A Sign Of The Presence Of God

Our tour hit Orlando this past weekend, where Saint John Paul II’s relic was venerated at the 132nd Knights of Columbus Supreme Convention and at the Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe.

Msgr. Slawomir Oder, postulator for the cause of canonization of St. John Paul II, spoke at the convention’s prayer service before the relic. He said:

Saints are the sure sign of the presence of God in history! Saints are the most beautiful thing the Lord wants to say to us about Himself!

We can find in the book of the life of St. John Paul II the sure road which leads, through faith, humility, prayer, and love of neighbor, to full communion with God.

Oh blessed Saint John Paul II, pray for us this day, that we may also follow this sure road that leads to full communion with God!

Saint John Paul II Tours the Northeast

Earlier this year, we posted a piece about the importance of relics. We wrote that, "the bodies of the saints were once temples of the Holy Spirit and are one day to be eternally glorified. So to venerate their bones is to venerate the bones that will one day be conformed to the body of Christ."

Here at the Saint John Paul II National Shrine, we have given pilgrims the opportunity to venerate a piece of Saint John Paul II’s blood-stained cassock from the 1981 assassination attempt.

Out of dedication to the late Holy Father’s mission to travel and "cross the threshold of every home," we also launched a relic tour. A vial of John Paul II’s blood, which was given to the Knights of Columbus in order to foster devotion to the great Saint at the Shrine, is currently touring the northeast, traveling like John Paul II to meet the people. 

The tour began in Boston and stopped in New York this past weekend. The relic will be in Philadelphia this coming weekend. 

According to Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus, Carl Anderson, bringing "his relic to communities throughout this country will recall for many Catholics his saintly life, his unswerving commitment to the dignity of every human person and his emphasis on the call to holiness for each one of us."

Our hope is that it will also build excitement for our permanent exhibit on the life and legacy of John Paul II, slated to open later this year.

Saint John Paul II, Pray for Us!

Honoring A Temple Of The Holy Spirit

In light of last week’s news that a relic of Blessed John Paul II was stolen (and thankfully, found), we thought we would reflect on the importance of relics in the Church and explain why we keep and venerate a relic of the late Holy Father here at the Blessed John Paul II Shrine.

The Catholic Encyclopedia tells us that,

The word relics comes from the Latin reliquiae (the counterpart of the Greek leipsana) which already before the propagation of Christianity was used in its modern sense, viz., of some object, notably part of the body or clothes, remaining as a memorial of a departed saint. The veneration of relics, in fact, is to some extent a primitive instinct, and it is associated with many other religious systems besides that of Christianity.

It is quite natural for a person to keep precious articles that belonged to a deceased person they loved or admired. This instinct is what began the tradition of keeping and venerating relics in the Church, especially ones that belonged to saintly figures.

The bodies of the saints were once temples of the Holy Spirit and are one day to be eternally glorified. So to venerate their bones is to venerate the bones that will one day be conformed to the body of Christ.