the altar, so Mass can be celebrated above the corpse.
The relics of Saint Bernadette were inspected multiple times, and reports by the church tribunal confirmed that the body was preserved. The opening of the reliquary was attended by multiple canons, the mayor and the bishop in 1919, and repeated in 1925.[3]
Not every saint, however, is expected to have an incorruptible corpse. Although incorruptibility is recognized as supernatural, it is no longer counted as a miracle in the recognition of a saint. [4]
Embalmed bodies were not recognized as incorruptibles. For example, although the body of Pope John XXIII remained in a remarkably intact state after its exhumation, Church officials remarked that the body had been embalmed [5] and additionally there was a lack of oxygen in his sealed triple coffin. [ citation needed ].
Incorruptibility is seen as distinct from the good preservation of a body, or from mummification. Incorruptible bodies are often said to have the odour of sanctity, exuding a sweet or floral, pleasant aroma.
Eastern Orthodox Church
Relics of Anthony, John, and Eustathios at the Orthodox Church of the Holy Spirit in Vilnius, Lithuania.
To the Eastern Orthodox Church , a distinction is made between natural mummification and what is believed to be supernatural incorruptibility. While incorruptibility is not generally deemed to be a prerequisite for sainthood, there are a great number of eastern Orthodox saints whose bodies have been found to be incorrupt and are in much veneration among the faithful. These include:
Anthony, John, and Eustathios
Saint Alexander of Svir – the incorrupt relics of the saint were removed from the Svir Monastery by the Bolsheviks on December 20, 1918, after several unsuccessful attempts to confiscate them. Finally, the holy relics were sent to Petrograd's Military Medical Academy. There they remained for nearly eighty years. A second uncovering of St Alexander's relics took place in December 1997, before their return to the Svir Monastery. [6]
Saint Job of Pochayiv
Saint John the Russian
Saint Ioasaph of Belgorod – In 1918 the Bolsheviks removed Saint Ioasaph's relics from his shrine in the cathedral of the Holy Trinity at Belgorod, and for some seventy years, their whereabouts remained unknown. In 1927, the cathedral itself was demolished. In the late 1980s, the relics were discovered in Leningrad's Museum of Religion and Atheism, and on 16 September 1991, they were solemnly returned to the new Cathedral of the Transfiguration of Our Lord in Belgorod, in the presence of Patriarch Alexy II. [7]
Saint Nectarios of Aegina
Saint Parascheva of the Balkans
Saint Spyridon
Dionysios of Zakynthos
Gerasimus of Kefalonia
Saint Zosima
Saint Elizabeth
Saint John Maximovitch of Shanghai and San Francisco
Instances
The saints and other Christian holy men and women whose bodies are said to be or to have been incorrupt have been catalogued in The Incorruptibles: A Study of the Incorruption of the Bodies of Various Catholic Saints and Beati, a 1977 book by
Joan Carroll Cruz. [8]
Romans
During marble excavations on the Appian Way in Spring 1485, workers found three marble coffins. In one, twelve feet underground, was the corpse of a young woman, said to have looked as if it had been buried that day, despite being about 1500 years old. The corpse attracted 20,000 plus crowds of spectators in the first few days, many of whom believed it to be of Tullia, daughter of Cicero, whose epitaph was on one of the tombs. [9]
Saints
The body of Blessed Mary of the Divine Heart Droste zu Vischering found to be incorrupt by the Catholic Church .
The body of Saint Bernadette of Lourdes with wax face and hand coverings, declared to appear incorrupt by a committee in 1909 (subsequent exhumations indicated corruption). (b. January 7, 1844 – d. April 16, 1879).
The body of Saint John Mary Vianney wearing a wax mask, found to be incorrupt by the Catholic Church. (b. 8 May 1786 – d. 4 August 1859).
The body of Saint Padre Pio of Pietrelcina wearing a silicone mask, found to be incorrupt by the Catholic Church. (b. 25 May 1887 – d. 23 September 1968).
The body of Saint Alphonse Mary of Liguori, found to be incorrupt by the Catholic Church. (b. 27 September 1696 – d. 1 August 1787).
The body of Saint Joaquina de Vedruna, found to be incorrupt by the Catholic Church. (b. April 16, 1783 – d. August 28, 1854). [citation needed]
The body of Saint Zita, found to be incorrupt by the Catholic Church. (born c. 1218 - d. 27 April 1272).
