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HOUSTON — There was a time when churches organized regular devotions to the saints, a practice fostered by priceless relics of holy men and women that were often on display. Today, a Houston priest, Father Carlos Martins, seeks to re-establish the veneration of relics as a pathway to spiritual renewal for modern Catholics, many of whom are ignorant of both the lives of the saints and the tumultuous Church history that made them towering religious figures in their day.The assistant director of Houston’s Catholic Charismatic Center — one of the city’s largest churches and a primary sponsor of spiritual renewal...

The Worship of Relics 1438. Why do Catholics worship relics of Saints? They do not worship relics as they worship God, by adoration. If you mean worship in the sense of honor or veneration, then Catholics certainly venerate the relics of Saints. The law, "Honor thy father and thy mother" extends to their persons, body and soul; to their reputations, and to all connected with them. We reverence their remains even after death. And if we are not to venerate the remains and relics of the Saints who have been so entirely consecrated to God, are we to desecrate them?...

I ran across this real cool video series on YouTube showing the return of the relics of the two great Saints, John Chrysostom and Gregory the Theologian back to Constantinople. There is also some good historical info in them as well, although it is admittedly in favor of the Orthodox position. I put all four parts in order so you don't have to go searching for each part. Each video is like 7 minutes so it is not too long. For some reason the videos are cut off on it. But you can hit the full screen button to view...

Beijing swiftly moved to punish auction house Christie's with tightened customs rules Thursday after its protests failed to stop the sale of two imperial bronze sculptures taken from China nearly 150 years ago. The move signals China's resolve in its campaign to rescue pieces of its cultural heritage now scattered around the world - but the impact of the new rules on the auction house, if any, was not clear. The disputed 18th century fountainheads - heads of a rat and a rabbit - were sold to an unidentified telephone bidder or bidders Wednesday for 28 million euros ($36 million)...

A seal impression belonging to a minister of the Biblical King Zedekiah which dates back 2,600 years has been uncovered completely intact during an archeological dig in Jerusalem's ancient City of David, a prominent Israeli archeologist said on Thursday. The seal impression, or bulla, with the name Gedalyahu ben Pashur, who served as minister to King Zedekiah (597-586 BCE) according to the Book of Jeremiah, was found just meters away from a separate seal impression of another of Zedekia's ministers, Yehukual ben Shelemyahu, which was uncovered three years ago, said Prof. Eilat Mazar who is leading the dig at the...

The broadcast networks have grown older than ever -- if they were a person, they wouldn't even be a part of TV's target demo anymore. According to a study released by Magna Global's Steve Sternberg, the five broadcast nets' average live median age (in other words, not including delayed DVR viewing) was 50 last season. That's the oldest ever since Sternberg started analyzing median age more than a decade ago -- and the first time the nets' median age was outside of the vaunted 18-49 demo. Fueling the graying of the networks: the rapid aging of ABC, NBC and Fox....

  Superstitious Catholics? Q. Why do Catholics use “good luck charms� like medals and relics of the saints in order to perfom miracles? Why is that not superstitious? A. It does sound superstitious at first. And perhaps there have been Catholics who used these things in a purely superstitious way. But we would not know for sure unless we questioned them.Of course, the Catholic Church teaches that only God can perform a miracle. However, everyone will agree that He can perform these miracles any way He wants to. So He can act directly or indirectly. We know that He usually likes...

Relics of three civilisations found By Saadia Khalid 6/9/2008 Islamabad The remains of more than 2,400-year-old Buddhist era are nurturing silently under the lap of Margalla Hills as the murals of Buddha appeared on the walls of caves at Shah Allah Ditta. At the distance of 15 kilometres from the main Golra intersection, the site needs immediate attention of the Department of Archaeology and Museums as it possesses not only the relics of Buddhist era but also 8th century AD Hindu period and the 300-year-old Aurangzeb period. According to archaeologists, the cages belong to Buddhists where monks used to perform...

In light of the networks echoing Obama-campaign hypersensitivity on how Bush was allegedly comparing Obama to Nazi appeasers before the Knesset, as liberals suggest this is the lowest campaign tactic in years, talk-show hosts will probably notice that on The Huffington Post, it's apparently fine for that old Democratic campaign star Gary Hart to simply compare conservatives to Nazis, not to mention the authoritarian tendencies of those robotic "pre-programmed neo-conservative dittoheads": Historians of early 21st century American politics will remark the degree to which radical forces, usually called neoconservatives, perverted language as recommended by the National Socialist Party in 1930s...

