Hundreds of people visited Marytown in Libertyville on June 3 to venerate the major relic of St. John Vianney’s incorrupt heart. Entrusted to the Knights of Columbus by the Shrine of Ars, the small French village where St. John Vianney served, the relic of the saint’s heart will have visited 48 states by the time the tour ends. Vianney is the patron saint of parish priests. The tour, organized and hosted by the Knights, began last fall to mark the 200th anniversary of Father Vianney’s arrival in Ars. Dominican Father Jonathan Kalisch, director of chaplains and spiritual development for the Knights’ Supreme Council, said St. John Vianney’s great love of the priesthood serves as a model and witness to clergy and laity alike, and his heart is the appropriate reflection of his character. “Thousands of pilgrims would wait in Ars to have their confessions heard by him. He would sit in the confessional between 13 and 18 hours a day,” Kalisch explained. Incorrupt means the organ, along with St. John Vianney’s body, has not — without any chemicals or preservation — disintegrated. St. John Vianney is the patron saint of priests.
Catacombs at Holy Trinity Polish Mission houses relics of saints A hidden gem exists in the basement of Holy Trinity Polish Mission, 1118 N. Noble St., that is open to all for prayer and reflection.
Relics of Mexican martyrs find permanent home in Cicero Our Lady of the Mount Church in Cicero is now home to relics of three Mexican martyrs killed during the Cristero War in the late 1920s, Sts. Turibio Romo, José Luis Sánchez del Río and José María Robles.
Fragments of Cave of Nativity donated to Shrine of All Saints The Shrine of All Saints at St. Martha Parish in Morton Grove received a special gift this Christmas when developers converting the historic Tribune Tower in downtown Chicago donated fragments of the Cave of the Nativity – the site of Jesus’ birth — to the shrine.