The body of Saint Catherine Labouré , found to be incorrupt by the Catholic Church. (b. May 2, 1806 – d. December 31, 1876).
The body of Venerable Mary of Jesus of Ágreda , found to be incorrupt by the Catholic Church. (b. April 2, 1602 – d. May 24, 1665).
The body of Saint Rita of Cascia, found to be incorrupt by the Catholic Church. (b. 1381 - d. May 22, 1457).
The body of Saint Luigi Orione, found to be incorrupt by the Catholic Church. (b. June 23, 1872 – d. March 12, 1940).
The body of Saint Virginia Centurione, found to be incorrupt by the Catholic Church. (b. April 2, 1587 – d. December 15, 1651).
Beatified
Blessed Margaret of Castello
Alfredo Ildefonso Schuster
See also
Gisant
Bog body
Buddhist mummies
Paramahansa Yogananda
Sokushinbutsu
Sufism
Footnotes
- ^ Quigley, Christine (2005). The Corpse: A History. McFarland. p. 254. ISBN 0786424494.
- ^ http://www.pravoslavie.ru/english/print49948.htm The Re-Vesting of the Relics of St. John of Shanghai & San Francisco
- ^ "The Body of Saint Bernadette" .
www.catholicpilgrims.com . Retrieved 8 April 2018. - ^ Archived at The Incorruptibles , The bodies of many medieval Catholic saints and martyrs have resisted decay for centuries— just the sort of mystery that begs for scientific inquiry , By Heather Pringle , Discover Vol. 22 No. 6 (June 2001)
- ^ Sandri, Luigi (1 June 2001). "Blessed John XXIII's Remains Are Now On View At St Peter's" . Christianity Today. Archived from the original on 11 February 2014. Retrieved 11 February 2014.
- ^ The Marvelous Wonderworker of All Russia, Holy Venerable Alexander of Svir. St. Petersburg: Holy Trinity Monastery of St. Alexander of Svir, 2002. Archived 2012-04-02 at the Wayback Machine .
- ^ ST. IOSAF THE DIVINE PROTECTOR at angelfire.com
- ^ Carroll Cruz, Joan (1977). The Incorruptibles: A Study of the Incorruption of the Bodies of Various Catholic Saints and Beati. Charlotte, NC : TAN Books. ISBN 0-89555-066-0 .
- ^ Translated letters about tombs on Appian Way, from
Pagan and Christian Rome by Rodolfo Lanciani, 1896
References
The Incorruptibles: A Study of the Incorruption of the Bodies of Various Catholic Saints and Beati, by Joan Carroll Cruz,
OCDS , TAN Books, June 1977. ISBN 0-89555-066-0 .
Christian Mummification: An Interpretive History of the Preservation of Saints, Martyrs and Others,
WHERE CAN I SEE THESE IN REALITY
thought I'd list the locations of some of the major first class relics here so that you'll know where to find them if you're blessed to make a pilgrimage to these locations. The sites below house the greatest part of the given relic, but tinier pieces may be found throughout the world, especially in the Altars of Catholic churches.
Note that some of the Saints are marked as "incorrupt"; this refers tothe phenomenon whereby some Saints' bodies do not corrupt after death.An example is St. Bernadette Soubirous, who saw Our Lady at Lourdes and who now lies in a glass coffin at her convent in Nevers, France. Though she died in A.D. 1879, she is as lovely as she ever was (first picture at right. For a larger view, click on it; the larger picture will open in a new browser window).
Other examples are those of Blessed Imelda Lambertini, who died in ecstasy during her First Communion in A.D. 1333 at age 11 (I am uncertain how accurately the picture at right represents Imelda's state of preservation; this may be a wax figure); of St. Catherine Labouré, who had the vision of Our Lady which led to the minting of the
Miraculous Medal and who died in A.D. 1876; of St. Maria Mazzarello, the first Salesian Sister, who died in A.D. 1881; and of St. John Vianney,Curé d'Ars, who died in A.D. 1859 (see pictures at right). There are many more.