LOS ANGELES, April 16 /Christian Newswire/ -- In the midst of war, U.S. service personnel around the world are being given a once in a lifetime opportunity for prayer and reflection as relics of the Catholic saints "considered the patrons of the armed forces" visit bases around the world. Relics of Saints Anthony of Padua (patron of sailors), Therese of Lisieux, patron of pilots and air crews, and Ignatius of Loyola, patron of soldiers, will begin a tour military bases with the opening Celebration at the Archdiocese for Military Services Chapel at 1025 Michigan Avenue NE Washington, DC 20017 across the...

Indecipherable Ancient Books Found in Chongqing The Epoch Times Feb 24, 2008 Mysterious ancient books found in Chongqing. For the past two years no one has been able to read them. (Epoch Times screen shot taken from 21 cn.com) The Tujia have been known as an ethnic minority with its own spoken language but without a written language. Yet a succession of ancient books in the same written language have been found in the Youyang Tujia habitation straddling the borders of Hunan, Hubei, Guizhou Province, and Chongqing City. For the past two years none have been able to read the...

Royal Goddesses of a Bronze Age State Volume 61 Number 1, January/February 2008 by Marco Merola Its arms arranged in a gesture of prayer, the figurine at right probably depicts a living queen worshipping the statuette of a dead royal, left. (Courtesy Maura Sala) It's been more than 30 years since Italian archaeologists found a vast archive of 17,000 cuneiform tablets at the Bronze Age site of Ebla in northern Syria. But the ancient city is still surprising those who work there. Last year archaeologist Paolo Matthiae's team discovered two almost perfectly preserved figurines that confirm textual evidence for a...

A New York City lawmaker's plan to regulate antique firearms like other weapons could have severe economic repercussions for museums and historical societies around the state and prevent hundreds of living history events and re-enactments staged every year. If passed in its current form, the proposal by Democratic Assemblyman Michael Gianaris of Queens would make the state the first in the country to require owners of antique guns, black powder weapons and muzzleloading firearms to go through a background check and purchase a license, said Ralph Walker, a legislative specialist with the National Muzzle Loading Rifle Association.

In 1978, a team of scientific researchers (STURP: Shroud of Turin Research Project) was allowed for the first time to carry out a scientific comprehensive study of the Turin Shroud. Visual examination, macro and microphotographies, X-Ray radiographies; IR, visible and UV reflectance spectroscopy and photographs and UV-Vis fluorescence studies were conducted in situ. 32 surface samples (5 cm2 each) were obtained from specific locations using inert, non-reactive pure hydrocarbon sticky tapes for later examination. The results of the studies were published in different peer-reviewed scientific journals in the following years. In 1981, STURP officially concluded that: No pigments, paints, dyes...

Unknown persons destroy ancient bronze coffin discovered recently [17 January 2008] IBB, Jan. 17 (Saba) - Unknown persons devastated early morning on Thursday an ancient bronze coffin and stole another one completely were in an archaeological location in al-Asibia area in Dhefar valley of Ibb province. The director general of Antiques and Cultural Properties Protection in the General Authority for Antiquities and Museums Hesham al-Thawr held the director general of the security office in the al-Saddah district responsible for destroying the location and disinterring the bronze coffin. Al-Thawr said that the security official has ordered the military patrols, which have...

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The relics venerated as the crib the baby Jesus used in a Bethlehem grotto are in an alarming state of degradation, some church officials said. The remains have become so fragile that officials at Rome's Basilica of St. Mary Major, where the crib is located, decided to suspend this year's annual Christmas Eve tradition when the relics are carried from the crypt beneath the main altar in a procession around the basilica and displayed in front of the altar all Christmas Day. Two of the five wooden slats are showing signs of "troublesome deterioration," Msgr. Emilio...

