Look for the Relics of the Passion Near You

If you seek a meditative prayer experience this Lent, I suggest checking to see if the Relics of the Passion will be in your area, or, if they won't be, downloading a pdf of the booklet for the Call from the Crucified Heart program.

We were blessed this past week when a friend let us know that the Apostolate for Holy Relics would be visiting our wider vicinity with their Call from the Crucified Heart program.
My children were introduced to relics two years ago when we visited a parish hosting the Treasures of the Church.  That experience got them excited about relics and eager to learn more, so we, later, took advantage of opportunities to visit a church hosting St. Maximilian Kolbe's relics and, then, to go venerate Padre Pio's heart relic.   As these experiences were all positive ones, I made sure to prioritize getting our family to the
Call from the Crucified Heart program.Our Experience

The Call from the Crucified Heart program, as we experienced it, lasted more than an hour and was presented in both English and Spanish, with every other meditation offered in English. (The church we went to for the program typically offers both English and Spanish Masses and, thus, provided a translator to read the Spanish meditations.  I do not think every church that hosts the Relics of the Passion opts for a bilingual program.)
To help non-bilingual folks like me and mine follow along, booklets with the full text of each mediation were provided in both English and Spanish.  Luckily, these had some black-and white images throughout them which helped my non-readers understand the story being told without me having to whisper-read the English versions of the Spanish meditations to them.  (My children know the story of Jesus' passion well, and, so, the pictures effectively "cued" them to some degree about what was being spoken about in Spanish.)

Image Source: Apostolate for Holy Relics

 

During each meditation, a local Knights of Columbus member held up one of eight rare holy relics related to the Passion of Jesus:

• the relic of the True Cross
• a piece of stone from the table or room where the Last Supper was held
• a piece of the Column of Flagellation
• a piece of the Crown of Thorns
• the effigy of the Veil of Veronica (touched to the original veil)
• a replica of the holy nail which contains filings taken from the true nails that were imbedded in copies to make relics of a lower class
• a piece of bone from St. Longinus, the centurion that pierced the side of Jesus
• a thread from the cloth used as the wrapping for the Burial Shroud.

Between each meditation, musical selections were played and sung, and, throughout the entire program the Holy Eucharist was exposed to "underscore that time-transcending gift that connects us from His Passion to His Presence with us today," as the Apostolate for Holy Relics site explains.

At the conclusion of the narrated portion of the program, we were blessed with an opportunity for personal veneration of the relics. 
I appreciated the experience, overall and plan to reread the meditations  from the program when I have quiet time later this Lent, since I missed some of them "live" due to my kiddoes' needs for potty runs and reminders to focus. 

At the end of a long, busy week  - and with half of the the Call from the Crucified Heart program  presented in a language my children not understand - my children, admittedly, had difficulty staying 100% engaged in the entirety of meditative portion of the program. However, they did fairly well throughout it and said they were happy to have been there.  (As was I!) They were especially pleased with the opportunity to move through the line for personal veneration, touching their rosaries and other holy objects to the relics, and my daughter has since knelt down in prayer with the sacramentals she brought to the program set up on a chair in front of her (which was such a sweet vision for me to witness.)

Of course, my children also enjoyed sharing the experience with friends. 

We are so grateful to have dear friends who share our faith and our desire to learn more about its rich history and traditions.  We pray you and yours are surrounded by opportunities to grow in faith among friends as well and are thankful that the Apostolate of Holy Relics is working to preserve and present part of our Catholic heritage.

Learn More about the Relics of the Passion

You can donate to the Apostolate of Holy Relics, request to host their programs, find out if they will be in your area, and read more about the history of the relics program at the Apostolate of Holy Relics website.

This post was shared at the 40 Days of Seeking Him Link up

Experience the Testimony of Saint Maximilian Kolbe

This past week we did not get to experiencing all of the sensory-smart ways I had brainstormed for learning more about Saint Maximilian Kolbe.  However, we did enjoy some reading, chats, and activities, which culminated* with Mass and veneration at Our Lady of Perpetual Help, where the Pilgrimage of the Relic of St. Maximilian M. Kolbe had stopped.  (*I use the word "culminated" loosely as there will surely be more study and learning about Saint Maximilian Kolbe to come.)

What a beautiful church Our Lady of Perpetual of Help is.  From the outside, it looks like a simple church.

Inside, though - wow!  As soon as my children and I stepped inside we thought, in my son's words:

This is amazing!  It was gorgeous.  There were statues and paintings everywhere.  The painting of Jesus resurrected and the people just looking up at him, staring in awe.  It was so impressive.  So pretty.

I did not take a ton of photos inside, because I did not think it would be appropriate to keep snapping photo after photo during veneration time, but I did take a few so that my children could better remember our experience, and so that we could continue chatting about the symbolism we had seen and the stories we had heard in the coming weeks, using the photos as a starting point.