This phenomenon of incorruptibility is often accompanied by a sweet fragrance, known as the "odor of sanctity," which has been described as being unlike any known perfume. Another related phenomenon is the flow of a healing liquid, called "oil of saints," which exudes from the Saint's body or tomb. In the case of some Saints who exude this "oil," the flow of liquid is periodic and not constant (the famous flow of "oil" from the relics of St. Walburga, who is not incorrupt, is periodic like this).
No one knows why some Saints are preserved from corruption while others aren't, and incorruptibility is never seen, in itself and by itself, as a proof of holiness. It is a good indicator of such when the deceased was known for his life of faith and virtue -- but it's a phenomenon that can be mimicked by science, by the effects of natural conditions, and by the demonic.
A final note on the phenomenon of incorruptibility: don't let anyone try to tell you that Pope John XXIII (d. 1963) is one of the"incorruptibles." While his body was
found to be well-preserved when he was exhumed in January, 2001, there is no miracle because he was injected with formalin (a mixture of formaldehyde and methyl alcohol) and other preservatives by Dr. Gennaro Goglia -- i.e., he was embalmed. Then he was sprayed with an anti-bacterial agent and placed in a three layer air-tight coffin which was itself put inside a marble sarcophagus -- all in optimal, dry conditions for preservation.
Though the Vatican denies any unnatural preservation in his case, one still hears some Catholics claim that Pope John XXIII is "incorrupt."
Now, on to the list of relics...
Where you can venerate
some First Class Relics
Austria
Vienna
Relic: St. Longinus' Lance (lance of the Roman soldier whopierced Christ's side)
Where: Hofburg Treasure House,Vienna, Austria. The shaft of the lance is at St. Peter's Basilica,Rome.
Relic: St. Elizabeth of Hungary
Where: Convent of St. Elizabeth,Vienna, Austria. Preserved here is St. Elizabeth's skull, crowned with the crown she wore in life.
Belgium
Brussels
Relic: St. Boniface of Brussels, Bishop of Lausanne
Where: Notre Dame de la Chapelle, Brussels, Belgium
Gheel
Relic: St. Dymphna
Where: Church of St. Dymphna,Gheel (province of Antwerp), Belgium
Canada
Midland
Relic: St. Isaac Jogues, St. Jean de Brébeuf, and Companions
Where: The Martyrs' Shrine, Highway 12, Midland, Ontario, Canada
Quebec
Relic: St. Kateri Tekakwitha
Where: Saint Francis-Xavier Mission Church, Kahnawake, Quebec, Canada
Relic: St. Anne
Where: Church of Ste. Anne deBeaupré, Ste. Anne de Beaupré, Montmorency county, Quebec, Canada (the majority of St. Anne's relics are in Apt, Bouches-du-Rhone, Provence,France).
Czech Republic
Prague
Relic: St. Wenceslaus, St. Vitus
Where: Cathedral of St. Vitus,Prague, Czech Republic
Relic: St. Ludmilla
Where: St. George's Basilica, Prague, Czech Republic
Note:
Though not a shrine in honor of canonized Saints, also of note in theCzech Republic is "Sedlec Ossuary" ("Kostnice") of the Cistercian All Saints chapel in Sedlec, a suburb on the outskirts of the town of KutnaHora, about 45 miles East of Prague. In A.D. 1278, the abbot there went on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land and brought back some soil, which he poured over the cemetery ground. Christians, then, wanted to be buried in that soil when they died, but after a time the graveyard became too crowded, especially in A.D. 1318, when 30,000 people were buried after dying from the Plague. An ossuary was built so that the older bones could be dug up and new bodies buried. A woodcarver was later hired to decorate the chapel, and he used the bones decoratively. The ossuary came to be adorned -- literally -- with the bones of around 40,000 Christians. You can see some pictures of this fascinating place at
this website, and see this page for a Quicktime panoramic view of the place. (links will open in a new browser window)
Ecuador
Quito
Relic: Mother Mariana de Jesus Torres (incorrupt), and the miraculous image of Our Lady of Good Success
Where: Mother Mariana lies in a glass coffin at the cloistered Convent of the Immaculate Conception in Quito, Ecuador. The miraculous statue can be seen by the public at these times: during the novena anticipating the Feast of the Purification, from around January 24 to February 2; during the month of May; during the month of October.
