The Eucharistic miracle of Santarém, also called the Most Holy Miracle (), is one of the most famous and recognized

eucharistic miracle Eucharistic miracle is any miracle involving the Eucharist, regarding which the most prominent Christian denominations, especially the Catholic Church, teach that Real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, Christ is truly present in the Eucharist, ...

s in the world, which occurred in Santarém,

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

, in the 13th century, and is still the object of national and international veneration today. The Miracle of Santarém, together with the Eucharistic miracle of Lanciano, in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, is considered among the most important.

History of the miracle

It was the year

1226 Year 1226 ( MCCXXVI) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * June – King Louis VIII (the Lion) leads a Crusade against the Cathars (Albigensians) and Raymond VII, count of Toulou ...

(or

1247 Year 1247 ( MCCXLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * War of the Thuringian Succession: The claims on the Ludovingians' inheritance after the death of Henry Raspe, landgrave of T ...

, according to some chroniclers) when, in Santarém, there lived a poor woman, whom her husband mistreated a lot, going astray with another woman. Tired of suffering, she went to ask a witch who, with her spells, could put an end to her sad fate. She promised her this effective remedy, but she would need a consecrated host. After hesitating, the poor woman went to the Church of Saint Stephen, confessed and, having received the Sacred Particle, with great caution she took it out of her mouth, wrapping it in the veil. She quickly left the church, heading towards the witch's house. But then, without her noticing, blood began to flow from the veil, which, seen by several people, led them to ask the unfortunate woman what injuries she had. Extremely confused, she ran home and enclosed the Miraculous Host in a chest. The day passed, however, and in the afternoon her husband returned. In the middle of the night, they both woke up and saw the whole house shining. From the ark came mysterious rays of light. Once the man was informed of the woman's sinful act, they knelt down and spent the rest of the night in worship. As soon as day broke, the

parish priest A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or ...

was informed of the supernatural prodigy. Once the news spread, half the population of Santarém rushed to contemplate the Miracle. The Sacred Particle was then taken, processionally, to the Church of Saint Stephen, where it was preserved inside a kind of ostensory made of wax. But, after a few years (in 1340), when the tabernacle was opened to expose the worship of the faithful, as was customary, the wax was found torn into pieces and, with astonishment, it was discovered that the Sacred Particle was enclosed in a crystal ambula, miraculously appeared. This small ambula was placed in a silver-gilt monstrance, where it is still located today. The Parish Church of Saint Stephen is currently the Sanctuary of the Most Holy Miracle of Santarém. Since the miracle occurred, this church has been the destination of countless processions, carried out by the

royal court A royal court, often called simply a court when the royal context is clear, is an extended royal household in a monarchy, including all those who regularly attend on a monarch, or another central figure. Hence, the word ''court'' may also be app ...

, or by great personalities of the

nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...

and

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

, especially under the pretext of illness, floods, or drought. There are many echoes that, in documents, remain with us as testimony, such as the case of Queen

Elizabeth of Portugal Elizabeth of Portugal (''Elisabet'' in Catalan, ''Isabel'' in Aragonese, Portuguese and Spanish; 1271 – 4 July 1336), also known as Elizabeth of Aragon, was Queen of Portugal from 1282 to 1325 as the wife of King Denis. She is venerated as ...

, who passed through Santarém on her way to

Coimbra Coimbra (, also , , or ), officially the City of Coimbra (), is a city and a concelho, municipality in Portugal. The population of the municipality at the 2021 census was 140,796, in an area of . The fourth-largest agglomerated urban area in Po ...

, in order to pacify the disagreements between her husband

Denis Denis may refer to: People * Saint Denis of Paris, 3rd-century Christian martyr and first bishop of Paris * Denis the Areopagite, Biblical figure * Denis, Bishop of Győr (13th century), Hungarian prelate * Denis, son of Ampud (died 1236), bar ...

and her son

Afonso IV Afonso IVEnglish: ''Alphonzo'' or ''Alphonse'', or ''Affonso'' (Archaic Portuguese), ''Alfonso'' or ''Alphonso'' ( Portuguese-Galician) or ''Alphonsus'' (Latin). (; 8 February 129128 May 1357), called the Brave (), was King of Portugal from 1325 ...

: she ordered a procession of prayers, in which she accompanied the Holy Miracle barefoot, with a rope around her neck and covered in ashes, thus imploring the mercy of the Most High. Also King

Afonso VI of Portugal '' Dom'' Afonso VI (; 21 August 164312 September 1683), known as "the Victorious" (), was the second king of Portugal of the House of Braganza from 1656 until his death. He was initially under the regency of his mother, Luisa de Guzmán, until ...

, on January 25, 1664, when traveling to Santarém, did not fail to visit the Church of the Most Holy Miracle and the Convent of Saint Dominic, where, at that time, the mysterious towel that had wrapped the Sacred Host and in which the blood was still visible. In the place where the poor woman's house was located, today stands the Chapel of the Miracle.

Position of the Catholic Church

The

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

officially recognizes the Eucharistic miracle of Santarém as authentic. Several popes have granted

indulgence In the teaching of the Catholic Church, an indulgence (, from , 'permit') is "a way to reduce the amount of punishment one has to undergo for (forgiven) sins". The ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'' describes an indulgence as "a remission bef ...

s to pilgrims and visitors devoted to the Most Holy Miracle of Santarém:

Pope Pius IV Pope Pius IV (; 31 March 1499 – 9 December 1565), born Giovanni Angelo Medici, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 25 December 1559 to his death, in December 1565. Born in Milan, his family considered itself a b ...

(1559–1565) granted indulgence to pilgrims who visit the Church of the Most Holy Miracle;

Pope Pius V Pope Pius V, OP (; 17 January 1504 – 1 May 1572), born Antonio Ghislieri (and from 1518 called Michele Ghislieri), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 January 1566 to his death, in May 1572. He was an ...

and

Pope Pius VI Pope Pius VI (; born Count Angelo Onofrio Melchiorre Natale Giovanni Antonio called Giovanni Angelo or Giannangelo Braschi, 25 December 171729 August 1799) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 15 February 1775 to hi ...

granted privileges to pilgrims that visit the Church-Shrine; and

Pope Gregory XIV Pope Gregory XIV (; ; 11 February 1535 – 16 October 1591), born Niccolò Sfondrato or Sfondrati, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 5 December 1590 to his death, in October 1591. Early career Niccolò S ...

(1590–1591) granted

plenary indulgence In the teaching of the Catholic Church, an indulgence (, from , 'permit') is "a way to reduce the amount of punishment one has to undergo for (forgiven) sins". The ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'' describes an indulgence as "a remission bef ...

to all the members of the Royal Brotherhood of the Most Holy Miracle of Santarém on the day they entered the brotherhood and the day of their death.Eucharistic miracle of Santarém
article by the Servants of the Pierced Hearts of Jesus and Mary

References

External links

The Eucharistic miracle of Santarém
(PDF) {{DEFAULTSORT:Miracle of Santarém 13th-century Catholicism 13th century in Italy Eucharist Christian miracles Santarém, Portugal Eucharistic miracles

History of the miracle

Position of the Catholic Church

See also

References

Further reading

External links