Who approves Eucharistic miracles, that as a Church, we promote?

Rebecca in Springfield

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The miracle of the Eucharist always requires faith, pure faith: I believe, therefore, I recognize the visible as the Invisible. I believe in the promises of God because I have entrusted myself to His love.

Eucharistic miracles are a sign from God to help us believe in the Real Presence.. God allows this so that we do not lose faith in our weakness. That is why St. Pope John Paul II, while still the Archbishop of Cracow, visiting Lanciano in Italy (Nov. 3, 1974), the place of the famous Eucharistic miracle, wrote, “Make us believe in You more, have hope and love You.” Scientific research from recent years has shown that regardless of the place on the globe where Eucharistic miracles appear, they always show the same phenomenon: the transformation of the Eucharistic Bread into the heart tissue of the tortured Man-God, Jesus Christ. They show the same physical characteristics everywhere and represent the same blood type.

One of the most famous Eucharistic miracles is the one in Lanciano, which occurred around 750. A priest who had doubts about the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, during holy Mass, saw the host transformed into literal flesh and the wine into literal blood. Years later, scientific research confirmed that the relics kept to this day in the sanctuary in Lanciano are fragments of a human heart and blood type AB, which is consistent with the research on the Shroud of Turin.

Eucharistic miracles occur when the Real Presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament was questioned or, more often, when the Blessed Sacrament was disregarded, neglected, received unworthily, or even desecrated. It was therefore a way out to meet human weakness.

In 2019, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith began work on reforming the Church’s approach to alleged supernatural events. And it established new procedures for recognizing Eucharistic miracles. Currently, there is a six-point scale of assessments, from “nihil obstat” (nothing stands in the way) to “declaratio de non supernaturalitate” (declaration of non-supernaturalness). In short, the procedure is as follows: The bishop makes a preliminary decision on whether the case is serious. If so, he secures objects related to the phenomenon and appoints a commission, which consists of at least one theologian, canonist, and expert in the relevant field. The commission may also use external expertise. The bishop sends a report on the commission’s work and his opinion to the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith and awaits its decision. If during the investigation he realizes that he is dealing with fraud, he can punish the guilty parties with ecclesiastical penalties.

Pure faith in God is also necessary because even if it were possible to use the achievements of science and experimentation to confirm the fact of chemical or material transformation in the Eucharistic miracle, this is not absolute proof of God’s presence. For example, reliable and detailed studies were conducted on the human Body and Blood, which miraculously appeared during holy Mass in physical form, during the famous miracle in Lanciano. To this day, one can see the preserved network of arterial and venous vessels or the muscle tissue proper to the heart muscle. The true hematological structure of the ancient Blood of Lanciano has also been confirmed. However, in the complex world of matter, which is a mystery in itself, an alternative explanation is possible, if not now, then in the future. Uncertainty will remain if we count on external evidence. Miracles occurring in matter are to stimulate miracles occurring in the heart, in the spiritual dimension, as happened in Lanciano and in many other places. It is about trusting God’s promise again, about moving back to the level of pure, unselfish faith. This is indeed a true miracle that can work great wonders.

Father Pawel A. Augustyniak, J.C.L., is pastor of Immaculate Conception Parish, in Shelbyville, Assumption of The Blessed Virgin Mary Parish in Assumption, and St. Francis DeSales Parish in Moweaqua and is a judge on the Diocesan Tribunal.