Egypt
Alexandria
Relic: St. Mark, Evangelist
Where: St. Mark Church in Alexandria, Egypt. (Cenotaph in Church of San Marco Venice, Italy where his relics had been taken during the Crusades.)
England
London
Relic: The Venerable Bede
Where: Galilee Chapel, Durham Cathedral, County Durham, England
Relic: St. Edward the Confessor(incorrupt)
Where: Westminster Abbey, London, England
Relic: St. John Southworth
Where: Westminster Cathedral (Precious Blood Cathedral), London, England. St John was hanged, drawn,and quartered during the Protestant "Reformation" for celebrating the Traditional Mass. The quarters of his body and his head were recovered after the execution, reassembled and sent to the Catholic Seminary at Douai, where it was buried during the Napoleonic purges in France. The relic was re-discovered in the last century during construction work to build a new road, and is now contained within a silver effigy, dressed in red Mass Vestments and contained within a glass reliquary in the Chapel of Saint George and the English Martyrs.
Relic: St. Thomas More and St. John Fisher
Where: Church of St. Peter ad Vincula in the Tower of London (St. Thomas More's head, after it was removed, was boiled and displayed, after which it was to be thrown in to the Thames River. His daughter rescued it by bribing the guard and allegedly buried it in her husband's family vault).
France
Annecy
Relic: St. Francis de Sales
Where: Church of the firstMonastery of the Visitation, Annecy, France (his incorrupt heart is preserved at the Monastery of the Visitation, Treviso, Italy).
Ars
Relic: St. John Vianney (incorrupt)
Where: Basilica at Ars, France
Bordeaux
Relic: St. Simon Stock
Where: Carmelite monastery,Bordeaux, France (his skull is preserved at Aylesford, Kent, England)
Champagne
Relic: St.Helena
Where: Abbey of Hautvillers,Champagne, France (diocese of Reims). Her relics were translated here from Constantinople in A.D. 849 (Note: it is in this abbey that the pirest, Dom Pierre Perignon, invented Champagne in the 17th century. He, too, is buried here).
Lisieux
Relic: St. Thérèse of Lisieux
Where: Chapel of the Convent ofCarmel, Lisieux, France
Nevers
Relic: St. Bernadatte (incorrupt)
Where: Convent of St. Gildard in Nevers, France
Paray-le-Monial
Relic: St. Margaret Mary Alacoque (unsure as to whether or not she is incorrupt; I've read that her relics are not incorrupt, but are kept in a figurine of her which makes her appear incorrupt)
Where: Shrine of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, Paray-le-Monial, France
Paris
Relic: St. Genevieve
Where: Saint Etienne-Du-Mont,Paris, France
Relic: Crown of Thorns and a piece of the True Cross
Where: Kept, starting with King St. Louis IX, at Ste. Chapelle, Paris, France (on the Ile de la Cité,near Notre Dame) -- a chapel the sainted King built just for theserelics. Removed during the French Revolution and placed in the Bibliotheque Nationale. They are now at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris (but visit Ste. Chapelle anyway! It is stunning...).
Relic: St. Catherine Labouré(incorrupt)
Where: Chapel of the Sisters of Charity Convent, 140 Rue du Bac, Paris, France
Relic: St. Vincent de Paul(incorrupt)
Where: Church of St. Vincent dePaul, Rue de Sevres, Paris, France (his heart is at the Chapel of the Miraculous Medal)
Seine et Marne
Relic: St. Fiacre
Where: Cathedrale de Meaux, Seineet Marne, France
SaintDenis
Relic: St. Louis IX
Where: Basilica of St. Denis, St.Denis, France (now a northern suburb of Paris). You will find here almost all the remains of French monarchs from Dagobert I on. During the French Revolution, the contents of the tombs were emptied into a mass grave, but were later recovered and put into a large ossuary inside the Basilica.
Toulouse
Relic: St. Thomas Aquinas
Where: Basilica of St. Sernin, Toulouse, France
Vannes
Relic: St. Vincent Ferrer
Where: Cathedral of Vannes,Vannes, France
Germany
Cologne
Relic: The Three Magi
Where: Discovered in Persia, brought to Constantinople by St. Helena, transferred to Milan in the fifth century and then to the Cathedral of Cologne, Germany in A.D. 1163, where they've been ever since.