Lion sculpture gets record price The Guennol Lioness was discovered at a site near Baghdad A tiny limestone figure of a lion from ancient Mesopotamia has sold at auction for $57m (£28m), almost double the previous record price for a sculpture. The 8.3cm (3.25in) tall Guennol Lioness is thought to have been carved 5,000 years ago in what is now Iraq and Iran. The lion, whose new owner has not been identified, had been on loan to the Brooklyn Museum of Art for 59 years. The previous record for a sculpture was set last month when Pablo Picasso's Tete de...

VATICAN CITY, NOV. 14, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI expressed his joy at being able to pray before the relics of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, which are in Rome accompanied by pilgrims and the bishop from the saint's home diocese. At the end of today's general audience, the Pope greeted the faithful from the French Diocese of Bayeux and Lisieux, and Bishop Pierre Auguste Pican, who are in Rome on pilgrimage, with the relics of St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face.The Holy Father recalled how "120 years ago, Thérèse of Lisieux came to Rome to ask permission...

What a high school girl found in 6 inches of South Georgia dirt last year may help rewrite the history of Europeans' earliest forays into the great, green New World that greeted them half a millennium ago.The discovery is a glass bead no larger than a pencil eraser. It and four other beads, plus two ancient slivers of iron, may prompt historians to reconsider the presence of Spaniards in Georgia five centuries ago. Archaeologist Dennis Blanton of the Fernbank Museum of Natural History considers the finds, which he could easily slip in his pocket, "world history in the making."Blanton, the...

Median era ring discovered in Iran Sat, 10 Nov 2007 09:56:15 A Faravahar, a symbol of Zoroastrianism A unique ring belonging to the Median era adorned with a carved Farvahar, a symbol of Zoroastrianism, has been found in western Iran. Archeological excavations in Iran's western province of Lorestan resulted in the discovery of a ring which dates back to the Bronze Age and is decorated with a symbol of Zoroastrianism. The figure in the Farvahar is wearing Mede attire and a hat. The long-bearded man is facing the left as he emerges from the Sun. Wide open wings are seen...

"Had we angels' eyes, we should see the earth as a vast field sown with seed for the resurrection. The death of Abel opened the first furrow, and, ever since, the sowing has gone on unceasingly the wide world over. This land of labour and of suffering, what treasures it already holds laid up in its bosom! And what a harvest for heaven, when the Sun of justice, suddenly darting forth His rays, shall cause to spring up as suddenly from the soil the elect ears ripe for glory! No wonder that the Church herself blesses and superintends the laying...

CHAPTER 2- COMPROMISE OF THE CHURCH WITH PAGANSIM. I HAVE described, in the preceding chapter, the causes which made Christian worship gradually to deviate from its primitive purity, and to assume a character more adapted to the ideas of the heathen population, — numbers of whom were continually joining the church. It was, particularly since the time of Constantine, because its festivals, becoming every day more numerous, and its sanctuaries more solemn, spacious, and adorned with greater splendor, — its ceremonies more complicated, — its emblems more diversified, — offered to the Pagans an ample compensation for the artistic pomp...

VATICAN CITY, SEPT. 13, 2007 (Zenit.org).- People who want to receive a relic "ex indumentis" -- from the clothing -- or a holy card of Pope John Paul II, may do so by writing to the Vicariate of Rome. The Vicariate of Rome is accepting requests via mail, fax or e-mail for the religious items. The petition should be sent to "Holy Cards and Relics Service," and should indicate a shipping address. The holy cards contain the prayer to obtain graces through the intercession of the Servant of God John Paul II and can be requested in English, German, Spanish,...

Holy relics of saints Joachim and Anna will be given to St. Anna Greek Orthodox Church in a ceremony Saturday in Sacramento, CA. Relics in the possession of the Roman Catholic Church for more than 1,100 years will be officially handed over to a Roseville Greek Orthodox Church this weekend.

KINGSTON LACY RELICS OFFER INSIGHT INTO ANCIENT EGYPT By 24 Hour Museum Staff 22/08/2007 In total, 212 ostraka have been discovered at Kingston Lacey, of which 175 bear identifiable texts. © NTPL A crate of ancient Egyptian relics discovered at a National Trust property has turned out to be a large collection of inscribed pottery sherds known as 'ostraka', used by scribes to write a variety of notes and messages. Among the pieces, found during work in the cellars of Kingston Lacy in Dorset are over one hundred tax receipts given by officials for poll tax, mortgages and income tax,...

