On Sunday, June 22, the Church celebrates the body and blood of Jesus. Today, Catholics—not all, of course—think that the bread they consume at Mass is a symbol representing the body of Jesus, but they doubt that this bread has become the body of Jesus, with all his blood, soul, and divinity.
But since God’s plans are inscrutable, today we will discuss a Eucharistic miracle that surprises even scientists and the most radical skeptics. We are talking about the miracle of Lanciano. Lanciano is a town in Italy. In the 8th century, a monk who doubted the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist witnessed the transformation of the host into flesh and the wine into blood during the consecration. This Eucharistic miracle is considered the oldest and most documented and certified by the Catholic Church.
Details of the miracle.
- A monk was celebrating Mass during the consecration, and doubting the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, he observed that the host had turned into flesh and the wine into blood.
- After many years, as science and technology advanced, it was determined that the flesh was not damaged, nor did the wine evaporate, or that both elements had rotted. (Remember, the miracle took place in the 8th century.) The flesh was identified as human heart tissue, and the blood as human blood type AB.
- The host acquired cardiac muscle, and the wine turned into blood clots.
- Scientific research confirms the human nature of the flesh and blood, ruling out any manipulation.
The meaning of the miracle: It confirms the Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation, which is understood as the transformation of the bread and wine into the body and blood of Jesus.
We do not need miracles to believe what happens at the moment of consecration. But God himself confirms with this Eucharistic miracle the faith we have in the Eucharist.