Relic: St. Ursula
Where: Ursalaplatz (Church of St.Ursula), Cologne, Germany
Relic: St. Albert the Great
Where: Komdienstraße (Church ofSaint Andreas), Cologne, Germany
Eibergen
Relic: St. Hildegard von Bingen
Where: Parish church of Eibergen, Eibergen, Germany (originally buried at the graveyard of the convent of Disibodenberg. Translated to present location in A.D. 1642).
Eichstatt
Relic: St. Walburga
Where: Church of St. Walburga, Eichstätt, Bavaria, Germany. Her relics exude a healing "oil of Saints" between 12 October and 25 February, her Feast in the Benedictine Breviary.
Fulda
Relic: St. Boniface
Where: Cathedral of Fulda, Fulda,Germany
Munich
Relic: St. Mundita
Where: Peterskirche (St. Peter's Church), Rindermarkt 1 (near the Rathaus), Munich, Germany. I have no idea who this Saint is, but her skeleton is gilded, bejeweled, and kept in a glass case. Fitted with glass eyes, she seems to stare at you from the beyond...
Trier
Relic: Christ's Robe
Where: Cathedral of St. Peter,Trier, Germany. The "tunica Christi" was brought to Trier by St. Helena.
Hungary
Buda
Relic: the right hand King Saint Istvan (Stephen) (this relic is known as the "Holy Right")
Where: Saint Istvan's Basilica,Buda (the western part of Budapest)
India
Chennai
Relic: St. Thomas the Apostle
Where: Santhome Cathedral,Chennai, India
Goa
Relic: St. Francis Xavier (incorrupt)
Where: Basilica Bom Jesus, Goa,India
Ireland (Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland)
Downpatrick
Relic: SS. Patrick, Brigid, and Columba (a.k.a. "Columcille")
Where: Cathedral of Down, Downpatrick, Northern Ireland
Dublin
Relic: St. Valentine
Where: The Carmelite Whitefriar Church, Dublin, Republic of Ireland. At least some of the greater relics of St. Valentine were retrieved from the Cemetery of St Hippolytus, on the Tiburtine Way in Rome, and given to Fr. John Spratt by Pope Gregory XVI in 1836.
Italy
Amalfi
Relic: St. Andrew, Apostle
Where: Cathedral of Amalfi, Italy
Aquila
Relic: St. Bernardine of Siena
Where: Basilica di S.Bernardino,Aquila, Abruzzo, Italy
Assisi
Relic: St. Francis of Assisi
Where: Lower Church of the Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi, Assisi, Umbria, Italy
Relic: St. Clare of Assisi, St. Agnes of Assisi, and their mother, Blessed Ortolana
Where: Basilica of Santa Chiara, Assisi, Umbria, Italy
Bari
Relic: St. Nicholas of Myra
Where: Translated from Myra to the Church of St. Stephen in Bari, Apulia, Italy in A.D. 1087 to save them from Muslim desecration.
Bologna
Relic: St. Dominic
Where: Church of St. Dominic,Bologna, Italy
Relic: Blessed Imelda Lambertini(incorrupt?)
Where: San Sigismondo Church near the University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy. Blessed Imelda died in ecstasy while receiving her First Holy Communion. I am uncertain how accurately the picture above represents Imelda's state of preservation; this may be a wax figure. The translation of the Latin inscription above her tomb reads:
Imelda Lambertini
A virgin of Bologna in ancient Coenobio
St. Mary Magdalene in the Valley of Peter,
Emulating the innocent angel
When, long ago, she desired most passionately
To approach the sacred altar,
But did not reach it because of her tender youth.
Jesus Himself, overcome by her great love,
Four days before the Ides of May in the year 1333
He descending from heaven, restored her in a new miracle with the divine bread,
Embracing her as a spouse,
He filled her with so much ecstatic joy
That the bonds of her fragile body were broken
And her most innocent spirit flew away from this earth
To the eternal banquet of Christ.
Oh blessed citizen of Bologna
You whose bones protect this place with their religious power,
Watch over the chaste line of children,
And approach the celestial banquets.
Teach them to trample down the earthly delights, like you
And to always hope for immortality.
