Catholic relic (of St. Therese of the Child Jesus) nicked from Toronto church [Catholic Caucus]

A Catholic Church in Toronto is hoping for a miracle — that the thief who stole a saint's relic will have a change of heart and return the holy object.

The relic of St. Therese of Lisieux, patron saint of missions, is a small piece of her body — about the size of a quarter — which could have easily fit in the pocket of the thief.

Jane Fleming, spokeswoman for St. Michael's Catholic Church, said the thief may have pretended to be praying at the saint's shrine while he or she removed the relic's Plexiglas cover and stole it between services on Sunday.

"Because the church is open every day, all day, we have lots of people who come in and they kneel at the statue and say prayers," she said Wednesday. "Some will put their hand up to touch the statue at the same time, so you can't really see what they're doing."

"If someone took on that posture, we would never go over and ask them to move along," she added.

While the thief got away with the relic — estimated to be worth between $3,000 and $5,000 — he or she left behind the small, silver broach-like piece that had contained it.

The thief also didn't get the relic's Vatican-issued certificate of authenticity, which is kept in an office in the church, so Fleming doesn't know how the thief will be able to prove the relic's worth to prospective buyers.

"I don't think a pawnshop would understand what it is and want to buy it," she said. "It's not like taking a solid gold chalice."

St. Michael's is the mother church of the diocese of Toronto and an active historical building, so at noon mass on Sundays there can be more than 1,000 people present, said Fleming.

Since the theft was discovered, a valuable relic of St. Anthony has been removed from the public section of the church and is now stowed in a locked showcase in a private area of the rectory.

St. Therese of Lisieux, known as the Little Flower, was a nun who died in 1897 at the age of 24 and was canonized in 1924.

She spoke candidly in her journals about difficulties in choosing her vocation, struggles in her relationships and her family life, and Fleming says these everyday troubles make her easy to relate to.

"And when there's also a relic, it enhances the worship experience," said Fleming.

In 2000, a relic of the True Cross, which Catholics believe Jesus Christ was crucified upon, was stolen from the church. It was never returned.

Fleming hopes that whoever took the relic of St. Therese of Lisieux will realize that it has significance for Catholics and return it to the church.

According to the website Saints and Relics, relics come in three classes: first-class relics, such as that of St. Therese of Lisieux, are parts of a saint's body or a fragment of the True Cross; second-class relics are objects owned by a saint; third-class relics are made by touching an object against either a first- or second-class relic.

Catholics have for hundreds of years, venerated relics for inspiration and guidance, the website says.

For those who are not familiar with relics.

Relics in Scripture

Keep in mind what the Church says about relics. It doesn’t say there is some magical power in them. There is nothing in the relic itself, whether a bone of the apostle Peter or water from Lourdes, that has any curative ability. The Church just says that relics may be the occasion of God’s miracles, and in this the Church follows Scripture.

The use of the bones of Elisha brought a dead man to life: "So Elisha died, and they buried him. Now bands of Moabites used to invade the land in the spring of the year. And as a man was being buried, lo, a marauding band was seen and the man was cast into the grave of Elisha; and as soon as the man touched the bones of Elisha, he revived, and stood on his feet" (2 Kgs. 13:20-21). This is an unequivocal biblical example of a miracle being performed by God through contact with the relics of a saint!

Similar are the cases of the woman cured of a hemorrhage by touching the hem of Christ’s cloak (Matt. 9:20-22) and the sick who were healed when Peter’s shadow passed over them (Acts 5:14-16). "And God did extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that handkerchiefs or aprons were carried away from his body to the sick, and diseases left them and the evil spirits came out of them" (Acts 19:11-12).

If these aren’t examples of the use of relics, what are? In the case of Elisha, a Lazarus-like return from the dead was brought about through the prophet’s bones. In the New Testament cases, physical things (the cloak, the shadow, handkerchiefs and aprons) were used to effect cures. There is a perfect congruity between present-day Catholic practice and ancient practice. If you reject all Catholic relics today as frauds, you should also reject these biblical accounts as frauds.

If you reject all Catholic relics today as frauds, you should also reject these biblical accounts as frauds.

Not at all...The biblical accounts are true...The Catholic church is still a fraud...

There is a perfect congruity between present-day Catholic practice and ancient practice.

There is no congruity between what God did and your attempt to mimic it...

If these aren’t examples of the use of relics, what are?

You can not use relics...Only God can...May as well us the rabbit's foot on your key chain...

And God did extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul

It's all about God...It's not about the relics nor the people that received the miracles...

You guys don't even ask why God performed these random miracles...You just know that the bible claims He did and you want to have that power for yourselves...Ain't gonna happen...

I am re-posting one of my posts from another thread on RELICS. FYI.

