22 fascinating places across the U.S. where Catholics can venerate saints
22 fascinating places across the U.S. where Catholics can venerate saints
Each Catholic church contains the presence of God in the Eucharist. Simultaneously, numerous churches also preserve relics or remnants of saints—holy individuals who are now in heaven after committing their lives to God. Some churches across the United States possess hundreds, or even thousands, of relics.
Custodians of relics nationwide conversed with Our Sunday Visitor, featuring four individuals who each tend to over 1,000 relics. They shared a specific aspiration for their guests: that Catholics come to understand that the saints were genuine, ordinary individuals; that each person is invited to become a saint; and that they are not isolated because the saints — as their companions — are supporting them from above.
Today, Catholics have the opportunity to encounter saints in a unique manner through the veneration of their relics.
| Three classes of relics |
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 First-class Second-class Third-class |
“Honoring relics allows one to experience the intimate presence of the sacred individuals who have preceded us,” states Timothy O’Malley, the education director for the McGrath Institute for Church Life and educational leader of the Notre Dame Center for Liturgy, informed Our Sunday Visitor.
“Followers of Christ can seem strange, and one aspect of that strangeness is the understanding that the body is integral to our salvation,” O’Malley remarked, recognizing that some might view this practice as morbid. “Salvation is not merely an intellectual understanding. It embodies the flesh and blood, the history and the existence of that saint within the world.”
In other terms, their remains.
St. Anthony Chapel
Pittsburgh
When Carole Brueckner, the chair and instructor of St. Anthony Chapel, conducts tours at her church in Pittsburgh, she consistently informs guests that being there feels akin to entering heaven for a brief moment.
“Where else can you visit, where you are encircled by such a multitude of saintly relics in a single location?” she inquired.
Boasting over 5,000 artifacts, St. Anthony Chapel houses the most extensive assortment of Christian relics globally, located beyond the Vatican. The relics incorporate those of the saints along with fragments of Christ’s cross and a thorn from his crown of thorns.
Brueckner detailed several of the more well-known relics, including those of Our Lord, the Blessed Virgin Mary (her veil), St. Joseph, the apostles, and St. Anthony of Padua. One relic she wished for greater awareness of is a relic from St. Anthony. The chapel contains the only fragment of his skull not located in Padua, Italy: his tooth.
She detailed the chapel’s influence on those who visit. Numerous individuals report experiencing something — akin to the sensation of another person nearing them — once they step inside the chapel.
“I truly think that in the current world, we all require that tranquility, and this is an excellent spot to visit,” Brueckner stated. “At the very least, simply to be present and observe if someone is attempting to communicate with you.”
She recalled listening to numerous tales of prayers that had been fulfilled at the chapel. She recounted a particular instance that was under review by the Vatican: a woman in pregnancy delivered a healthy baby early after being informed that, should her child survive the birth, he would face disabilities.
“The girl’s mother approached our pastor and … he bestowed upon her one of the latest relics he had recently obtained, Blessed Frédéric Janssoone, a priest from French Canada,” Brueckner remembered. “The relic was handed to her and the girl truly pressed it against her abdomen.”
Brueckner mentioned that the girl’s baby son was delivered soon after, weighing slightly over one pound. He was completely healthy.
“These are normal people like you and I who have chosen to follow Our Lord, and many of them gave up their lives by being martyred for their faith. I think that’s something that we as Catholics need to get back to and realize we can become one of them also.”
— Carole Brueckner
Following the delivery, the girl inquired of her mother, “Who was the man grasping my hand during the delivery?” Brueckner noted. When her mother replied that no one was present, the girl described Blessed Frédéric Janssoone.
Today, Brueckner stated that the premature baby boy has grown into a healthy, athletic teenager.
Brueckner referred to the act of caring for the relics as an honor. She wished that, following their visit, Catholics would leave with an enhanced devotion to and respect for the saints.
“These are ordinary individuals just like you and me who have decided to follow Our Lord, and numerous ones sacrificed their lives by being martyred for their beliefs,” she stated. “I believe that this is something we as Catholics should revisit and acknowledge that we can also become one of them.”
Shrine of All Saints at St. Martha of Bethany Church
Morton Grove, Illinois
The Shrine of All Saints According to the rector, Father Dennis O’Neill, the St. Martha of Bethany campus of All Saints Parish contains the second most extensive collection of relics, following St. Anthony Chapel.