Relics and the Incorruptibles Exodus 13:19 "And Moses took Joseph's bones with him: because he had adjured the children of Israel, saying: God shall visit you, carry out my bones from hence with you." 4 Kings 13:20-21 "And Eliseus died, and they buried him. And the rovers from Moab came into the land the same year. And some that were burying a man, saw the rovers, and cast the body into the sepulchre of Eliseus. And when it had touched the bones of Eliseus, the man came to life and stood upon his feet." Matthew 9:20-22 "And behold a woman...

Okay, so I am bringing up the topic of relics in use by certain Christian denominations. Just recently this denomination has talked about the serious necessity to start a campaign to get 80,000 medallions out. they are doing this as a means to deal with evil, protect the wearer, and bind the power of Satan, like the medallions themselves are talismans have the power within them to do this. In the article in question, the writer does not ever refer to Christ's power as being the thing that makes the medallion 'work', or Christ being the source of their spiritual...

Bones thought to be the holy remains of 15th Century French heroine Joan of Arc were in fact made from an Egyptian mummy and a cat, research has revealed. In 1867, a jar was found in a Paris pharmacy attic, along with a label claiming it held relics of Joan's body. But new forensic tests suggest that the remains date from between the third and sixth centuries BC - hundreds of years before Joan was even born. The study has been reported in the news pages of the Nature journal. Forensic scientist Dr Philippe Charlier, who led the investigation, told...

The search for the remains of Sept. 11 victims has moved across the street from the site of the World Trade Center to the lot of a destroyed church, where important relics, including the bones of three saints, may also be buried. Since October, more than 400 bones have been unearthed from the debris of a service road that construction trucks used to get in and out of the site after the 2001 attacks. The city, which oversaw the original cleanup of ground zero, is conducting a new search to find more remains of the 2,749 victims. Forty percent of...

ROME - In a city where traffic rumbles past the Colosseum and soccer fans celebrate victories among the remains of the Circus Maximus, it comes as no surprise that relics of the glory that was Rome turn up almost every day, and sometimes get in the way of the modern city's needs. The perennial tug-of-war between preserving ancient treasures and developing much-needed infrastructure is moving underground, as the city mobilizes archaeologists to probe the bowels of the Eternal City in preparation for a new, 15-mile subway line. Eyesore yellow panels have sprung up over the past months to cordon off...

Vatican archaeologists have unearthed a sarcophagus believed to contain the remains of the Apostle Paul that had been buried beneath Rome's second largest basilica. The sarcophagus, which dates back to at least 390 A.D., has been the subject of an extended excavation that began in 2002 and was completed last month, the project's head said this week. "Our objective was to bring the remains of the tomb back to light for devotional reasons, so that it could be venerated and be visible," said Giorgio Filippi, the Vatican archaeologist who headed the project at St. Paul Outside the Walls basilica....

Excerpt - ROME (AP) - Vatican archaeologists have unearthed a sarcophagus believed to contain the remains of the Apostle Paul that had been buried beneath Rome's second largest basilica. The sarcophagus, which dates back to at least A.D. 390, has been the subject of an extended excavation that began in 2002 and was completed last month, the project's head said this week. ~ snip ~

(Nov. 23) -- Hardly an hour goes by without Thomas Serafin or one of his cyber-sleuths checking what eBay has to offer. They're not hunting for bargains and never place a bid. Their interest is bone shards, bits of wizened flesh and a contemporary twist on the sacred and the profane: How the ancient trade in the most coveted religious relics has moved into the global flea market of online bidding. "You can find bone fragments supposedly from St. Augustine being hawked on the Internet along with trinkets and antiques. There is something very wrong here," said Serafin, a professional...

Oct. 24--A coalition of Christians, angered by the marketing of deceased saints' body parts over the Internet, is calling for a boycott of eBay until the company gets more vigilant about ending the practice. The Los Angeles-based International Crusade for Holy Relics (ICHR), an independent group with about 200 members, plans to begin its boycott on All Saints Day, Nov. 1. The group is also urging sympathizers to petition top eBay officers for stricter policies and practices. The moves come after years of discussions with eBay failed to rid the site of class-one relics, such as the bones, fingernail clippings...

