Divine Evidence at Xavier Fine Arts Theater, Monday, April 11th and Tuesday, April 12, 2022
A unique opportunity to hear, see and feel evidence of miracles and events connected to Jesus’ passion and his Real Presence in the Eucharist will be the focus of two Holy Week presentations at Xavier High School.
The public is invited to “Divine Evidence” on Monday and Tuesday, April 11th and 12th at 7 p.m. at Xavier’s Fine Arts Theatre, 1600 W. Prospect Ave. Eucharistic Miracles will be the topic on the first night, followed on the second night by the presentation The Sacred Cloths of the Passion. Each talk will be complemented by a large exhibit viewable in the school gym two hours before and one hour after the presentation.
Richard Bernatchez of Denver, co-founder of Faith Based Communications, will speak each night and will present five relics for veneration, including slivers of the True Cross and threads from the Shroud of Turin, believed to be the burial cloth of Jesus. He will also display replicas of the sacred cloths and numerous items related to the Passion such as the crown of thorns and whip. The display on miracles will feature much of the Vatican’s International Exhibition of Eucharistic Miracles of the World. “We have selected for exhibition approximately half of the 137 Eucharistic miracles approved by the Church,” Bernatchez said. A retired engineer, Bernatchez now dedicates his life to researching and sharing miracles and relics. He and his wife, Pat, travel throughout the United States and Canada presenting the sacred exhibits at their own expense to churches, schools and interested Christian groups. “We discuss the True Presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, explore various Eucharistic Miracles, and encourage participation in Eucharistic Adoration,” he said. “The specific miracles we discuss depend on the age of the audience. For the younger children, we focus on miracles involving children or animals. With the older children, we get into miracles where the Host changes into heart tissue, as well as the scientific study that goes into the verification process.”
Showcasing evidence of the Eucharist’s miraculous nature could not come at a better time, said Susan Littmann, one of the event organizers. “In light of the bishops’ call for a three-year Eucharistic revival starting on the feast of Corpus Christi in June, we feel the Holy Spirit‘s hand guided us to this.” She added that the event was rescheduled from April 2020 when it was canceled due to the Covid shutdown.
Plans for the nation-wide revival effort, outlined at the bishops’ USCCB gathering last November, will include Eucharistic processions and other events of adoration and prayer around the country. “Their hope is to increase Catholic belief in the Eucharist as Jesus’ actual body and blood,” Littmann noted. “What better way to do this than to explore centuries of Eucharistic miracles documented by the Vatican.”
Regarding the sacred cloths, Bernatchez said he believes the Shroud of Turin contains evidence of all that Jesus endured – the proof of his passion, death and resurrection. The exhibit also contains replicas of the Sudarium of Oviedo (a piece of linen thought to have been used to cover the head of Jesus immediately after the crucifixion) and the Tunic of Argenteuil (Jesus’ seamless garment).
The event is free and sponsored by the CIA-Faith Mission Operatives, a volunteer lay ministry recognized by the Diocese of Green Bay. More information is available by contacting event organizers at ciafmo@gmail.com or (920) 450-3025. Details of the presentations and exhibits can be found online at www.faithbasedcomm.com.
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St. John Nepomucene Catholic Community 