Situated in Morton Grove, Illinois, the shrine houses the relics of over 3,000 saints. Numerous ones are documented online.
Father O’Neill spoke of one relic that is particularly notable: a strand of hair from St. Thérèse of Lisieux, which perpetually emanates the fragrance of roses.
“The collection provides a great experience of immersion in the mystery of the Communion of Saints.”
— Father Dennis O’Neill
The shrine additionally contains multiple whole, or almost whole, bones of saints, comprising the right ulna and a carpal bone from the arm of St. Mark the Evangelist, the left fibula of St. Peter, along with a humerus belonging to St. Thomas the Apostle and St. Benedict of Nursia.
Guests are also able to view an arm bone belonging to St. Francis of Assisi, two bones from the first martyr, St. Stephen, the jawbone and 11 teeth of Blessed Margaret Plantagenet Pole, the skull of St. Remaclus, a segment of St. Lucy’s cranium, the cranium of St. Sabas the Great, St. Fructuosus of Tarragona’s cranium, part of St. Nicholas’ pelvis, the hip socket of St. Vincent the Deacon, along with the relics of Sts. Colette of Corbie and John Francis Regis, which were concealed during the French Revolution.
The shrine contains the personal effects of saints, such as St. John Vianney’s summer breviary case, chalice pouch, and home visitation bell. Additionally, it features a chalice used by St. Padre Pio and a portion of the wedding gown that St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein) wore on the day she entered the Carmelite order.
Father O’Neill recounted two miracles reported to have occurred via these relics: a woman healed of a brain tumor by the intercession of Blessed John Licci and a man awakened from an irreversible coma through the intercession of Blessed Margaret Plantagenet Pole.
He described it as incredible to be the guardian of these artifacts.
“The collection offers a fantastic opportunity to dive deep into the enigma of the” Communion of Saints,” Father O’Neill finished. “Each visitor expresses a desire to come back due to not having enough time to experience all that this place offers. You truly need to witness it to understand.”
St. John Cantius Church
Chicago
Brother Joshua Smerker of the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius articulated the “wonderful honor” of looking after the relics at St. John Cantius Church.
“The saints serve as our companions, and honoring their relics, the remnants of their earthly existence, consistently reminds us of their proximity and that they encourage us through life’s challenges, so that we might eventually reunite with them,” he stated.
The church located in Chicago is home to approximately 1,800 relics, featuring two reliquaries, with each holding more than 450 saints.
Brother Smerker characterized the most uncommon artifacts in the collection as pertaining to Christ’s suffering. One reliquary holds a thorn from the crown of thorns, a piece of the pillar of scourging, a segment of the inscription above the cross, and a shard of the reed that Christ was given.
“This reliquary is thought to be one of three ordered by King Louis IX of France, who additionally constructed Sainte-Chapelle within Notre-Dame de Paris to contain the Passion relics after acquiring the crown of thorns,” Brother Smerker remarked.
The church additionally contains the most significant relic of its patron saint outside of Poland: the tibia bone of St. John Cantius. Additional relics comprise those of St. Faustina and St. John Vianney, along with a glove belonging to St. Padre Pio and a fragment of the cloth that covered his side wound.
Brother Smerker disclosed that younger guests are particularly captivated by the life-sized wax representations of St. Philomena and St. Lucy, with the relics of both saints placed alongside them.
He additionally spoke about a relic that he wished to bring to more people’s attention: a fragment of the tongue of St. John Nepomuk, a highly revered saint in the German Church.
He recounted the tale of the priest confessor for the Queen of Bohemia. When her spouse, King Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia, suspected that his wife was engaging in infidelity, he inquired of the saint regarding her confession. St. John Nepomuk declined to violate the seal of confession and was subjected to torture before being cast into the Vltava river.
“[I hope] that they come away with the sense that the saints are not far from us at all and to show that we all have something to offer with our strengths and weaknesses.”
— Brother Joshua Smerker
Brother Smerker recognized him as the inaugural martyr of the confessional.
“This occurred following the Protestant Reformation and led many to understand the significance of the seal of confession,” he emphasized. “This matter is particularly crucial for us today, as discussions regarding secular authorities are prevalent in various parts of the globe.” forcing priests to reveal criminal information “acquired in the confessional.”
He wished for Catholic attendees to leave with a renewed connection to the saints.
