My dear friends in Saint Philomena,
What a joy this week has been, as I have been hosting a special
pilgrimage to the Sanctuary of St. Philomena. This group is truly
international with two pilgrims from the U.S., four from Northern Ireland
and the rest from Scotland.
Listening to their stories and the recounting of their spiritual journeys
was so inspirational for all of us. A mass at the Holy Altar of St.
Philomena will be followed with a visit by the pilgrims to the Catacombs of
St. Priscilla in Rome. This week is the annual celebration of the
anniversary of the discovery of the relics of St. Philomena in those very
catacombs.
We are also celebrating a very special first communion for Philomena LAST
NAME. Philomena’s mother is from Rhode Island, U.S. and first visited the
Sanctuary in 2007. This is where she prayed to our Little Saint to grant her
desire to conceive a child. She promised Philomena that if she was able to
have a child she would name this child in her honor. It has been our great
delight to meet this beautiful young lady and to participate in her next
step of our Catholic faith.
Following is the excerpt from my book relating the events of our
discovery of St. Philomena which we celebrate this month.
In the nineteenth century, the figure of Philomena, a young roman
martyr, spread and conquered hearts. Those seek her intercession grew
rapidly after nearly seventeen centuries of silence. This can be
attributed to various events which took place in that century. One
significant factor is the French Revolution and the loss of Christianity
in the European society. Also significant were religious movements of
“The New Evangelization” with the formation of missionary congregations
throughout Europe. These later spread throughout the world, from the
Americas to the Far East.
Some of this renewal was attributed to the intercession of this new
“young saint”, Saint Philomena, whose relics were transferred from Rome
to Mugnano del Cardinale (Avellino), on August 10, 1805.
Many devotees came to trust in her protection. We remember especially
Pauline Jaricot, the founder of the Society for the Propagation of the
Faith, and the Living Rosary; the young John Maria Mastai Ferretti, who
will become Pope Pius IX and will be beatified; the humble priest John
Marie Vianney, the Cure of Ars, singled out by St Pius X as the greatest
proof for Saint Philomena. These people were all perfectly cured from
their illnesses as a result in their faith in Saint Philomena. They
would become important instruments of Divine Providence in the Life of
the Church, and to the ends of the earth.
The “dies
natalis”
The Latin term dies natalis, literally, the day of birth, signifies
for us the day on which a saint leaves earthly life and is born into
eternal life.
The earthly/natural life is the starting point for aspiring to the
heavenly, supernatural life, which is possible by virtue of the life,
death and resurrection of Christ. An earthly life spent observing the
divine commandments leads one to eternal life. For a martyr, we can
affirm what St. Ambrose wrote of the young martyr St. Agnes: “Martirem
dixi, satis dixi”, which means: “having said martyr, I’ve said
everything”.
There are no biographical records of Saint Philomena. Her life, for
our purposes, begins with the finding of her body and marks the
beginning of signs to her devotees. The first records about the Saint
are those surrounding the finding of her tomb in Priscilla’s catacombs,
the translation of her body to Mugnano del Cardinale and the beginning
of her providential influence in the life of the Church.
If one attempts to write a resounding biography of Philomena, it has
to be considered an inspired devotional work based on other martyrs of
the early Christian period. Her arrival at Mugnano gave birth to a
season of graces and miracles. These were confirmed by Pontifical
documents, from Leo XII to Pius XI, and will assist in the spreading of
her devotional cult. In this way the nineteenth century is enriched by
yet another supernatural intervention that will strengthen the Life of
the Church in the company of the martyrs and confessors.
Symbols on the
tomb
On the three tiles that sealed the tomb, was the inscription
“LUMENA – PAX TE – CUM FI” and the following symbols:
* two anchors, * three arrows, * a palm , * a lily
The richness of the traditional meaning of these images is very
striking. It is now certain that the first terracotta tile was installed
in the wrong place, altering the correct inscription which is “PAX TECUM
FILUMENA” meaning “Peace be with you Philomena.”
