What is a relic?
A relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains or personal effects of a saint or other person preserved for the purpose of veneration. The word Relic derives from the latin reliquiae, meaning “remains”, and a form of the Latin verb relinquere, to “leave behind, or abandon”. A reliquary is a shrine that houses one or more religious relics.
Relics are a part of our Christian heritage, with one of the earliest sources from scripture that shows the efficacy of relics found in 2 Kings 13:20-21:
“And Elisha died, and they buried him. Now the bands of the Moabites used to invade the land at the coming in of the year. And it came to pass, as they were burying a man, that, behold, they spied a band; and they cast the man into the sepulchre of Elisha; and as soon as the man touched the bones of Elisha, he revived, and stood up on his feet.”
Elsewhere in scripture we see in Acts 19:11-12 that describe the use of St. Pauls handkerchiefs to heal the sick.
We preserve and venerate the relics of our Saints for two reasons: First, out of respect to the body due to our expectation of the resurrection of the dead, and also to honour those who led lives of holiness, preserving their memory and example for us to imitate. Relics themselves do not hold any power to heal, as heathens in their superstition claim about their charms and crystals, but rather, it is God our loving Father who heals, the saint we venerate joins their petitions to ours and intercedes for our necessities.
Classification of Relics & Rules governing Relics in the Catholic Church
In Catholic theology, sacred relics must not be worshipped, because only God is worshipped and adored. Instead, the veneration given to them was “dulia”. Saint Jerome declared, “We do not worship, we do not adore, for fear that we should bow down to the creature rather than to the Creator, but we venerate the relics of the martyrs in order the better to adore Him whose martyrs they are.
Until 2017, the Catholic Church divided relics into three classes:
1 – First Class Relics: items directly associated with the events of Christ’s life (manger, cross, etc.) or the physical remains of a saint (a bone, a hair, skull, a limb, etc.). Traditionally, a martyr’s relics are often more prized than the relics of other saints.
2 – Second-class relics: items that the saint owned or frequently used, for example, a crucifix, rosary, book, etc. Again, an item more important in the saint’s life is thus a more important relic.
Ex Indumentis Relics
The phrase ex indumentis is Latin for “from the clothing”, most commonly used when referring to Second Class holy relics of saints or blessed individuals.
In proper ecclesiastical phraseology, ex indumentis should only be used when referring to an article or fragment of clothing that was owned or used by a saint (or similarly blessed individual).
In recent years, numerous contemporary manufacturers of relic medals, holy plaques, saint statues and religious trinkets have begun to label their items as being ex indumentis; rather, they are merely pieces of inexpensive cloth or canvas that have been touched to an actual relic of the saint, then stamped out en-masse to be attached to their souvenir medals or statues. As such, they are 3rd-class relics and not 2nd-class relics, as the phrase ex indumentis implies.
True examples of genuine ex indumentis relics are considered to be treasures of the faithful and should be venerated in accordance with theological laws. Unauthentic examples of ex indumentis relics have no sacramental value as such.
3 – Third-class relics: any object that has been in contact with a first- or second-class relic. Most third-class relics are small pieces of cloth, though in the first millennium oil was popular; the Monza ampullae contained oil collected from lamps burning before the major sites of Christ’s life, and some reliquaries had holes for oil to be poured in and out again. Many people call the cloth touched to the bones of saints “ex brandea”. But ex brandea strictly refers to pieces of clothing that were touched to the body or tombs of the apostles. It is a term that is used only for such; it is not a synonym for a third-class relic.
Current Instruction from the Holy see on the classification of:
On 8th December 2017, the Congregation for the Causes of Saints published the document ‘INSTRUCTION “RELICS IN THE CHURCH: AUTHENTICITY AND PRESERVATION”’ which abolished the relics of the third degree, introducing a two-stage scale of classification of relics:
1 – Significant (insigni) and,
2- Non-significant (non insigni) relics.
The first are the bodies or their significant parts, as well as the entire contents of the urn with the ashes preserved after cremation. The second includes small fragments of the bodies, as well as objects used by saints and blesseds.
