Relics that Cried out for the Reformation

Martin Luther's action of attaching his 95 Theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg on 31 October 1517 is by now a famous fact of history.

A truth not so well known is that when those same doors would be opened the next day – All Saints' Day, 1 November 1517 – a huge collection comprising more than 17,000 relics would be put on display so that 'the faithful' could venerate them. These relics included:

• a thumb of St. Anne,

• some straw from Jesus' manger

• a twig from the burning bush

• one piece of the bread of which Christ ate with his disciples during the Last Supper

• one piece of the sponge with which the Lord was given vinegar and gall

• etc, ... .

Proper veneration of these relics would 'chalk off' 1,902,202 years from the time that a soul was destined to spend in purgatory.

The 'hotline of ecumenical dialogue' that is BBC Northern Ireland's Sunday Sequence programme devoted significant space on Lord's Day, 4 June 2017, to the announcement that a relic of St Teresa of Calcutta is due to be delivered to Armagh this week, prior to 'going on tour' throughout Ireland.

This is further proof, if any was needed, that Rome has yet to emerge from pre-Reformation darkness into the light and liberty of the truth of God's Word, the Bible.

In view of this ridiculous deceit, how appropriate is Jesus' question, "If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness?" (Matthew 6:23).

NOTES:

For a partial catalogue of the relics at the Castle Church, Wittenberg, consult: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/religion/1050873/posts

The relic of Teresa on tour: https://www.newrycathedralparish.org/2017/05/08/visit-of-first-class-relic-of-st-teresa-of-calcutta/