Miracle of Lanciano
Encyclopedia
The miracle of Lanciano is officially recognized by the Catholic Church as a eucharistic miracle
.
In the city of Lanciano
, Italy
, around 700, a Basilian monk and priest were assigned to celebrate the Divine Liturgy in the small Church of St. Legontian. Celebrating in the Greek Rite and using leavened bread, that monk had doubts about the real presence
of Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist .
During the Divine Liturgy, when he said the Words of Consecration (This is my body. This is my blood), with doubt
in his soul, the priest saw the bread change into living flesh and the wine change into live blood, which coagulated into five globules, irregular and differing in shape and size (this number supposedly corresponds to the number of wounds
Christ suffered on the cross: one in each hand and foot from the nails, and the wound from the centurion's spear).
Since 1574, various investigations of varying degrees of detail have been conducted upon the miracle.
The first appears to consist of a weighing, in which each different globule though varying in size, all each weigh the same and always produced the same weight no matter what the amount of these globules was. Thus all of them put together was the equivalent to any one of them or any three or any four all equaled the same weight no matter what combination. Also an examination in 1971 conducted by Professor Doctor Odoardo Linoli which were confirmed by Dr. Bertelli. The flesh was found to be human striated muscular tissue of the myocardium (the heart wall), type AB, and to be absolutely free of any agents used for preserving flesh. The blood at Lanciano has divided into five irregularly shaped pellets. At scientific examinations conducted in 1971 these pellets were found to be human blood, type AB ("the universal receiver"), with proteins normally fractionated and present in the same percentage ratio as those in normal fresh blood.
The examination in 1971 was performed by Professor Odoardo Linoli, Professor in Anatomy and Pathological Histology and in Chemistry and Clinical Microscopy, and Professor Ruggero Bertelli of the University of Siena
. The report was published in Quaderni Sclavo di Diagnostica Clinica e di Laboratori in 1973.
The following conclusions were drawn by Odoardo Linoli:
In 1973, the Higher Council of the World Health Organization (WHO) appointed a scientific commission to verify his conclusions.(citation needed) This work was carried out over 15 months with a total of 500 examinations. The conclusions confirmed what had been stated and published in Italy.
The Basilian monks kept custody of the miraculous Flesh and Blood, until their departure in 1175. They were succeeded by Benedictine monks in 1176. The items were placed in different locations within the Church of St. Francis at Lanciano. They were kept in the Valsecca Chapel from 1636 until 1902 when they were relocated to a new altar.
The flesh and blood of the miracle can still be seen today. The flesh, which is the same size as the large Host used today in the Latin Church, is fibrous and light brown in color, and becomes rose-colored when lighted from the back. The blood consists of five coagulated globules and has an earthly color resembling the yellow of ochre.
Eucharistic miracle
A Eucharistic miracle is any miracle involving the Eucharist. Eucharistic miracles typically involve the visible transformation of the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ during the consecration portion of a Catholic Mass or Orthodox Liturgy...
.
In the city of Lanciano
Lanciano
Lanciano is a town and comune in the province of Chieti, part of the Abruzzo region of central Italy. It has 36,570 inhabitants as of 2008.The city is also known for the first recorded alleged Catholic Eucharistic Miracle.-History:...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, around 700, a Basilian monk and priest were assigned to celebrate the Divine Liturgy in the small Church of St. Legontian. Celebrating in the Greek Rite and using leavened bread, that monk had doubts about the real presence
Real Presence
Real Presence is a term used in various Christian traditions to express belief that in the Eucharist, Jesus Christ is really present in what was previously just bread and wine, and not merely present in symbol, a figure of speech , or by his power .Not all Christian traditions accept this dogma...
of Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist .
During the Divine Liturgy, when he said the Words of Consecration (This is my body. This is my blood), with doubt
Doubt
Doubt, a status between belief and disbelief, involves uncertainty or distrust or lack of sureness of an alleged fact, an action, a motive, or a decision. Doubt brings into question some notion of a perceived "reality", and may involve delaying or rejecting relevant action out of concerns for...
in his soul, the priest saw the bread change into living flesh and the wine change into live blood, which coagulated into five globules, irregular and differing in shape and size (this number supposedly corresponds to the number of wounds
Holy Wounds
The Five Holy Wounds or Five Sacred Wounds refer to what are believed to be the five piercing wounds that was suffered during the crucifixion of Jesus....
Christ suffered on the cross: one in each hand and foot from the nails, and the wound from the centurion's spear).
Since 1574, various investigations of varying degrees of detail have been conducted upon the miracle.
