THE CATHEDRAL IS GONE BUT THE RELICS LIVE ON
Relics from the
Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament
BY MICHAEL CREAN
The Cathedral has gone but the relics live on. Well, not really. The relics stored in the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament are not living. Most are fragments of bones and hairs of Christian saints who died many years ago.
In a way, though, they do live on. They are precious keepsakes, a priest told me. Think of them like great-granddad’s pipe and great-grandmas’ spectacles. Families preserve those sorts of things, in honour and remembrance. Religious relics are priceless mementoes of great people in the Church. Then the priest added: “think of Maradona’s World Cup shirt – to some people a sweaty old rag, to football fans a multi-million dollar treasure”.
Keeping relics of saints in churches around the world is a long-held Catholic tradition. Relics are a “tangible connection” with the saints. These sacred items remind us of their inspirational lives and their holiness.
Bishop Grimes, the first Catholic Bishop of Christchurch and the man who “built” the cathedral, enjoyed collecting things. He acquired nearly 300 relics for the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament. They came from sources in many countries.
Among the collection is one that is most special relic and very different from the other relics. It is a fragment of wood, quite small, about the size of two matches stuck together. That precious piece of wood came from the True Cross on which Jesus died. The relic is set behind glass in the crux of a metal cross.
Some people may doubt if this relic is genuine. Disbelievers have scoffed and suggested that if all the relics that are claimed to come from the True Cross were put together, there would be enough wood to make many crosses. Not so! The disbelievers are probably unaware that, in 1870, Frenchman Rohault de Fleury traced all the True Cross relics in the world, including relics that had existed but had since been lost. He listed all of them in a catalogue. He discovered that if all the relics were glued together there would be barely enough wood to comprise one third of the cross of Jesus.
So, where did the rest of the True Cross go? It seems that after Jesus’ body was taken down from it, the cross was put aside somewhere and forgotten. In the Fourth Century the cross was unearthed in Jerusalem. Perhaps some Christians cut pieces off as keepsakes. The remains of the cross were then lost again. Half a century later, as interest in holy relics grew, the Church ordered that all relics be certified as authentic and listed in a register. Authentication and certification of all relics has continued, throughout the world, for the last 1000 years.
It is no wonder, then, that Bishop Grimes collected relics for his new Christchurch Diocese. He had met Pope Pius X on visit to Rome. The Pope had shown great interest in Christchurch and had encouraged the bishop to build a fine cathedral there. So, when the cathedral was nearing completion, the bishop wrote to the Pope, asking for an appropriate sacred object to help mark the opening of the cathedral, in 1905. After a short wait a relic of St Anthony arrived in a “handsome bronze reliquary”.
Most of the relics that were in the cathedral are tiny. The largest is a jawbone of Saint Vincent, about as big as the palm of your hand. Another one is a letter written by St Francis de Sales to St Jane Francis de Chantal more than 350 years ago. Most are relics of European saints. They include some of the Apostles, the Evangelists, Martyrs, Confessors, Blessed Virgins and Doctors of the Church.
One relic came from a place much nearer to New Zealand. It is a bone of St Peter Chanel, a French Marist missionary priest who was murdered on the island of Futuna in the South Pacific in 1843. The whole population of Futuna converted to Christianity three years later.
Money problems faced Bishop Grimes in the building of the cathedral. The relics came without cost, as they were allowed to be donated but not sold. However, the cost of reliquaries was high. A reliquary is an ornately decorated container to hold a relic. These expensive items had to be paid for.
“Among the collection is one that is most special relic and very different from the other relics. It is a fragment of wood, quite small, about the size of two matches stuck together. That precious piece of wood came from the True Cross on which Jesus died.”
Also expensive was the building and fitting-out of a “side” chapel within the cathedral. This, the Chapel of the Holy Relics, was where most of the relics were kept. People venerated them there. Melbourne Archbishop Thomas Carr, who performed the solemn dedication of the chapel, extolled the “unique collection of relics, undoubtedly the richest and most varied in the Southern Hemisphere”.
In subsequent years several further side chapels were added along the north wall, inside the cathedral. Some relics were then spread among the new chapels. Others were sent to churches throughout the Diocese. The Holy Relics Chapel became the Chapel of St Therese of the Infant Jesus.
By the 1970s the cathedral required extensive repairs and refurbishment. A new stone altar was installed and some of the relics were placed in a “cavity” cut into it. Most Catholic churches have at least one holy relic stored in their main altars. At the beginning of Mass you will see the priest bend and kiss the spot above where the relic lies.
Some relics were sealed in bottles and jars and encased in a steel box. The box was placed in a recess under the floor of the Blessed Sacrament Chapel, directly below the tabernacle. There they remained until damage from the Christchurch earthquakes of 2010-2011 caused the cathedral’s demolition. The relics box was recovered intact, although water had seeped in, causing minor damage. These items reside now in the Diocesan Archives storeroom, awaiting decisions on a new cathedral.