Finding of the
body
The body of Saint Philomena was discovered on May 25, 1802, the
second year of the pontificate of Pope Pius VII. On May 24, 1802, the
excavators at the catacombs of Priscilla were working to rid the area
from materials and rubble built up over the centuries and had reached
its center. This was not far from the Greek Chapel, very close to the
skylight. One of them, who remains unknown, was removing soil from one
of the tunnels and hit some tiles which had sealed a funeral niche.
On these tiles, in a perfect state of preservation, could be seen a
palm branch, one of the symbols of martyrdom.
Following instructions received by Monsignor Ponzetti, the worker
stopped and went to report his finding to Fr. Filippo Ludovice, a second
caretaker.
On May 25, 1802, Fr. Ludovice, accompanied by many witnesses,
including another priest, went down in the catacombs. Under his
supervision, the excavator kept digging, finding the funeral stone of a
small tomb which looked like one of an adolescent.
It was sealed with three clay tiles on which were written: “LUMENA –
PAX TE – CUM FI”. Also engraved were two anchors, three arrows, a palm
and a flower. Also in the niche was a broken vial containing a blackish,
dried up residue. The venerable relics were carefully wrapped in five
layers and were placed in a duly authenticated wooden box. They were
transferred with the usual formalities to the Treasury of Sacred Relics
in Rome. The tiles were taken first to the College Massimo of the
Jesuits in Rome and later to the Museum of Christian Antiquities in the
Vatican.
These precious artifacts (the sacred body of our Roman martyr, the
precious blood she shed for her love of Christ, and the tiles of the tomb)
are presently enshrined within the walls of the 400-year old Sanctuary at
Mugnano. The Altar of the Sacred Body of Saint Philomena is lit day and
night by our benefactors who might not realize the importance of their
contribution. Let me assure you that you keep the devotion to our Saint
alive and you keep the lights of the sanctuary aglow each and every day.
Sending you a special Easter Blessing from the Altar of the Sacred Body
of Saint Philomena
Msgr. Giovanni Braschi
Rector of the Sanctuary of Saint Philomena
Custodian of her Sacred Body
Support
the Sanctuary of Saint Philomena
The Sanctuary of Saint Philomena is
not a parish Church. We do not have parishioners who support this place of
worship on a weekly basis. We are completely dependent on the love and
generosity of you, the world-wide devotees, to keep the doors of the earthly
home of Saint Philomena open.
We pray at the Sanctuary for the devotees of
Saint Philomena to recognize and provide the means to pay our monthly
utilities of gas and electricity. We also pray for the means to install a
lift at the Sanctuary to enable physically challenged pilgrims to experience
the entire home of their beloved Saint.
In order to ensure the Sanctuary
is able to keep our doors open to you and to continue to offer God continual
praise and to be the focal point through which our prayers are received by
Saint Philomena and interceded for before God at the Sanctuary, you may
donate in the following ways:
- Direct to the Sanctuary:
-
By personal check payable to the "Sanctuary of Saint Philomena." For
security reasons, please send your donation through registered or
express mail to the Sanctuary's address at the bottom of this
newsletter.
- Online - Go to our Support Page,
Click Here
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By bank transfer to the Sanctuary’s Bank account: SANTUARIO SANTA FILOMENA,
BANCA UNICREDIT MUGNANO DEL CARDINALE (30525), BANK ACCOUNT: n°
000400102946, SWIFT CODE: UNCRITM1E94, IBAN: IT18D0200875790000400102946
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U.S.A. Tax-Deductible Donations may be sent to the new non-profit set up
in the United States:
- Online - Go to our Support Page,
Click Here
- Postal mail donations can be made to:
Saint Philomena Sanctuary Support Fund, Inc. P.O. Box 4114 Bergheim,
Texas 78004, U.S.A.
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