‘Eucharistic Miracles of the World’

VERNON  The scientific community has no explanation for miraculous stories about the Eucharist from around the world over the centuries — from it turning to actual flesh and blood to being thrown into a fire and coming out unscathed or remaining perfectly preserved for more than 250 years.

The parishioners of St. Francis de Sales here got an opportunity to look at many of these Eucharistic miracles through the eyes of faith, learning or becoming reacquainted with the fact that these occurrences are very real. From a Saturday to a Tuesday last month, faithful got to peruse a traveling Vatican international exhibit, “The Eucharistic Miracles of the World,” a display of 75 placards, which present historical descriptions and photos of 65 Church-approved Eucharistic miracles that have taken place throughout the ages in various countries of the world. Developed by the Illinois-based Real Presence Eucharistic Education and Adoration Association, the panels that visited St. Francis give viewers a “virtual tour” of these places.

“There is a hunger for people to learn more about the Eucharist,” said Father Christopher Barkhausen, St. Francis’ pastor, who gave a talk about the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist on that Sunday in the parish hall of the faith community’s Family Life Center, where the placards where lined up in several rows for display. “As Catholics, we don’t believe in the Eucharist because of the miracles, but the miracles help in our belief. In these miracles, God gives us glimpses of the reality of the Eucharist to bolster our faith. The exhibit strengthened the faith (in the Real Presence) of our parishioners,” he said.

The exhibit opened at St. Francis for religious education classes from fourth-grade and older and for parishioners before and after Mass. On the next day, the display was open for all Masses and that night for Confirmation classes. It attracted not only St. Francis faithful, but also Catholics from around the Sussex Deanery, Father Barkhausen said.

The placards — some explaining miracles across two panels — described Eucharistic Miracles, such as the following:

• Consecrated Hosts remain perfectly preserved for more than 250 years in Siena, Italy in 1730. Rigorous scientific experiments have not been able to explain the phenomena.

• A Eucharist, thrown into fire overnight, miraculously is unscathed in Amsterdam, Holland in 1345.

• A German priest, who stopped in Bolsena-Orvieta, Italy, has difficulties believing in the Real Presence. As he celebrates Mass above the tomb of St. Christina, blood begins seeping out of the Host during the Consecration. Because of this miracle, Pope Urban IV commissioned the feast of Corpus Christi, which is still celebrated today in June.

One visitor to the exhibit was St. Francis parishioner Bea Hannigan, who serves as an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion, a daily lector, a member of the Divine Mercy Prayer Group and a volunteer at the food pantry.

“I’ve heard of Eucharistic miracles but I didn’t know that there were so many of them and that they continue to the present day,” said Hannigan, who was impressed with one display that described a miracle in which the Eucharist turned to flesh and blood. Scientists were able to determine the blood type and that the flesh was heart muscle that had suffered great physical trauma. “This has strengthened my faith in believing in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist and Father Chris’ talk confirmed that belief,” he said.

In his talk, Father Barkhausen noted that roots of the Eucharist go back to Old Testament times with Melchizedek, who blessed bread and wine, and with Passover, an “ongoing memorial” to God saving the Israelites from slavery in Egypt in a celebration that continues to this day, the priest said.

“It’s true with the Mass. We are not only thinking about what Jesus did 2,000 years ago, dying and rising from the dead, but also he is giving himself to us in the Eucharist each time. We are connecting with Christ,” said Father Barkhausen, who quoted Scripture, the Catechism and the saints in his talk. Belief in the Real Pre­sence, he said, has existed from the earliest days of the Church. “In the Eucharist, we are receiving strength in our unity with him and the Church and in our spiritual lives,” he said.

The website of the exhibit, therealpresence.org, notes that many Eucharistic miracles “have occurred during times of weakened faith,” for example as a result of someone doubting the Real Presence. Most of them involve the Host “turning into human flesh and blood,” according to the website.

The St. Francis display included 75 panels of the 153 total in the exhibit, which can be printed from a DVD that is available. The exhibit already has visited more than 3,000 parishes in many countries, including Italy, the U.S. and Canada, and has been translated into many languages, the website states.

Helping to bring the “The Eucharistic Miracles of the World” to St. Francis was Cheryl Avery, a parishioner, who used to work for the Augustine Institute. A friend there alerted her to the touring exhibit. Avery received the materials from St. John the Apostle Parish in Linden in the Newark Archdiocese.

“The exhibit is amazing. It brings together so many of the Church-approved Eucha­­ristic miracles,” said Avery, who was impressed by a miracle that involved Hosts accidentally falling into a river and ending up in the mouths of the fish there. “Some parishioners who were looking at the displays came up to me and said, ‘I didn’t know that.’ Even older kids were taken aback. This brought people to Christ and increased their faith,” she said.

[Information for hosting “The Eucharistic Miracles of the World”: email Anne Yamakaitis at St. John the Apostle Parish in Linden at [email protected] or call her at (908) 247-6998.]