On the Sale of Relics
Like other Blessed sacramentals, the sale or disposal by other means of “sacred relics” (meaning first and second class) without the permission of the Apostolic See is strictly forbidden by canon 1190 of the 1983 Code of Canon Law. The sale of any sacred items is the sin of Simony, however, donations may be offered to support the work of the apostolate to help cover the expenses of the production or postage of these items (e.g. holy water, holy oil, blessed cords, medals, prayercards or rosaries with third class relics).
The appropriate practice is to sell items BEFORE they are blessed, or to clearly list them with a suggested donation, always with the means provided for devotees to request these items for free. For items that are formerly known as third class relics, or blessed, they must be given away freely.
Caution on counterfeit relics
Like other saints and blessed, the holy relics of Saint Philomena have been counterfeited by fraudsters and dishonest antique dealers who sell their counterfeits on the Internet at exorbitant prices. As noted earlier, the sale of relics is not only the sin of simony, but also prohibited by the catholic church under canon 1190 of the 1983 code of canon law.
In addition, the counterfeiting of sacred objects, such as relics, also is punishable by canon law under canon 1369 which states: “A person who profanes a sacred object, moveable or immovable, is to be punished with a just penalty.”
Counterfeiting a relic or other sacred object counts as profanation. A ‘just penalty’ can vary depending on the severity of the act and the circumstances surrounding it. The Church authorities will determine the appropriate penalty, which could range from a reprimand to more severe penalties if the act is particularly grave.
In addition, each territory may have civil penalties concerning the trafficking and sale of human remains, which is what a first class relic is.
In order to safeguard the true relic and to guarantee its veneration, the Church requires that every relic:
- Be displayed in a reliquary.
- Which must be sealed with the seal of a bishop
- And have a document of authenticity signed by the same bishop or delegate who sealed the reliquary.
The procedure of creation, verification, and disposal of sacred relics is governed by canon law and the above-mentioned instruction and the Sacred Congregation for the Causes of Saints.
Nevertheless, many counterfeiters try to imitate the seals or forge them (including forging certificates of authenticity).
Saint Philomena Relics
When the body of St. Philomena was exhumed in1802, the testimonies gathered from expert witnesses about its discovery are clear in recognizing that only the skeleton, the fragmented skull, the vase with what may be blood or perfumes and the ashes of her body mixed with earth and dust were found in the tomb.
In all sources and documentation concerning the sacred remains of Saint Philomena, there is NO mention of hair or any other type of relic.
When the Terres family prepared the current reliquary of St. Philomena that is on display in Mugnano, Italy, again, no mention is made of hair. If hair had been found, both the Holy See, who first possessed the relics of St. Philomena following her exhumation from the catacombs of Priscilla, and the Sanctuary of Mugnano would undoubtedly document the existence such precious relics, but there is no historical indication in the 19th century sources or in the testimonies of the sanctuary.
In addition, scientific studies which was carried out on the sacred remains of Saint Philomena in 2003, there was no mention of any hair or any other artifacts other than the bones, the dust from the bones, and her blood.
Unfortunately, the “thecas” (small reliquaries) that claim to contain relics of St. Philomena’s hair have been manufactured by opportunistic counterfeiters and sold online at extravagant prices.
Other such troublesome relics claim to be the Blood of Saint Philomena, which again, cannot be authenticated. As all sources concerning the distribution of her relics speak of the dust from her bones, or pieces of bone herself.
Any and all known mentions of the relic of her blood state that is kept in an urn at the sanctuary, with one small part of her desiccated blood was taken for veneration by Bishop Nicola Coppola, and placed in a reliquary donated by Queen of Naples, Maria Teresa of Austria, second wife of King Ferdinand II of Bourbon. Unfortunately, that reliquary was stolen on the 3rd of February 1972.
If one such relic of the Blood of Saint Philomena were to exist outside the sanctuary where her sacred remains repose, it would put one in a difficult predicament: Either the relic is a counterfeit, or it is the one that was stolen in 1972, and trafficked, passing through many unknown hands, and so is unable to be verified. If this was the one stolen in 1972, then it would only be proper to return it to it’s rightful place in the Sanctuary.