Caposele
Relic: St. Gerard Majella
Where: Caposele, Italy
Cascia
Relic: St. Rita of Cascia (incorrupt)
Where: Basilica of St Rita inCascia, Italy
Castello
Relic: Blessed Margaret of Castello (incorrupt)
Where: Church of St. Domenico,Castello, Italy
Lanciano
Relic: Eucharist whose accidents had turned also to Flesh inA.D. 700
Where: Church of Lagontial,Lanciano, Italy. A Basilian monk who was offering Mass in the church of St. Legonziano in Lanciano began to doubt the real presence of Christ under the sacred species after the consecration. At that very moment, the priest saw how the sacred host was transformed into human flesh and the wine into blood, which later coagulated. These relics are kept in the cathedral. On Nov. 18, 1970, Dr. Edoardo Linoli analyzed the remains of "miraculous flesh and blood" and concluded that it was human myocardial tissue and genuine Blood, respectively.
Milan
Relic: St. Ambrose
Where: Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio,Milan, Italy (crypt open on his Feast Day)
Relic: St. Charles Borromeo
Where: Cathedral of Milan, Italy
Monoppello
Relic: St. Veronica's Veil (?)
Where: Carthusian Monastery,Monoppello, Italy. If this is the true Veil of Vernoica, the historygoes like this: the veil had been kept at St. Peter's Basilica, Rome, Italy (there is a niche for it near the statue of St. Veronica there), but was removed from there when St. Peter's was being rebuilt, and taken to this monastery in A.D. 1608. There is either a copy of the veil at the Vatican today in the aforementioned niche, or the one at the Vatican is the original (all other copies of the Veil were prohibited by Pope Paul V in 1616).
Naples
Relic: St. Januarius (Genarro)
Where: Cathedral of Naples,Naples, Campania, Italy. A vial of St. Genarro's dried blood liquefies and "boils" when brought near his head 18 times a year.
Monte Cassino
Relic: St. Benedict and St. Scholastica
Where: Abbey of Monte Cassino, ona hill overlooking Monte Cassino, Italy
Montefalco
Relic: St. Clare of Montefalco (incorrupt)
Where: Church of the Holy Cross,Montefalco, Italy
Nettuno
Relic: St. Maria Goretti
Where: Our Lady of Grace, Nettuno,Italy
Padua
Relic: St. Anthony of Padua
Where: Basilica of St. Anthony,Padua, Italy. When St. Anthony's coffin was opened 30 years after his disposition, most of his body was found to have returned to dust but for his tongue, which remained fresh as a sign of his gift of preaching. It is this that is kept at the Basilica.
Relic: St. Luke
Where: Basilica of St. Justina inPadua, Italy
Pavia
Relic: St. Augustine
Where: San Pietro in Ciel D'Oro,in Pavia, Italy
Rieti
Relic: St. Barbara
Where: Cathedral of Rieti, Italy
Rome
Relic: Titulus Crucis, a Crucifixion nail, relic of the True Cross, two thorns from the Crown of Thorns, the greater part of the sponge used to give Christ vinegar, a piece of the cross of the good thief (St. Dismas), finger of St. Thomas the Apostle
Where: Santa Croce in Gerusalemme (Holy Cross in Jerusalem) 12 Piazza di Santa Croce in Gerusalemme,Rome, Italy. The church, whose floor was packed with soil from the HolyLand, was consecrated about A.D. 325, in an older building that was rebuilt to house the Passion Relics brought to Rome by St. Helena, Constantine's mother. The "Titulus Crucis" is the sign that hung over Christ's Head, naming Him as "King of the Jews."
Relic: St. Agnes
Where: Sant' Agnese fuori le mura(St Agnes Outside the Walls), 364 Via Nomentana, Rome, Italy. The church is built over St. Agnes's tomb. Her head is preserved at the Sancta Sanctorum in the area.
Relic: Many Popes, including: St.Peter; St. Leo the Great; St. Gregory the Great; St. Pius X(incorrupt). Many Saints, including St. Gregory Nazianzen.
Where: San Pietro in Vaticano (St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican City, Italy)
Relic: St. Jerome and St. Pius V(incorrupt), part of the manger, the icon Salus Populi Romani
Where: Santa Maria Maggiora (St.Mary Major) 42 Piazza di Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome, Italy
Relic: St. Bartholomew, Apostle(?)
