Holy relics tour comes to Utah
WEST JORDAN — The opportunity to venerate Relics of the Passion drew hundreds of the faithful to Saint Joseph the Worker Parish in West Jordan on April 10.
The nine relics in the collection were a sliver of the True Cross; a piece of stone from the room where the Last Supper was held; a piece of the Column of Flagellation; a piece of the Crown of Thorns; an effigy of the Veil of Veronica that was touched to the original veil; a replica of one of the nails of the Cross that contains filings taken from the true nails; a piece of bone from St. Longinus, the centurion who pierced the side of Jesus; a thread from the cloth used as the wrapping for the Burial Shroud; and a relic of the Apostles.
“Our Lord’s Passion is the Father’s sharing of his love, mercy, healing and the promise of everlasting life, all given through the merits of his only begotten Son,” said Fenise Serafini, the narrator of the program, as the Utah Knights of Columbus processed into the church to present the relics.
Through meditations, intercessions, prayers and music, the program recounted the events of the path that Jesus walked to Calvary.
The meditations were designed specifically for each relic. The first meditation was about the Last Supper (Relic of the Holy Table); the second Scourging at the Pillar (Relic of the Column of Flagellation); the third the crowning of Thorns (Relic of the Crown of Thorns); the fourth the Way of the Cross (Relic of the Veil of Veronica); the fifth the Crucifixion (Relic of the Holy Nail); the sixth the Relic of the True Cross; the seventh St. Longinus and the piercing of the side of Jesus (Relic of St. Longinus); the eighth the burial Shroud (Relic of the Burial Shroud); and the ninth Epilogue (Relic of the Holy Apostles).
After the program, which was presented in English and Spanish, Father Eleazar Silva, the parish pastor, celebrated Mass. Veneration of the relics followed.
“This is really a gift from heaven,” said Juan Arriaga, a member of Knights of Columbus Council 7961 at St. Joseph the Worker Parish, who organized the event.
Many of the attendees, from various parishes of the Diocese of Salt Lake City, arrived with images of Our Lady of Guadalupe and other items such as crucifixes and rosaries to touch to the relics.
Among them was Denise Ulloa from St. Andrew Parish in Riverton, who said that when she heard the relics would be at the church, she felt the urge to be there.
“I really don’t know what to expect; this is my first time ever seeing any relics. When God invites us, we need to answer his call,” said Ulloa who was accompanied by Marina Ramirez and her husband.
Ramirez felt blessed to attend, she said.
“We are getting closer to the end of Lent and the relics of the Passion are here,” she said with tears in her eyes. “I don’t think I will ever be able to be in the Holy Land so this is the closest that we are going to be.”
Juanita Perez, a parishioner of St. Francis Xavier in Kearns, arrived carrying an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe and a portrait of the Sacred Heart. She was there in response to a call that she felt from God, she said.
“This is a unique opportunity,” Perez said adding that the relics being in Utah “is God sharing his passion with us, showing us how much he suffered for us but also how much he loves us.”
After the one-hour presentation, “I really felt that I was part of what Jesus lived back in the day,” said Antonio Cruz, parishioner of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish in Salt Lake City. “I was really moved in each meditation.”
The Relics of the Passion, which have been venerated in more than 20 dioceses in the United States, Guam and the Philippines, were brought to Utah by the Apostolate for the Holy Relics. This was the first time that they were presented in Utah.
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