Relics are completely consistent with both Scripture and Church tradition -- both of which never conflict with one another.

But, first, let's be clear. Catholics do not worship relics in the way we worship God, through adoration. Relics are not worshipped, but rather honored or venerated. Big difference. It's okay to honor or venerate a person other than God. Remember the 4th commandment? Honor your mother and father. You can do that, and God wants you to do it. We are to honor or venerate everything about them, both their bodies and their souls -- everything associated with them, including their bodily remains after their death. That's our duty; it's the Law. If you buried your father in a cheap, burlap sack and dumped Him in the river with a send off with your middle finger, it's time for confession. That's a big sin.

So, there is nothing wrong with honoring or venerating a person. We are required to honor or venerate our parents, and we are allowed to honor or venerate whomever we feel is deemed worthy of that esteem. In fact, we are encouraged to do that, because people who are holy can serve as good role models -- we should follow their example. That's the primary function of the Saints and their veneration: they serve as role models for us. We want to get to Heaven; they already got there. We can look to them to help lead the way Home.

Just like we honor the remains of our parents when we bury them and hold a funeral in their honor--and just as we all keep relics of our deceased loved ones (pictures, a lock of hair, a cherished books with notes in the margins, a painting, clothing, heirlooms, etc.), we can keep and honor relics of the Saints. We certainly don't want to desecrate them! Nor do we want to be lukewarm and indifferent to them. And we can't worship and adore them, as we would God. So what is left? Honor and veneration. No other reasonable option left, is there?

Honoring and venaration of relics is a good thing! In A.D. 787, the 7th Ecumenical Council condemned "those who dare to reject any one of the things which are entrusted to the Church, the Gospel, or the sign of the cross, or any pictorial representation, or the holy relics of a martyr." A martyr is one kind of Saint. So, that's a pretty big endorsement for relics.

The Council of Trent told bishops and pastors to communicate to their diocese and parishes that "the holy bodies of saintly martyrs and others now living with Christ - which bodies were the living members of Christ and the temple of the Holy Ghost and which are by Him to be raised unto eternal life and glorified - are to be venerated by the faithful, for through these (bodies) many benefits are bestowed by God on men; so that they who affirmed that veneration and honor are not due to the relics of Saints, or that these and other sacred monuments are uselessly honored by the faithful, . . . are wholly to be condemned, as the Church has already long since condemned and now also condemns them".

For those Sola Scriptura folks, yes, it's all in Scripture.

Exodus 13:19
Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for he had made the sons of Israel solemnly swear, saying, "God will surely take care of you, and you shall carry my bones from here with you."

2 Kings 13:20-21
And it came to pass, as they were burying a man, that behold, they spied a band [of men]; and they cast the man into the sepulcher of Elisha: and when the man was let down, and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived, and stood on his feet.

Sirach 49:18
And his bones were visited, and after death they prophesied. They prophesied... That is, by their being carried out of Egypt they verified the prophetic prediction of Joseph. [Genesis 50]

Matt. 9:20
20Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak. 21She said to herself, "If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed."

Acts 15-16
As a result, people[f] kept carrying their sick into the streets and placing them on stretchers and mats so that at least Peter's shadow might fall on some of them as he went by. 16Even from the towns around Jerusalem crowds continued coming in to bring their sick and those who were troubled by unclean spirits, and all of them were healed.

Acts 19:11
God continued to do extraordinary miracles through Paul.[d] 12When handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched his skin were taken to the sick, their diseases left them and evil spirits went out of them.

Not only is veneration of relics Scriptural, the early fathers of the church also venerated relics.

See, for example, the Acts of St. Polycarp (AD 156), where it is written, "We adore Him (Christ), because He is the Son of God, but the martyrs we love as disciples and imitators of the Lord...Then we buried in a becoming place his (St. Polycarp's) remains, which are more precious to us than the costliest diamongs, and which we esteem more highly than gold."

St. Ambrose told a story about the healing of a blind men as he encountered the bodies of Sts. Gervasius and Protasius. "You know," he said, "nay you have seen with your own eyes, how many were delivered from demons and a great number were cured of diseases when they touched the garments of the saints; how there was a repetition of the miracles of the early days when, in consequence of the advernt of our Lord Jesus Christ, abundament grace was showered down upon the earth."

St. Cyril of Jerusalem says: "This holy wood of the Cross is still to be seen among us; and through the agency of those who piously took home particles thereof, it has filled the whole earth."

St. Chrysostom relayed a story about how people at one time worse articles of the Cross in golden lockets on their necks, and St. Augustine said, "we have not erected an altar to the martyr, Stephen, but with the relics of the martyr Stephen we have erected an altar to God."

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.