Ancient Metal Relics Discovered in Jiroft Jul 19, 2006 The police department of Jiroft succeeded in confiscating 41 metal relics belonging to the pre-historic and historic periods. The most ancient one is a Riton belonging to the third millennium BC. Riton is a kind of goblet with the head of an animal, usually in the shape of a lion, horse, ibex, or winged lion. "The police department of Jiroft found 41 bronze, copper, and silver relics. The most ancient one is a Riton with the head of a humped cow belonging to some 5000 years ago," said Nader Soleimani, archeologist...

30,000-year-old Relics Reveal Pre-historic Civilization along Qinghai-Tibet Railway 2006-06-24 13:59:42 Xinhua Chinese archaeologists claim that relics unearthed in the areas along the Qinghai-Tibet Railway proved that human beings lived there at least 30,000 years ago. Archaeologists with the Qinghai Provincial Archaeological Institute said they collected large number of chipped stone tools including knives and pointed implements dating back 30,000 years in the Tuotuo River valley, Hoh Xil, a habitat for Tibetan antelopes, and Qaidam Basin, where the railway runs through, during recent excavations. More than 30 stone implements were also discovered at the site of Sancha River bridge on the...

Moslems believe that the hair does not burn, heals sickness and that its blessings fill the entire territory where it is located. The hair is kept in a small case under glass. It is usually stored in museums, old mosques and in private residences. The hair is passed on from generation to generation of Mohamed's direct descendants. Ukrainian Moslems will ask for permission for part of the prophet's hair to remain in Ukraine.

Anglo-Saxon gold coin leaves British Museum out of pocket By Nigel Reynolds, Arts Correspondent (Filed: 09/02/2006) A gold coin lost 1,200 years ago on a river bank in Bedfordshire became the most expensive British coin when it was bought by the British Museum for £357,832 yesterday. A little smaller than a pound coin in diameter and much thinner, the glittering mancus, the value of 30 days' wages for a skilled Anglo-Saxon worker, now ranks among the museum's most valuable artefacts. Anglo-Saxon coin depicting Coenwulf, King of Mercia Experts described the coin as "the find of the last 100 years". But...

At stake is the revered headdress called the 'crown of Moctezuma' MEXICO CITY - For nearly 500 years, the jewel-encrusted, plumed headdress Mexicans revere as the "crown of Moctezuma" has been hidden away in the private collections of European royalty or behind bulletproof glass in a museum in Austria. Now Mexico wants it back. And Mexican officials said last month that they would formally petition Austria for the return of the relic, on display in the Ethnological Museum of Vienna. Many scholars think the headdress once belonged to the Aztec Emperor Moctezuma II, who was defeated by the Spanish in...

Chinese archeologists find new cultural relics of ancient Loulan city www.chinaview.cn 2005-10-08 22:36:44 URUMQI, Oct. 8 (Xinhuanet) -- A team of Chinese archeologists have discovered new cultural relics in the ruins of the ancient Loulan city, which is supposed to be the capital of the Loulan Kingdom and is part of Chinese ancient civilization that vanished 1,500 years ago. The findings, located underground northwest of an ancient government office site, include camel feces, fodder, charcoal and bestial bones under a 70-centimeter-thick layer dating back to the Eastern Han Dynasty (25 AD to 220 AD). "The discovery provides another important evidence...

VATICAN CITY, MAY 23, 2005 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI prayed before relics of St. John Vianney, the Curé of Ars, which had been brought to the Pope's private chapel for an overnight stop. The Holy Father's homage this morning was one of the most significant moments of the centenary of the French priest's canonization. The Curé, who lived from 1786-1859, is the patron of parish priests. The Parish of St. John Vianney in Rome, located on the Via Lentini, is currently looking after the saint's incorrupt heart, reported Vatican Radio. The relic will return to Ars on Wednesday.

Pittsburgh Woman Believes Locket of Hair Helped Deliver Her Preemie SafelyApril 21, 2005 — Christopher Ian Frederic Chadwick looks like any other 5-year-old today.  Did a medallion and a locket, containing strands of white hair from French Canadian priest Frederic Janssoone, help deliver a baby? (ABC News) But in 1999, his mother, Jill Chadwick, went into labor four months early, and she fears things might have turned out differently if her mother hadn't brought her a medallion and locket from a blessed French Canadian priest.The items came from tiny St. Anthony's chapel in a working-class neighborhood on Harpster Street in Pittsburgh,...