My youngest was obviously exhausted when we were at Mass and fell asleep.  He woke as veneration began and was bleary eyed when his siblings took him up to the reliquary to look for the first class relic beard hairs within it.

While there, we noticed some of the symbolism of the reliquary:

• a base shaped like Poland, where Saint. Maximilian Kolbe was from
• thorns to represent the atrocities committed during the occupation of the Third Reich
• the lily bursting forth fro the thorns represents purity
• the tulip represent matryrdom (and, together with the lily, represent love triumphing over hatred)
• a knotted cord represents the vows of chastity, poverty, and obedience taken by all in the Franciscan order, including St. Maximilain Kolbe

We also noted the colors of the flowers by the altar - red and white - and talked about how these are the same colors as the crowns young Raymond Kolbe (which is what Saint Maximilian Kolbe was called as a boy) said he would accept from Our Lady.  As the story goes, one night, Our Lady appeared to young Raymond in a dream.  She was holding both a red crown and a white one and asked which he would accept.  The white meant her would persevere in purity.  The read meant he would become a martyr.   Raymond said he would accept both, and, indeed, through his life and death, did just that.

Plus, we examined the painting that was near the relic and connected it to what we know about Saint Maximilian Kolbe. The children noted that:

• In the background there are smokestack sand fences, reminding us of the prison camp Saint Maximilian Kolbe was imprisoned in
• The prison uniform he holds has his prisoner number on it.
• His habit speaks of his calling as a Franciscan priest.
• He holds the crowns he accepted from Our Lady.

Nearby were images of the Divine Mercy and Saint Faustina, so we chatted about those, too, and prayed at the side altar where they were.

Before we left, a sweet Franciscan sister gifted each of us with a Miraculous Medal.  The children took these up to the Saint Maximilian Kolbe relic, prayed, and touched them to the relic.  Yep, at that point, as had happened during  several points when I walked into the church, when I gazed at the artwork, when we celebrated Mass, when I looked down at the sweet face of my sleeping youngest,... tears brimmed in my eyes.  So much to be grateful for.  So many mysteries and graces.  So many blessings.

Life gets busy - very busy - and there are choices to made each day to move towards God or away.  I am grateful for the examples of saints who show us, time after time, how to move toward our Lord.  I am equally thankful for those who currently accept calls as nuns and priests, praying for us and shepherding us.  Likewise, I am thankful for ministries like Our Lady of the Angels that enrich us with experiences such as being able to experience the Pilgrimage of the Relic of St. Maximilian M. Kolbe. 

Experience the Church and Pilgrimage Virtually

If you would like to take a virtual tour of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, please view images of beautiful artwork in a slide show on the Our Lady of Perpetual Help website.

If you would like to learn more about the Saint Maximilian Kolbe relic or find out if it will be visiting you soon, check out the 2016 Pilgrimage page.


You can also view a video talk that explains Saint Maximilian Kolbe's story:

May love continue to triumph over hatred and may all of us in our troubled century listen to the testimony of Saint Maximilian Kolbe that love without limits is possible.

Saint Maximilian Kolbe, pray  for us.

Have You Experienced the Treasures of the Church?

Although I was born and raised Catholic, I somehow missed learning about relics until I was an adult.

The same cannot be said of my children.  

My children and I have talked briefly about relics before, and, now, with thanks to the Treasures of the Church evangelization apostolate, we have experienced relics first hand.

What Is Treasures of the Church?

Credit:  Treasures of the Church

Treasures of the Church is a ministry that brings folks closer to God through an encounter with the relics of some of his saints.  They offer expositions of some 150 first and second class relics preceded by a multi-media presentation on the Church's use of relics.

During the presentation, Father Carlos Martins explains the scriptural, catechetical, and devotional basis of relics.  While doing so, he shares stories of saints and of miraculous healings.

Then, attendees of the presentation are invited to go view and venerate the relics.  These include a piece of what is said to have been the cross Jesus died upon, a piece of Mother Mary's veil, and fragments of many saints and objects they have touched.

Please let  Father Carlos Martins introduce the Treasures of the Church apostolate to you himself:

 

What Was Our Experience Like? 

I got stuck on ice in my driveway on the night we went to experience the relics, so we arrived a few minutes into Father Martins' talk.  

Once we got settled into a pew, I was not sure how Luke, Nina and Jack would do during the adult presentation since they tend to be wiggly children.  Jack did well at first, but it was late for him to be out and he ended up getting a bit ornery.  Luke and Nina, on the other hand, quickly became engaged by the presentation.

