A lost religious relic, in the form of an intricate starburst tapestry, was rediscovered after being lost for more than a century.
According to Monsignor James F. Campbell, "something as elaborate as this had to come from the Holy Father."
The tapestry is a calendar of 365 relics. One saint's relic for each day of the year.
In the center of the 2-foot-by-3-foot tapestry are relics of the actual crucifixion of Jesus: a piece of the Crown of Thorns, the sponge used to dab his lips, and a sliver of the cross itself, all woven into the cloth.
"Collectively, it means a great deal because the spirit of the church is in this framed object,” Campbell says. “You can see how magnificent this particular reliquary is, that just the amount of relics in this has got to say something of itself. It overwhelms you."
News of the reliquary has just begun to seep into the world of academia.
"It is exciting because it is a link, however tenuous, to the times of the apostles, the time of medieval saints." says Maureen A. Tilley, professor of theology at Fordham University.
The reliquary is believed to have been a gift from Pope Pius IX to Bishop John Timon and Diocese of Buffalo sometime in mid 1800s.
But in the 1900's it was placed in the Sisters of Saint Joseph's convent in Buffalo. One of the sisters came across the important relic stored in the cellar. But no documentation can be found.
Without proper documentation or certification, it's very difficult to figure out if the relics are real. There are clues, but no proof yet.
The relics are most likely thousands of years old and came from a religious order in Rome. The discovery has brought a renewal of faith to the struggling community.
The Diocese of Buffalo is now looking to Rome because the Vatican keeps meticulous records and may be able to shed light on this beautiful and likely holy relic.