ROME, MAY 3, 2005 (Zenit.org).- Answered by Father Edward McNamara, professor of liturgy at the Regina Apostolorum Pontifical University. Q: I would like to know the present teaching of the Church, with documentary evidence, on fixing relics of the saints at the altar of Holy Mass. -- K.S., Nagapattinam, India A: The General Instruction of the Roman Missal, No. 302, contains the following statement: "The practice of placing relics of Saints, even those not Martyrs, under the altar to be dedicated is fittingly retained. Care should be taken, however, to ensure the authenticity of such relics." This statement summarizes the...

WASHINGTON - A damaged Torah, a centuries-old Bible and other rare documents important to Iraq's few remaining Jews were rescued from a flooded cellar in Baghdad, only to remain in limbo here. Their restoration, like so much else these days, awaits the emergence of a new Iraq. Historians at the National Archives, which preserves such priceless artifacts as the Constitution and Declaration of Independence, are examining the treasure trove of materials found in the basement of the headquarters for Saddam Hussein's secret police. The materials are in moderate to poor condition - they remained wet for several weeks after being...

Why is Garry Trudeau doing a "Doonesbury" sequence inspired by disgraced Republican-friendly reporter Jeff Gannon? "I'm not sure it's commonly understood to what lengths this administration is willing to go to bypass the 'filter,' as Bush calls the media," the cartoonist replied in an e-mail interview. "The president made it official Wednesday -- his Justice Department (news - web sites), fresh from signing off on torture, apparently thinks propaganda's OK too." When asked if he thought the press has underreported the Gannon episode, pundit payola, and other examples of media manipulation, Trudeau said: "It's not that it's been underreported so...

Presented by Rachael Kohn on Sunday 04/04/2004 The Quest for the True Cross Summary: Carsten Pieter Thiede is well known for his "discovery" of the earliest known fragment of the Gospel of Matthew in the Bodleian Library. Now he's found a piece of the true cross in a church in Rome, the Santa Croce in Gerusalemme. He tells Rachael Kohn why he's sure it’s authentic. Details or Transcript: THEME Rachael Kohn: In mediaeval times fragments of the true cross were the most sought-after relics in Christendom, but most were fakes. Today, one scholar believes he’s found the real thing. Hello,...

Why do we venerate Holy Relic's? Relics include the physical remains of a saint (or of a person who is considered holy but not yet officially canonized) as well as other objects which have been "sanctified" by being touched to his body. The use of relics has some, although limited, basis in sacred Scripture. In 2 Kings 2:9-14, the prophet Elisha picked up the mantle of Elijah after Elijah had been taken up to heaven in a whirlwind. With it, Elisha struck the water of the Jordan, which then parted so that he could cross. In another passage (13:20-21),...

The deadly tsunami could have uncovered the remains of an ancient port city off the coast in southern India. Archaeologists say they have discovered some stone remains from the coast close to India's famous beachfront Mahabalipuram temple in Tamil Nadu state following the 26 December tsunami. They believe that the "structures" could be the remains of an ancient and once-flourishing port city in the area housing the famous 1200-year-old rock-hewn temple. Three pieces of remains, which include a granite lion, were found buried in the sand after the coastline receded in the area after the tsunami struck. Undersea remains "They...

Remains of what some believe were the crown of thorns and a splinter from the cross used in Jesus Christ's crucifixion will be in Southern Arizona next month as part of a touring exhibit of Catholic artifacts called "Relics of the Passion." "We are expecting a lot of people. Catholics in Arizona are very devout, and in our troubled times right now people are really looking to get into the deep roots of their faith and to recapture a sense of hope," said John Garcia, public relations director for the Arizona Knights of Columbus. The lay Catholic group and the...

Ecumenical patriarch to travel to Vatican to retrieve holy relics ISTANBUL, Turkey The spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox Christians will travel to Rome next month on a historic mission to the Vatican. Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew the First will retrieve the relics of two saints seized by Crusaders 800 years ago. Orthodox Church officials see the move as a historic step toward reconciliation between the two churches.