Recently, someone notified me that a sliver of Blessed Miguel's coffin was on sale by auction on Ebay. I checked, and the bidding was completed. The sliver, on a nice laminated card with Pro's photo, had sold for $46.

This horrified me and made me both sad and angry. It made me sad because I am the one who had lovingly laminated the sliver and sent it off for free to someone that I hoped would treasure it in hopes it would make Pro better known and increase devotion to him. It horrified me because I felt so sad for the poor dupe who paid that much money for it, and because the relics sold on Ebay remind me of a giant Middle Ages marketplace. Don't people realize that the sale of relics is one of the things that got us Catholics in such hot water during the Reformation?

That's not the only Pro relic I have seen for sale on Ebay. The third class relic - novena cards that Lawrence LeLeux so devotedly touches to the first class relics of our saint and distributes have also been auctioned there. One man, trying to be nice to me, actually paid $7.50 for one and sent it to me as a present. I agonized for a week over that one. How could I let him know my thanks, but also warn him about the relic commerce on that site, and how he had been stung? I have many of those relics here at my house. Lawrence and I work together to make Pro better known.

I was so incensed about the sale of the casket relic that I emailed the seller, telling him/her that I felt it was morally wrong to sell relics. I was nice about it, but the immediate response I got flabbergasted me even more. The seller informed me that only the sale of first class relics was prohibited by canon law and since that was only a fourth class relic it didn't count!

We all know that Blessed Miguel was a big joker. All of a sudden it hit me that maybe the joke was on me. No, I hardly think Miguel would approve of the sale of his relics. But maybe he was tricking me into writing this article. Why? Well, when I read the foolish response that the relic was "fourth class" it dawned on me that the seller who was so quick to quote canon law obviously didn't know what the devil he/she was talking about. And further, that many other people don't know much about relics either. A relic is a sacramental -- not a holy rabbit's foot or good luck charm.

Certainly, one article won't stop the sale of holy relics on Ebay. The only thing that will stop it is for us all to ignore the sales. Don't kid yourself that you are "rescuing" these relics. Just consider them lost. When the sellers can't profit, they will quit. As long as there is a demand, they will supply it.

This article may help some people learn a bit more about one of the treasures of our faith. If so, then Blessed Miguel's latest trick was a good one.

What are relics?

Relics, as honored in the Catholic Church, are the bodies if the saints or objects connected with them or with Our Lord. God has often shown His approval of the use of relics as sacramentals by working miracles through them. Relics deserve to be venerated. The bodies of the saints were temples of the Holy Spirit and instruments through which God worked. We honor relics by preserving them with reverence, visiting the places where they are enshrined, and praying before them.

The word relic comes from the Latin reliquiae, meaning remains. They are classified in three categories. First class relics are parts of the bodies of saints or instruments of the Passion. Second class relics are objects which have been in close contact with the saints, such as articles of clothing or personal items. In the case of a martyr, the instruments of martyrdom are also considered in this category. Third class relics are objects such as rosaries or cloths which have been touched to the bodies of the siant or to either first or second class relics.

Veneration of relics is not limited to Catholics, and it has origins that predate Christianity. Buddhists and Moslems both have holy relics which they treasure as do the followers of Confucius. Relics are mentioned in both the Old and the New Testament.

History of the Devotion to Relics:

After the death of Christ, the persecutions of the Christians resulted in the death of countless martyrs. They were buried n the catacombs which later became a veritable treasury of relics. As the Christians increased and spread forth throughout the world, they took with them their honored relics. Even today, relics of saints are enclosed in the altars of modern churches.

No one knows when the practice of venerating minute fragments of the bodies of saints first became popular, but the practice was widespread by the fourth century. The cases that held them began to be beautifully decorated with jewels and precious metals. During the Middle Ages when the cult of relics was at its pinnacle many great churches owed their renown simply to the presence of important relics.

Abuses creep in:

It was during the Middle Ages, too, that abuses began to creep in. The faking, sale and other scandalous abuses of the Church doctrine in relics became widespread. People began to forget that we venerate the person from whom the relic came, not the piece of bone or cloth called the relic.

Words of the Relic Office:

There is a Relic Office in the Vatican which receives, keeps, and distributes relics of saints and blesseds. Instructions from the Vicar General of the Diocese of Rome read: "Relics should be handled intelligently, without abuses. They are signs which can be useful to spread devotion to holy men and women all over the world. When major relics are requested for private and public veneration they must be accompanied by official papers warranting their validity and authenticity. In no way may they be sold. A contribution may be requested merely to cover expenses such as for the relic case and mailing charges."

Because of their very nature, major relics are scarce and difficult to obtain. It is a common custom, however, for the postulators of causes for beatification and for religious orders to distribute second and third class relics, often on cards with prayers for the cause.

The Best Relics:

The honor and veneration of relics is commendable, provided superstitious practices do not accompany it, and their use as sacramentals is popular. Our Lord himself, in an apparition to St. Gertrude the Great, mentioned a non-materialistic relic that all Christians would do well to consider. The saint had desired to have some relics of the wood of the cross. Our Lord said to her, "If you desire to have some relics which will draw My Heart into yours, read My Passion, and meditate attentively on every word contained therein and it will be to you a true relic which will merit more graces for you than any other.. thence you may know and be assured that the words which I uttered when on earth are the most precious relics which you can possess."

For more information:

One of the most complete books about relics in print today is Relics, by Joan Carroll Cruz, (Our Sunday Visitor, 1984).

Visit the website of the International Crusade for Holy Relics, USA, at: http://www.ichrusa.com

Read the applicable sections of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition (Our Sunday Visitor, 2001).

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Created: 6/19/2002 Updated: April 9, 2006