“[I hope] they depart with the understanding that the saints are quite near to us and to demonstrate that each of us has unique contributions to make with both our strengths and weaknesses,” he remarked. “As St. Paul mentions to the Corinthians, ‘But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong,’ we were created for heaven … and the relics serve as a reminder that it is nearer than we realize.”
The Maria Stein Shrine of the Holy Relics
Maria Stein, Ohio
Matt Hess, who serves as the director of ministry and hospitality at the Maria Stein Shrine of the Holy Relics, wishes that individuals depart the shrine with a sense of being summoned to become saints.
“I wish that they understand that these saints were actual individuals like themselves, that they possessed aspirations and dreams, encountered failures, and found redemption — all the elements that we face, that we endure, there’s likely a saint for each of those experiences,” he stated.
“They’re not merely these ornate statues or these colorful glass windows,” he continued. “These are actual individuals who succeeded, who adhered to Christ.”
The sanctuary in Maria Stein, Ohio, contains over 1,200 relics of the saints and Our Lord. The relics associated with Christ encompass his crib, robe, cross, burial shroud, fragments of the tables used at Cana and the Last Supper, along with St. Veronica’s veil. Guests are able to see a directory listing the relics on the website of the shrine.
In November, the shrine intends to incorporate approximately twelve additional relics into its collection, Hess mentioned. These will feature relics of St. Josephine Bakhita, St. Paul VI, Sts. Louis and Zélie Martin, St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein), and Blessed James Miller, an American brother who was martyred in Guatemala.
The shrine’s most distinctive artifacts could be those belonging to St. Victoria, a martyr from the early Church, found at the base of the Sacred Heart altar within the relic chapel.
“St. Victoria enjoys this fame due to the arrangement of the reliquary,” Hess remarked, discussing the magnificent reliquary created for her in the 1800s.
He mentioned that the Sisters of the Precious Blood, who attended to the relics, created a sort of effigy or representation of St. Victoria using wax — featuring a head, hands, and feet — and incorporated the saint’s bones into the garment that she dons.
“They’re not just these gilded statues or these stained-glass windows. These are real people that made it, that followed Christ.”
— Matt Hess
“Victoria was likely around 14 years old when she was killed during one of the persecutions in Rome,” Hess explained. “The young sisters felt a strong connection to her … as they are joining the convent at a similar age to hers when she faced martyrdom.”
Hess also highlighted two artifacts of the true cross that are permanently exhibited: a silver reliquary containing the relics of 16 New Testament individuals, and, his preferred item, the hair of St. John Paul II. Beside that, he mentioned, is the hair of St. Teresa of Calcutta.
He remembered the effect of the relics on attendees, particularly during the prayer services conducted thrice a year featuring the relic of St. Peregrine, the patron saint for individuals fighting cancer.
He referred to it as a privilege to tend to the artifacts.
“To me, it’s simply been a remarkable testament to the belief of these individuals and a significant testament to the faith that we have received here,” he stated.
| Notable U.S. relics |
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 While they may not have thousands of relics, several U.S. churches nationwide care for relics that are particularly unique.
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The significance of the physique
Catholic commentators discussed the importance of venerating or respecting relics today.
“Your entire existence unfolds within your body, and we hold the belief that our bodies, being united with Christ through baptism and the reception of the sacraments … will be resurrected. This serves as a testament to that belief,” Father Hugh Vincent Dyer, O.P., an associate chaplain at Catholic University of America, shared with Our Sunday Visitor. “Additionally, it is a testament to the reality that we are collectively saved as part of Christ’s mystical body.”
O’Malley likewise emphasized the significance of the body.
“It’s quite evident that in the initial stages of the early Church, fragments of martyrs’ remains were preserved and they symbolized a form of the genuine or actual presence of that saint within the gathering,” O’Malley stated.
| Other churches for visiting the saints |
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 Several churches in the United States house hundreds to thousands of relics:
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“If you ponder theologically, it all seems to fit together, doesn’t it?” he inquired. “The body is significant. The body serves as the realm of salvation, and yet here you have the most redeemed of all bodies.”
O’Malley cautioned that relics can be readily misused, starting with regarding them as renowned keepsakes. He further noted that the relics themselves are not objects of worship. They are honored.
“They are revered as figures who embody this sacredness,” he noted. “And when we direct our prayers to them, it’s towards the God who sanctified them — asking that they intercede for us, the humble men and women striving for holiness after them.”
Katie Yoder is a contributing editor for Our Sunday Visitor.