As Father Martins talked about confession, their ears were wide open and they leaned over to ask me some quiet questions.  They also became particularly interested in the powerful (although at times "adult") stories of the saints that Father Martins shared as well as in testimonies of miraculous healings.

I, too, found myself engaged and, when not shushing Jack or responding to a quick quiet question or comment from Nina or Luke, learned a few new details about saints and relics myself.

Thus, my children and I all benefited from the presentation.  (Yes, even Jack.  For although he complained about being tired, etc., he listened as well and has since shared details of stories he heard.)

After the talk and a potty break, we waited in the long, relatively slow line to see the relics.  This was hard for the kids since they are never good with lines, but, with homeschooling friends right next to us in line, they survived and we made it to the tables the relics were at.  

Just before we did, Nina told me her heart was pounding.  I felt it.  It really was.  My girl was so excited to experience the relics, especially since she had heard a portion of Mother Mary's veil would be there.

Nina's excitement, however, was also laced with disappointed.  She had heard during the presentation that a holy object touched to a relic could become a third class relic and she so wished I had brought an object of devotion with us.  I apologized to her and let her know that I am learning about these things, too.  I did not know to do so.  She understood, but still somewhat sad.

Then, a woman named Nancy, who was nearby to us in line and had the sweetest, most prayerful demeanor, offered Nina a generous kindness.  Nancy had paused several times from her own prayer and devotion to share tidbits about her experience with and knowledge of the saints with my children.  During one of these pauses, when chatting with Nina, Nancy learned that Nina was upset about not having an object of devotion to touch to the relics.  No sooner did Nancy hear this then did she smile, reach into her bag and present Nina with a rosary from Medjugorje.  Nina was absolutely delighted and continued along the table, praying and touching the rosary to the relics.

I was moved by Nancy's kindness, compassion and devout prayer. Light and love seemed to emanate from her and I think I will remember the example of it each time I remember our experience with the Treasures of the Church.

I am not sure what Luke will remember.  For while Luke began his trek through the tables that the relics were on alongside me, he ending up moving ahead with some friends of ours.

I know he read some of the placards, touched some of the relics and said a few prayers.  Luke has also since commented that "it was so cool to see a part of the cross" and he been referring to the experience as a whole and to details from Father Martins' talk.   Plus, he began experiencing the exposition by praying with me and his siblings that the Holy Spirit would guide us and that we might be open to the prayers of intercession from saints.  So, I trust the Spirit is working in him as it seems to be in all of us through the experience -- with slow, quiet whispers. 

Of course, the Spirit's whispers are sometimes hard to hear. Especially in the din of a four-year-old's complaints.  

Unfortunately, Jack was that four-year-old for part of our evening.

As the night progressed, so did my challenges with Jack.  I was able to focus him on the first of the relics and in a few brief prayers, but mostly, he just wanted "to eat", to cry "I'm tired", and "to go home".

Since we had eaten just before going out, I knew Jack was not truly hungry and, since he had taken a rare nap in the afternoon, I also doubted that he was too tired to make it through the evening.  It was clear, though, that he wanted to go home because the sheer number of relics and the waiting it would take to venerate each of them was overwhelming.

Jack was not engaged and he was letting me and everyone else know it.  So, eventually, I just sat him down at a quiet table with some friends, some blank paper and a few pencils.  He contented himself drawing, told me later "it (the experience) was not really fun or like playing at all", but it was interesting to see that "huge one at the end with all the parts of the disciples".    He also perked up when he saw Joseph's relic after the "huge one".
 
So, four years old might be a little young for an exposition of the relics, I guess.  But who knows?  Perhaps just by being there, praying a little and having me and so many others pray in communion with the saints in Heaven, Jack was strengthened in some way.

I truly hope we all were!  

I know I am glad we went to Treasures of the Church and have been thinking about the saint I felt drawn to despite never really knowing much about him.  Luckily, even though the picture I took of the placard by the saint so I could remember which one it was was blurred, I can read it online.

  

I was thrilled to discover that all the placards that were next to the relics are available on the Treasures of the Church  download page.  With long, slow-moving lines and an ornery Jack, I could not possibly read each of the placards to my children at the exposition nor digest them myself.  Now, I know I can do so later.  In fact, I intend to print them and, then, pull specific ones out as the kids and I celebrate saint days through teas, playdates and notebooking.

Thank you, Treasures of the Church, for offering this resource free online as a download!

Do You Want to Experience Treasures of the Church?

Treasures of the Church travels to parishes, schools and prisons throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico.  It is currently traveling throughout New England with published exposition dates scheduled in MA and NH.  If you're in the area, GO!

If you're not in New England, book an exposition where you are.  To learn about how you can request an exposition for your local area, go to the Treasures of the Church website.

I'd love to hear about your experiences with relics and your ideas for helping young children understand and experience them.