A Roman Catholic church in Chicago, Ill., is displaying a rare relic believed to be of Jesus' manger as well as a fragment of the veil of the Virgin Mary and a thread from the cloak of St. Joseph as it celebrates its 155th anniversary on Sunday.
The church received the fragments, authenticated by Vatican documents, as a gift from the Shrine of Our Lady of Pompeii, a centerpiece of worship for the Italian community of Chicago.
The Rev. Jeremiah J. Boland, administrator of the church, says he is not in favor of carbon testing the items to see if they are from the beginning of the Christian Era. "The Vatican has its own process to determine the authenticity of things," he told Reuters, adding he was more concerned with it as an object of faith.
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It's kind of funny.......in the 'comments' section several Protestants are blasting the Catholic church for their idol worship. I just love it when the religious bicker among themselves!
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Permalink Reply by booklover on December 30, 2012 at 4:43pm lol Carl. Aren't you proud to live near it? I'm too close also! :)
Permalink Reply by Pat on December 30, 2012 at 5:42pm WOW! I need to contact Boland. I've got several relics I'd be willing to part with - for the right price, of course. A wooden dowel which is a piece of the True Cross (I use it as a toilet paper hanger). Some canned fish from the feeding of the multitudes (expiration date has come and gone, so I'm not eating it). A snippet of cloth from the Shroud of Berwyn (when Jesus appeared to the Native Americans - ohh, wait, that's going to Utah). And, my most precious possession, a small hunk of rock from the original 10 commandments (I live in the country, so they'll have to sort through the gravel in my driveway).
But Wait! There's more! Any church that acts in the next 2 hours ('cause I ain't got all day), and I'll toss in a grilled cheese sandwich with the apparition of the Virgin Mary, a corned beef sandwich with the apparition of Joseph, and a toasted BLT with the apparition of Tickle-Me-Jesus in the manger.
Shipping and handling charges will apply.
Permalink Reply by The Flying Atheist on December 30, 2012 at 8:26pm I have some lint from Jesus' belly button. It's on the floor underneath my bed. My collection pales in comparison to yours.
Permalink Reply by Sentient Biped on December 30, 2012 at 6:22pm I'm going to hold out for the holy speculum.
Permalink Reply by The Flying Atheist on December 30, 2012 at 8:30pm You'll need to have that authenticated, or else it's just speculative.
Permalink Reply by Sentient Biped on December 30, 2012 at 9:10pm No speculum speculation. You have to take it on faith. More than a speck of faith. Spectacular faith.
Permalink Reply by Loren Miller on December 30, 2012 at 7:40pm Not in favor of carbon testing, eh? Then they're not much in favor of an opinion other than their own.
Permalink Reply by John Aultman on December 31, 2012 at 8:33pm
Loren Miller replied to Ruth Anthony-Gardner's discussion Two years of Egypt's Muslilm Brotherhood rule in the group Hang With Friends© 2013 Atheist Nexus. All rights reserved. Admin: Richard Haynes.

