Category: Italy

Italy: Volterra

In 1472, during the war that broke between Volterra and Florence, a soldier from Florence, having entered in the Cathedral of Volterra, managed to take possession of the precious Ciborium of ivory which contained numerous consecrated Hosts. As soon as he left the Church, taken by a fit of fury against the
sacramental Jesus, he threw the ciborium with its precious content against a Church wall. All the Hosts fell from it, and – illuminated by a mysterious light – elevated into the air and remained suspended for a long time. Many are the witnesses that were present at the event.

Italy: Offida

In Offa, near the Church of St. Augustine, are kept the relics of the Eucharistic miracle which took place in 1273, in which the Host was converted into living Flesh. There are many documents which describe this miracle, among which is an authentic copy on a parchment of the 13th century, written by the notary Giovanni Battista Doria in 1788. There are also many official decrees of the Popes beginning with that of Boniface VIII (1295), to that of Sixtus V (1585), discourses of Roman congregations, Episcopal decrees, communal statutes, votive gifts, memorial stones, frescoes and testimonies of notable historic figures, among whom we recall the Antinori’s and Fella.

Italy: Turin Part 2

Then suddenly the bag opened and the monstrance with the consecrated Host rose over the surrounding houses while the people were filled with wonder.

Italy: Rosano

In the monastery church of Rosano is venerated the statue of the Sacred Heart which bled and wept on various occasions. The statue, which is of natural height, as donated in 1948 by a devout person to fulfill a promise made during World War II. Christ’s face has an intense expression of manly sweetness which invites
all to prayer. The Heart is at the center of his chest, surrounded by a crown of thorns.

Italy: Canosio

This particular Eucharistic miracle features a pastor, Father Antonio Reinardi, whose deep faith in the Eucharist was responsible for saving the village of Canosio from the torrential floods of the Maira River with a blessing of the Blessed Sacrament. There were many conversions among those who witnessed the miracle and to this day the townspeople of Canosio celebrate a feast during the Octave of Corpus Christi to commemorate the miracle.

Italy: Rimini

This Eucharistic miracle was performed directly by Saint Anthony after he was challenged by a certain Bonovillo to demonstrate the truth of the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. The most ancient biography of Saint Anthony, L’Assidua (The Untiring), carries Bonovillo’s exact words: “Father! I tell you before all these people: I will believe in the Eucharist if my mule, after fasting for three days, adores the Host which you offer him rather than eating the fodder which I give him.” The mule, despite the fact that it was exhausted by hunger, knelt before the Host and refused its food.

Italy: Florence

The reliquaries of two Eucharistic miracles which took place in 1230 and 1595 are held in Florence’s Church of Saint Ambrose. In the 1230 miracle, a distracted priest left several drops of consecrated wine in the chalice after Mass. The next day, returning to celebrate Mass in the same church, he found in the chalice drops of living Blood coagulated and incarnated. The Blood was immediately kept in a crystal cruet. The other Eucharistic miracle took place on Good Friday in 1595, when several fragments of the Host were miraculously unharmed in a church fire.

Italy: Rome Part 1

This Eucharistic miracle, whose relic is still preserved in the Benedictine Monastery of Andechs, Germany, is verified by numerous written sources. The authentication took place in Rome in 595 during a Eucharistic celebration presided by Pope St. Gregory the Great. At the moment of receiving Holy Communion,
a Roman noblewoman began to laugh because she had doubts about the Real Presence of Christ in the consecrated Bread and Wine. The Pope, troubled by her disbelief, decided not to give her Communion and then the Bread turned into Flesh and Blood.

Italy: Trani

A non-Christian woman who did not believe the true Catholic dogma of the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, aided by some of her Christian friends,
managed to steal a consecrated Host during the celebration of a Sacred Mass. The woman, as if daring God, put the consecrated Host into a frying pan of oil. Suddenly the Host spilled out masses of Blood, which poured to the floor and out the door of the house.