Relics from the Cathedral Collection...
Saint Philip the Apostle
Philip was one of Christ’s original twelve apostles, and was present at key biblical events including the feeding of the 5000. Following the events of Pentecost (Acts 1:12-14), there is little concrete knowledge of his activities. It is probable that he preached in...
Pope Saint Pius X
Born Joseph Sarto (1835-1914), and from a very poor family, St Pius X was pope from 4 August 1903 to 20 August 1914. He is best remembered for his encouragement of the frequent reception of Holy Communion, especially by children. Interested in politics, Pope Pius...
Saint Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas (1225-74) joined one of the most influential new orders founded in the 13th century, St Dominic’s Order of Preachers. Thomas spent his career at the University of Paris and teaching in Dominican convents in Italy. He was particularly engaged with the...
Saint George
It is generally accepted that George was a martyr killed during an early 4th-century period of persecution under the Roman Emperor Diocletian (284-305). George’s cult underwent notable transformations. In the east, he was considered a patron of armies, which drew him...
Saints and Martyrs
Relics of St Polycarp of Smyrna; St Thomas of Canterbury; St Ignatius of Antioch; St Boniface; St Agnes; St Agatha; [St] Catherine of Alexandria; St Pope Clement I The belief that the power inherent in any relic was not diminished by division meant that relics...
Saint Paschal Baylon
St. Pascal Baylon, born in 1540 in Spain, was a devout Franciscan lay brother known for his unwavering faith and deep devotion to the Eucharist during the 16th century. He lived a humble life as a shepherd and later joined the Franciscan Order. St. Pascal's profound...
Saint Benedict
Benedict of Nursia (c. 480-550) played a key role in the development of western Christianity. He wrote what became known as the Benedictine Rule, a foundation stone for the monastic life. Originally a hermit at Subiaco in Italy, he later established a community of...
St Francis of Assisi
This reliquary contains fibres from the bag of the 13th-century saint, Francis of Assisi. The fibres are an example of the importance attached to items that came into contact with saints—they could serve the same purpose as bodily relics.Francis was the most...
Relic of the True Cross
Cyril of Jerusalem, writing in 346, notes that “the saving wood of the Cross was found at Jerusalem”, referring to its discovery a decade earlier by Helena, mother of the first Christian Roman emperor. Veneration of the Cross is known from the end of the 4th century....
Saint Mary Magdelene
Mary Magdalene is a key biblical figure, often considered the apostle to the apostles. In the Middle Ages, her identity was confused with both Mary, sister of Martha of Bethany and the unnamed sinner—interpreted to be a prostitute from the 6th century—who washed and...
Saint Gemma Galgani
St. Gemma Galgani, also known as the Flower of Lucca (the Italian town in which she was born), was an Italian mystic often referred to as the “Daughter of Passion,” for her replication of the Passion of Christ. She was born in 1875, and was a quiet, reserved child....
Saint Anthony of Padua
Saint Anthony was born Fernando Martins in Lisbon, Portugal. Born into a wealthy family, by the age of fifteen he asked to be sent to the Abbey of Santa Cruz in Coimbra, Portugal where he learned theology and Latin. Following his ordination to the priesthood, he was...
Saint Patrick
St Patrick was a missionary and bishop who played a pivotal role in bringing Christianity to Ireland. Born in the late 4th century, most likely in Roman Britain, he was kidnapped by raiders at 16 and taken to Ireland as a slave. During his captivity, he deepened his...
Saint Rita of Cascia
St Rita (c. 1377-1447), from a devout Italian family, was known for her piety from a young age. Following a difficult marriage, she became an Augustinian nun after the death of her husband. She was known for her deep faith, stigmata (manifestation of the wounds of...
Saint Benedict Joseph Labre
St Benedict Joseph Labre was truly an eccentric. Born in France, the eldest of 18 children, he hoped to become a priest. But poor health and a lack of academic prowess meant he was unsuccessful in his attempts to enter the religious life. At age 16, a profound change...
Saint John (Don) Bosco
St John Bosco (1815-88), also known as Don Bosco, was an Italian priest and educator in the 19th century. He founded the Salesian Society, dedicated to educating and supporting disadvantaged youth and offering education and vocational training to young people in need....
Saint Laurence of Brindisi
St Laurence of Brindisi (1559-1619), born Giulio Cesare Russo, was a prominent Capuchin friar, theologian, diplomat, and preacher who lived during the late 16th and early 17th centuries. The Capuchins—whose distinctive habit later lent its name to a modern...
Saint Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows
Born Francesco Possenti, in Italy into a large family, Saint Gabriel lost his mother when he was only four years old. He was educated by the Jesuits and, having been cured twice of serious illnesses, came to believe that God was calling him to the religious life. He...