- February 17, 1574 by Bishop Antonio Gaspar Rodríguez
- 1636 by Father Serafino from Scanno
- October 23, 1777 by Bishop Gervasone
- October 26, 1886 by Bishop Petrarca
- 1971, by Professor Odoardo Linoli
- 1973, by a World Health Organization commission
The first appears to consist of a weighing, in which each different globule though varying in size, all each weigh the same and always produced the same weight no matter what the amount of these globules was. Thus all of them put together was the equivalent to any one of them or any three or any four all equaled the same weight no matter what combination. Also an examination in 1971 conducted by Professor Doctor Odoardo Linoli which were confirmed by Dr. Bertelli. The flesh was found to be human striated muscular tissue of the myocardium (the heart wall), type AB, and to be absolutely free of any agents used for preserving flesh. The blood at Lanciano has divided into five irregularly shaped pellets. At scientific examinations conducted in 1971 these pellets were found to be human blood, type AB ("the universal receiver"), with proteins normally fractionated and present in the same percentage ratio as those in normal fresh blood.
The examination in 1971 was performed by Professor Odoardo Linoli, Professor in Anatomy and Pathological Histology and in Chemistry and Clinical Microscopy, and Professor Ruggero Bertelli of the University of Siena
University of Siena
The University of Siena in Siena, Tuscany is one of the oldest and first publicly funded universities in Italy. Originally called Studium Senese, the University of Siena was founded in 1240. The University has around 20,000 students, nearly half of Siena's total population of around 54,000...
. The report was published in Quaderni Sclavo di Diagnostica Clinica e di Laboratori in 1973.
The following conclusions were drawn by Odoardo Linoli:
- The flesh is real flesh and the blood is real blood
- The flesh and the blood belong to the humanHumanHumans are the only living species in the Homo genus...
species - The flesh consists of the muscular tissue of the heart
- In the flesh we see present in section: the myocardium, the endocardiumEndocardiumThe endocardium is the innermost layer of tissue that lines the chambers of the heart. Its cells are embryologically and biologically similar to the endothelial cells that line blood vessels....
, the vagus nerveVagus nerveThe vagus nerve , also called pneumogastric nerve or cranial nerve X, is the tenth of twelve paired cranial nerves...
and also the left ventricleLeft ventricleThe left ventricle is one of four chambers in the human heart. It receives oxygenated blood from the left atrium via the mitral valve, and pumps it into the aorta via the aortic valve.-Shape:...
of the heartHeartThe heart is a myogenic muscular organ found in all animals with a circulatory system , that is responsible for pumping blood throughout the blood vessels by repeated, rhythmic contractions...
for the large thickness of the myocardium. The flesh is a heart complete in its essential structure. - The flesh and the blood have the same blood typeBlood typeA blood type is a classification of blood based on the presence or absence of inherited antigenic substances on the surface of red blood cells . These antigens may be proteins, carbohydrates, glycoproteins, or glycolipids, depending on the blood group system...
, AB - In the blood there were found proteins in the same normal proportions (percentage-wise) as are found in the seroBlood serumIn blood, the serum is the component that is neither a blood cell nor a clotting factor; it is the blood plasma with the fibrinogens removed...
-proteic make-up of fresh normal blood - In the blood there were also found these minerals: chlorideChlorideThe chloride ion is formed when the element chlorine, a halogen, picks up one electron to form an anion Cl−. The salts of hydrochloric acid HCl contain chloride ions and can also be called chlorides. The chloride ion, and its salts such as sodium chloride, are very soluble in water...
s, phosphorusPhosphorusPhosphorus is the chemical element that has the symbol P and atomic number 15. A multivalent nonmetal of the nitrogen group, phosphorus as a mineral is almost always present in its maximally oxidized state, as inorganic phosphate rocks...
, magnesiumMagnesiumMagnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg, atomic number 12, and common oxidation number +2. It is an alkaline earth metal and the eighth most abundant element in the Earth's crust and ninth in the known universe as a whole...
, potassiumPotassiumPotassium is the chemical element with the symbol K and atomic number 19. Elemental potassium is a soft silvery-white alkali metal that oxidizes rapidly in air and is very reactive with water, generating sufficient heat to ignite the hydrogen emitted in the reaction.Potassium and sodium are...
, sodiumSodiumSodium is a chemical element with the symbol Na and atomic number 11. It is a soft, silvery-white, highly reactive metal and is a member of the alkali metals; its only stable isotope is 23Na. It is an abundant element that exists in numerous minerals, most commonly as sodium chloride...
and calciumCalciumCalcium is the chemical element with the symbol Ca and atomic number 20. It has an atomic mass of 40.078 amu. Calcium is a soft gray alkaline earth metal, and is the fifth-most-abundant element by mass in the Earth's crust...
In 1973, the Higher Council of the World Health Organization (WHO) appointed a scientific commission to verify his conclusions.(citation needed) This work was carried out over 15 months with a total of 500 examinations. The conclusions confirmed what had been stated and published in Italy.
The Basilian monks kept custody of the miraculous Flesh and Blood, until their departure in 1175. They were succeeded by Benedictine monks in 1176. The items were placed in different locations within the Church of St. Francis at Lanciano. They were kept in the Valsecca Chapel from 1636 until 1902 when they were relocated to a new altar.
The flesh and blood of the miracle can still be seen today. The flesh, which is the same size as the large Host used today in the Latin Church, is fibrous and light brown in color, and becomes rose-colored when lighted from the back. The blood consists of five coagulated globules and has an earthly color resembling the yellow of ochre.