The Shrine of the Holy Relics in

Maria Stein Maria Stein (German language, German, literally Mary's stone or "Mary of the Rock") is an unincorporated area, unincorporated community in central Marion Township, Mercer County, Ohio, Marion Township, Mercer County, Ohio, Mercer County, Ohio ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

is the second largest collection of

relics In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tang ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. It is a part of the historic Maria Stein Convent.

History

Father

Francis de Sales Brunner Francis de Sales Brunner Missionaries of the Precious Blood, C.PP.S. (January 10, 1795 – December 29, 1859), in his native German language, German ''Franz Sales Brunner'', was a Roman Catholic missionary priest from Switzerland. Invited to th ...

, the missionary who led the

Society of the Precious Blood The Society of the Precious Blood is an Anglican religious order of contemplative sisters with convents in England, Lesotho and South Africa. The sisters follow the Rule of St Augustine. History The Order dates its history from 1905 when Mother ...

, was a collector of relics. He was responsible for the first collection of relics in Maria Stein. Over the 19th century other relics were added to the core collection as a way of protecting them from the continuous strife of 19th-century Italy. In 1892 a separate "relic chapel" was established in which Sisters of the Most Precious Blood conducted a continuous vigil. The collection of relics is the second largest in the United States with 1,100 relics, exceeded in number of relics only by Saint Anthony's Chapel in the Troy Hill neighborhood of

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylva ...

with five thousand.

Relics In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tang ...

include body parts (usually bones) from saints or objects that belonged to a saint; they are held in high respect because they were individuals who are believed to have led exemplary lives. The Sacred Heart Relic Chapel is a

kaleidoscope A kaleidoscope () is an optical instrument with two or more reflecting surfaces (or mirrors) tilted to each other at an angle, so that one or more (parts of) objects on one end of these mirrors are shown as a regular symmetrical pattern when v ...

of color, 18th- and 19th-century German carving, and relics distributed throughout. The "relic chapel" is connected to a larger chapel that in turn is the central feature of an interesting 19th century brick convent. A 2007 segment on

National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

describes this unique collection of relics. These relics include a splinter of the

true cross The True Cross is the cross upon which Jesus was said to have been crucified, particularly as an object of religious veneration. There are no early accounts that the apostles or early Christians preserved the physical cross themselves, althoug ...

and a splinter of bone from St. Peregrine, the

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...

of patients with cancer. Built in 1846, the shrine was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. The Heritage Museum on the second floor of the convent showcases life during the early years of the community. Even today southern Mercer County is predominantly

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, a reflection of 19th-century immigration patterns.Cleveland/com

References

External links

Maria Stein Shrine
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shrine Of The Holy Relics Roman Catholic churches completed in 1846 Catholic pilgrimage sites Buildings and structures in Mercer County, Ohio National Register of Historic Places in Mercer County, Ohio Religious buildings and structures in the Land of the Cross-Tipped Churches Tourist attractions in Mercer County, Ohio Museums in Mercer County, Ohio Religious museums in Ohio Roman Catholic shrines Christian reliquaries History museums in Ohio Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cincinnati Roman Catholic shrines in the United States Churches in Mercer County, Ohio Maria Stein, Ohio 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United States

History

See also

References

External links