LANCIANO, ITALY - YEAR 700

Lanciano is a small medieval town, located on the Adriatic coast of Italy, on the
road between San Giovanni Rotondo and Loreto. Lanciano means - "Lance". It
is about the old Anxanum, of the Fretanos people. Here the first and greatest of
the Eucharistic miracles has been preserved for more than 12 centuries.

History of the Eucharistic Miracle:

A monk of the Order of St. Basil, wise in the things of the world, but not in the
things of faith, spent a time of trial against the faith. He doubted the real presence
of Our Lord Jesus in the Eucharist. He prayed constantly to get rid of those doubts
for fear of losing his vocation. I suffered day after day the doubt. Is Jesus really
and substantially present in the Eucharist? I doubted the mystery of
transubstantiation. His priesthood became a routine and was destroyed little by
little. Especially the celebration of Holy Mass became a routine, another job.

The situation in the world did not help him strengthen his faith. There were many
heresies arising during this time. Priests and bishops were victims of these
heresies, which were infesting the Church everywhere. Some of these heresies
denied the real presence of our Lord in the Eucharist. The priest could not rise
from this darkness that enveloped his heart. He was increasingly convinced, by
human logic, of these heresies.

Oscar Armando Martínez Munguía

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Spiritual Meaning of this miracle:

As it has been proven, the Host that was miraculously converted into Flesh, is
composed of the muscular tissue of the human heart (myocardium). Our Lord
shows his Eucharistic Heart, pierced by the sins of humanity. Heart that is let go
through love. Human and divine heart, who suffers and loves. In so many ways
Jesus has to remind us that he is alive, that his Heart burns with love for men,
that his Heart is flesh, with feelings, desires, longing to save us and that he still
suffers from so many scorn, blasphemies and indifferences from us sinners

His Heart is an open source of grace and mercy. Blood and water flowed from
this Heart, symbol of liberation and purification for our hearts. This Eucharistic
Miracle of Lanciano calls us to reparation, to be souls of constant prayer, in
reparation for so many sins, for ours and for those of the whole world.

It seems that Jesus today tells us - (There will be someone who has compassion
for Me, who lives with love, who fulfills his vocation with virtue and perfection, so
that the Precious Blood of Our Lord does not spill in vain ...)

This Eucharistic Miracle is an urgent call to conversion, to reflect on our lives,

past and present. To take seriously the spiritual life, and take the narrow path that
leads us to holiness, to the life of virtue and perfection. It is a call from God to
allow ourselves to be purified by the crucible of suffering in our lives.

Besides that it is very significant that this miracle happened in the city called by
the name of Longinos, the one that pierces the heart of Jesus, and there is

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another parallel with what happened with Longinos: The priest contemplating the
Eucharistic Heart of Jesus and his blood, he received the grace of conversion.

Another important detail is that in this eucharistic miracle Jesus allowed himself
to be crucified again. After the miracle, the Host was nailed to a piece of wood,
so that when it dried it would not roll up like the flesh does. Here was The other
time with nails in His Body, nailed to a piece of wood.

Fruits of the Miracle:

The miracle that occurred in the year 700 was only the beginning. That was more
than 1250 years ago. If after the miracle, the flesh and blood had disintegrated,
as many expected, it was already a spectacular miracle anyway. In addition to
renewing the faith of the priest and all witnesses, Lanciano has been a place
where many have found faith in the Eucharist, and others have increased in that
faith.

Immediately the news of the Eucharistic Miracle and the testimony of the priest's
transformation spread throughout the city and the country. All the people talked
about the miracle. The pilgrims went to Lanciano to venerate the Host turned into
flesh and wine into blood. Increased faith and devotion to the Eucharistic Heart
of Jesus, and spread throughout the country. From the beginning, the local
Church accepted this miracle as a true sign of heaven, and venerated the Body
and Blood of Our Lord in the Eucharist in several processions. Especially the day
of your party, which is the last Sunday of October.

The fame of the sanctuary spread rapidly throughout the region and soon all of
Italy began to make pilgrimages to the Church. These pilgrimages have not only
been local, people come from all over the world to venerate the Heart of Jesus
revealed in the Eucharist.

Oscar Armando Martínez Munguía

N° 20191002415
The Church of the Miracle:

The Church where the Eucharistic Miracle of Lanciano is located is in the center
of the city. What is the center of the city today was the suburb of the city in the
Eighth Century, when the Eucharistic Miracle occurred. At this time it was called
the Church of Saints Longinus and Domitian, and was under the custody of the
monks of St. Basil of the Greek Orthodox Rite. This was before the Great Schism
of 1054.

This church of the miracle remained under the custody of the monks of St. Basil
until 1176, which was when the Benedictines arrived. The building had
deteriorated a lot and the Benedictines were not very encouraged to take care of
him. The Minor Conventual Friars (Franciscans), however, wanted to guard the
Reliquary.
One of his benefactors, Bishop Landulfo, was appointed Bishop of Chieti and
gave them the Shrine. In 1252 the Benedictines left and the Franciscans took
charge of everything with Papal Bull from 12/5/1252. In 1258 the Franciscans
built the present church in the place of the original Church of San Legonciano.
This was transformed in 1700 from Romanesque-Gothic style to Baroque.

In 1515, Pope Leo X made Lanciano an Episcopal See under the direct
responsibility of Rome. In 1562 Pope Pius IV wrote a Papal Bull raising it to the
Archbishop's See. In 1666 the Franciscans found themselves in the midst of a
legal battle with the Raccomandati, a "select" group of the city, who thought they
were better than the rest of the world. They tried to take the Church away from
the Franciscans, putting a claim on the original church of San Longinos, on which
the Franciscan church was built. If he had won, they would have had the two
churches.
On June 25, 1672, Pope Clement X declared the altar of the Eucharistic Miracle
as a privileged altar on the eighth day of the deceased and on every Monday of
the year. The Lord intervened through Cardinal Giannetti of the Sacred
Congregation of Bishops and Religious, and the Franciscans won the case. They
immediately applied to obtain the official writing, and 18 years later in 1684, it was

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granted. During the time of Napoleon in 1809, the Franciscans were driven from
the city. But they returned with a solemn triumph on June 21, 1953.

Scientific research

In 1574, tests of Meat and Blood were made and an inexplicable phenomenon
was discovered. The five balls of coagulated blood are of different sizes and
shapes. But any combination weighs the same in total. In other words, 1 weighs
the same as 2, 2 weighs the same as 3, and 3 weighs the same as 5. This result
is marked on a marble table in the Church. Over the years a lot of research has
been done. Our Lord has allowed himself to be pricked and cut, examined
through a microscope and photographed.

The different ecclesiastical investigations followed the scientific ones, carried out
since 1574, in 1970-71 and in 1981. In the latter, the eminent scientist Professor
Odoardo Linoli teaches anatomy and pathological histology and in chemistry and
clinical microscopy, with the collaboration of the Professor Ruggero Bertelli of the
University of Seine, used the most modern scientific instruments available.

Oscar Armando Martínez Munguía

N° 20191002415