On the back of the recent Shroud of Turin Conference we just had in Sydney, discussions and objections to relics certainly picked up, at least in my circles. Protestants often think Catholics are being superstitious for venerating saints’ bones or belongings, and Catholics can misunderstand what the Church’s teaching on relics is. As I was researching for the course I recently taught on “Praying to Saints”, I learned a thing or three myself!
Let’s start with the basics first. What are relics? Relics are the remains or possessions of saints who have died. Relics are also divided into three categories: first, second and third class. First-class relics consist of the bodily remains of saints and the instruments of Christ’s Passion, such as the True Cross or the Crown of Thorns. Second-class relics are personal belongings of saints, such as fragments of their clothing or the instruments used in the torture and death of martyrs. Third-class relics are any objects that have come into physical contact with first- or second-class relics.
The practice of keeping the remains of saints and martyrs and venerating them dates back to the beginning of Christianity. Christians would keep the remains of holy people once they have died and honor them not just by asking for their intercession in heaven, but by honoring what is left of their bodies, or their possessions. The best example of this is the love and honor that was shown to Jesus after his death. Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate to allow them to take Jesus’ body down from the cross, rather than be disposed of by the Romans, as was their custom (John 19:38). He also donated his own newly hewn tomb for Jesus to be buried in (Matt 27:60). Finally, Nicodemus donated a large amount of spices for Jesus to be wrapped in as he was placed in the tomb (John 19:39).
If the idea of Jesus’ body being disposed of by the Romans makes us cringe – and it should – why would we not honor the saints who are our models in the way of holiness?
For many, the problem with relics is the mixing of spirit and matter, and attributing spiritual blessings and graces to a physical thing. This is an ancient heresy that has been condemned in the Church under various names and forms, including Gnosticism, Dualism, and Manichaeism. We must remember that Jesus had no issue with the matter. Not only did God create the material world in which we live, but He also took on a material body. The Church teaches that, “We believe in God, the creator of the flesh, we believe in the Word made flesh to redeem the flesh. We believe in the resurrection of the flesh CCC 1015. There is nothing inherently evil or sinful about matter and God proves that most powerfully through the Incarnation.
In John 9:1-7, Jesus takes it a step further and uses matter – dirt and spittle – to create mud, and applies it to the eyes of a blind man, to work a miracle healing. Was there anything magical about the dirt? Of course not. Jesus used ordinary dirt to heal man’s blindness.
A few important things to clear up. Firstly, Catholics do not believe that the relics themselves hold any magical powers or contain grace. This would be superstition. God is the source of all grace and healing, not a saint’s bone or a fragment of their clothing.
However, because human beings are body and soul, we do not just honor them in a spiritual way by asking for their intercession, but we honor their bodies or things that have touched their bodies. Relics help us maintain a thoroughly human view of the person. Just because a saint is not the “source” of grace, it does not follow that it should be treated as irrelevant or useless. When we honor a saint’s relic, we show our love and honor for that saint, asking for their intercession; and God is pleased to use members of the body of Christ – on earth or in heaven – to answer prayers, impart grace, and even work miracles in our lives.
Important point. The veneration of a relic can lead people to receive or respond to grace, but it is not the source of grace itself. God alone is the source of all grace.
Scripture provides examples of God using relics to bring about grace and miracles in people’s lives. The Catholic view of relics is thoroughly biblical.
In 2 Kgs 13:20-21, a dead man was thrown into Elisha’s grave, and when he touched his bones, he was revived. This is an awesome example of a first-class relic. In Matt 9:20, the hemorrhaging woman is healed just by touching Jesus’ garment. This is an example of a second-class relic. Finally, Acts 19:11-12 says, “God did extraordinary miracles by the hand of Paul, so that handkerchiefs or aprons were carried away from his body to the sick, and diseases left them, and evil spirits came out of them.” That is a brilliant example of a third-class relic.
In Acts 5:15, St Peter’s shadow heals people as he walks past. We don’t have an official category for shadows, but that is so cool!
The Catholic Church is not superstitious about relics; we simply honor the saints’ bodies as well—after they have passed on from this life—and believe, as the Bible reveals, that matter is good and although it is not a source of divine grace, God can use matter in the form of bones, fragments of clothing and so on, to answer prayers, impart grace and work miracles of healing in our lives.