In vain can the authenticity of these “relics” be justified by alleging graces granted, or subjective feelings upon contact with the reliquary; justifying that these reliquaries have been bequeathed or given by clerics or persons of authority as this does not justify the organic matter they contain, but that they are not really relics of the blessed martyr.
Devotees are advised not to purchase or venerate these so-called first- or second-class relics sold online in auctions or websites such as etsy, as rescuing such items is a risky endeavour.
Comparison of a genuine Relic of Saint Philomena and a counterfeit one.
A – Genuine Relic – official Reliquary for the Devotion in Scotland
This important reliquary was a personal relic which belonged to the late Msgr. Giovanni Braschi, President of the Archconfraternity and Rector of the Sanctuary (custodian of her sacred relics) which was given to our worldwide Director Mrs. Marie Burns for veneration by the people of Scotland and contains the following relics:
1. Ex ossibus:
Meaning ‘From the bones’, which identifies this as A first class relic taken from the bones of Saint Philomena
2. Ex Capillis sericis:
Meaning ‘From the silky hair’, which identified the enclosed item as a Third Class relic, taken from the silky hair found on the paper mache Statue of Saint Philomena which houses her sacred remains in her Sanctuary.
- Ex camisa:
Meaning ‘From the shirt’, which identified the enclosed item as a ‘second class relic*’, as it was taken from the under shirt that adorns the statue of Saint Philomena in the sanctuary. Every 50 years the urn is reopened, and the statue is maintained and the undergarments are changed. The old shirt is shredded to make what is known as ‘second class*’ relic medals. - Et vestibus:
Meaning ‘ from the clothes’, this identifies the enclosed item as a third class relic, taken from the clothes that adorn the garments that clothe Saint Philomena in her urn at the sanctuary.
*The reason we still refer to these as second class relics, is because they clothe the remains of Saint Philomena. Technically ‘ex camisa’ relics may just be Third class relics, as second class relics cannot be made posthumously. However, to the best of our knowledge, we speculate that items that clothe the bodies of saints, might be considered second class relics. Further investigation on this is ongoing.
B – Counterfeit Relic – A relic from Mexico, claiming to be from the hair of Saint Philomena
Unfortunately, counterfeit relics exist, such as this example which can be found in Mexico. This is not a relic of any class of Saint Philomena as there was no hair in existence belonging to the saint.
“An embroidery on the cardboard takes the prominent place of the reliquary, being only an ornament. It remains like a patch.
Around the reliquary a badly placed metal filigree, with too much glue.
A careless job for such an important relic.
The name of the saint appears in a badly cut text, with too much glue, rough if one considers the class and quality of the relic
The “relic” is not in a prominent place, no care has been taken in its placement. The lock of hair is so big that at least a hundred reliquaries could well come out of it
Another filigree under the hair.
Just glued, without care.”
Appropriate Display & Use of Relics
Relics may not be placed upon the altar for public veneration, as that is reserved for the display of the Blessed Sacrament (host or prosphora and Eucharistic wine after consecration in the sacrament of the Eucharist).
In a liturgical setting such as Mass, healing service, etc, ONLY a Bishop, Priest, and deacon may bless individuals with the Relic as this is proper to their state.
Lay members (with the permission of the competent authority), may make the relics available for veneration only within the conditions and prescribed rules of the church proper to their state – in any situation, the use of the relic can only be done so to join in prayer with an individual to ask God to bless or heal them. Laity have no authority or power to bless people with the relic.
Laity should not preside in a liturgical setting as this is only proper to clergy.
Unfortunately, due to the existence of folk religion, and the spread of the new age movement which has in some places contaminated lay piety, we must advise that relics are prohibited from being used in religious syncretism ceremonies, such as personal altars where sacrificial offering or rituals are offered, or used in conjunction with charms or healing crystals.
Any such practice not only violates the first commandment, but also is punishable under canon 1369 of the 1983 code of Canon Law.