Where: St.Bartholomew-in-the-Island, Rome, Italy
Relic: St. Lawrence and St.Stephen
Where: San Lorenzo fuori le Mura(St Lawrence outside the Walls, a.k.a. San Lorenzo in Campo Verano) 3Piazzale del Verano, Rome, Italy. The church is built over the tomb of St. Lawrence. St. Stephen was brought from Constantinople by PopePelagius II. Another church, San Lorenzo in Panisperna, was built over the place of St. Lawrence's martyrdom, and there one can see the gridiron upon which he was put to death.
Relic: St. Paul
Where: Some of St. Paul's relics are kept at the Basilica of St. Paul's Outside the Walls (San PaoloFuori Le Mura). At the Church of the Decapitation (Church of San PaoloAlle Tre Fontane), built over the site he was beheaded, you can see the marble column to which St. Paul was bound, the table on which he died,and three springs that sprang up at the spot where he was killed (the springs are now operated mechanically).
Relic: SS. Cosmas and Damian
Where: Church of Saints Cosmas and Damian, Rome, Italy
Relic: Hearts of Popes Sixtus V,Urban VII, Gregory XIV, Innocent IX, Clement VIII, Leo XI, Paul V,Gregory XV, Urban VIII, Innocent X, Alexander VII, Clement IX, ClementX, Bl. Innocent XI, Alexander VIII, Innocent XII, Clement XI, InnocentXIII, Benedict XIII, Clement XII, Benedict XIV, Clement XIII, ClementXIV, Pius VII, Leo XII, Pius VIII, Gregory XVI, Bl. Pius IX (all the Popes from Sixtus V, who died in 1590, to Pius IX, with the exception of Pius VI)
Where: Santi Vincenzo e Anastasio(Church of SS. Vincent and Anastasius), in the Piazza di Trevi, Rome
Relic: Steps of Pilate's house that Christ ascended for His sentencing (moved from Jerusalem to Romeby St. Helena)
Where: Basilica of St. JohnLateran, Rome, Italy. Also in this basilica is a monument to Pope Sylvester II that is said to "cry" before a Pope dies (its marblebecomes moist).
Relic: St. Cecilia
Where: Basilica of St. Cecilia,Rome, Italy. St. Cecilia was originally buried in the Catacombs of St.Callixtus (Catacombe di San Callisto), but in A.D. 821, Pope Paschal Icollected some of the remains of the Saints to preserve them from raiders. Her relics were lost, though, but the Pope dreamed of where could be found. Her incorrupt body was located in what is now the Crypt of St Cecilia in those Catacombs.
Relic: St. Sebastian
Where: Church of St. Sebastian, Rome, Italy. (St. Sebastian's head is at Church of the Four Crowned Martyrs -- "Santi Quattro Incoronati)
Relic: St. Monica
Where: Church of St. Augustine inCampo Marzio, Rome, Italy
Relic: St. Ignatius of Loyola and St. Robert Bellarmine
Where: Church of the Gesu, Rome,Italy
Relic: St. Catherine of Siena and Fra Angelico
Where: Altar at the Basilica of Santa Maria Sopra Minerva, Rome, Italy (St. Catherine's head is in the Church of San Domenico, Siena, Italy)
Note:
Also of interest in Rome are two sites rather like Kostnice in the Czech Republic (see above). The first is the Cimitero dei Capuccini,the Capuchin catacombs near Piazza Barberini. This subterranean crypt underneath the Church of Santa Maria della Concezione contains the bones of monks and others arranged in artistic designs. The second is S.Maria dell'Orazione e Morte, located at via Giulia 262. This place contains the bones of unknown people who died and had no one to bury them, and who were buried by a Confraternity that had charge of such things and offered Masses for their souls.
San Giovanni Rotondo
Relic: St. Pio of Pietrelcina (Padre Pio)
Where: Padre Pio Shrine, SanGiovanni Rotondo, Italy
Turin
Relic: St. John Bosco (incorrupt), St. Dominic Savio, St.Maria Mazzarello (incorrupt)
Where: Basilica di MariaAusiliatrice (Mary Help of Christians), Turin, Piedmont, Italy. In Valsalice, Piedomont, you can see the room where St. John Bosco died,kept exactly as it was when he went to his Heavenly reward.
Relic: The Holy Shroud
Where: Royal Chapel of the HolyShroud, Cathedral of San Giovanni, Turin, Piedmont, Italy (since A.D.1578). Please learn more about the most fascinating Holy Shroud of Turin and the Sudarium of Oviedo.
Venice
Relic: St. Lucy
Where: Church of San GeremiaVenice, Italy. Her remains, moved from Syr acuse to Constantinople, were translated from Constantinople to Venice in A.D. 1204. Her head,however, may be venerated at the Cathedral of Bourges France (it wassent to Louis XII).
Relic: St. Roch
Where: Church of San Rocco,Venice, Italy.
Malta
Relic: The pillar upon which St. Paul was martyred, Wrist bone of St. Paul
Where: Church of St Paul's Shipwreck, Saint Paul Street, Valletta. The church contains ornate baroque carvings covering almost the entire surface of the church and ornate statues that are paraded through the streets on the appropriate day.
Relic: Saint George Preca, various relics including a vial of blood
Where: Where: Blata l-Bajda, close by the mother house of the M.U.S.E.U.M. (Magister Utinam Sequator Evangelium Universus Mundus) Society, a group founded by the saint to promulgate the faith in Malta and abroad.
Peru
Lima
Relic: St. Martin de Porres
Where: Convent of the Holy Rosary, Lima, Peru
Poland
Krakow
Relic: SS. Hedwig (Jadwiga) and Stanislaus
Where: Cathedral Basilica of St.Stanislaus and St. Wenceslaus. ("Wawel Cathedral"), Krakow, Poland
Spain
Agreda
Relic: Venerable Mary of Agreda (incorrupt)
Where: Convent of the Conception, Agreda, Spain
Avila
Relic: St. Teresa of Avila (incorrupt)
Where: Convent of St. Teresa, Avila, Spain (St. Teresa's heart is in the Carmelite Convent in Alba de Tormes, Spain)
Compostela
Relic: St. James the Greater
Where: Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, Compostela, Spain
Granada
Relic: St. John of God
Where: Iglesia de San Juan deDios, Granada, Spain. At the Museo de S. Juan de Dios. Calle Convalescencía, you can see the room in which he died, along with some of his belongings.
Oviedo
Relic: Sudarium of Oviedo (the second linen used to cover Jesus' Face at His entombment)
Where: Cathedral of Oviedo,Oviedo, Spain. Please learn more about the most fascinating Holy Shroud of Turin and the Sudarium of Oviedo.
Segovia
Relic: St. John of the Cross
Where: Segovia, Spain
Sweden
Vadstena
Relic: St. Birgitta
Where: Vadstena Cloister,Vadstena, Ostergotlands Lan, Sweden
United States
Chicago, Illinois
Relic: Over 2000 relics, including some of all 12 Apostlesand 24 of the 33 Doctors of the Church
Where: St. John Cantius Parish,825 North Carpenter Street Chicago, Illinois 60622-5405, Phone:312-243-7373
St. Marys, Kansas
Relic: Practically every Saint who's ever lived
Where: At St. Mary's Academy,there's a Relic Chapel that contains an incredible amount of first class relics (though no major tombs or shrines). The address is: St.Mary's Academy & College, 200 E. Mission Street, St. Marys, KS66536
Louisville, Kentucky
Relic: St. Bonosa and St. Magnus
Where: At St. Martin of Toursparish church, 639 South Shelby Street, Louisville, Kentucky, 40202
Emmitsburg, Maryland
Relic: St. Elizabeth Ann Seton
Where: Seton Shrine Chapel,Emmitsburg, Frederick County, Maryland
Relic: St. Frances Cabrini
Where: St. Frances CabriniShrine, 701 Fort Washington Avenue, New York City, New York
Maria Stein, Ohio
Relic: Practically every Saint who's ever lived
Where: Another Relic Chapel likethat of St. Mary's Academy in Kansas (no major tombs or shrines) is the Maria Stein Center. The address is: 2291 St. Johns Road, Maria Stein,Ohio 45860, (419) 925-4532
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Relic: St. John Neumann
Where: National Shrine of SaintJohn Neumann, 1019 North Fifth Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19123
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Relic: Practically every Saint who's ever lived
Where: Another Relic Chapel --the largest in the United States -- is St. Anthony's Chapel in the MostHoly Name of Jesus parish. The address is: 1700 Harpster St.,Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Troy Hill).