28 April 2011

Relic of Blessed Marianne Cope to tour Hawai'i and remain in Honolulu Cathedral

From Hawaii News Now, with my emphases and comments:
HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - At the request of Bishop Larry Silva of the Diocese of Honolulu, the Sisters of Saint Francis in Syracuse, New York will give a first class relic of Blessed Marianne Cope to the Diocese of Honolulu [Good for him for asking and good for her for giving a relic].


Blessed Marianne is, after St. Damien [who was canonized on October 11, 2009], Hawaii's second candidate for sainthood. She succeeded Father Damien as the guiding force of the Hansen's disease settlement in Kalaupapa, Molokai, from 1889 until her death there in 1918.

Sister Patricia Burkard, general minister of the Mother Marianne's religious community, the Sisters of Saint Francis of the Neumann Communities, will bring the relic -- bone fragments from Blessed Marianne's remains -- to Hawaii on May 4.

First class relics are parts of the body -- usually bone or hair -- of a saint or beatified person. Second-class relics are items used by the saint such as clothing or a book. Third class relics are items that have been touched by a first or second-class relic, usually pieces of cloth or a holy card [you don't generally find this explanation in news stories, especially secular ones; good for HNN].

The relic will begin a tour of the islands on May 6, stopping at selected churches for veneration and Mass, before it is put on permanent display in the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace on May 13 [I look forward to venerating the relic when I next return to Hawai'i]. May 14 is the sixth anniversary of Mother Marianne's beatification in Rome.

"Blessed Marianne's first visit to a place of worship in Hawaii was to the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace, where on the day of her arrival on November 8, 1883, she was welcomed by Bishop Koeckemann, by the Sacred Hearts Congregation's priests and sisters, by the Brothers of Mary, and a crowd of Hawaiians of every faith who filled every available space in the church," said Burkard.

The bone fragments were collected when Blessed Marianne's remains were exhumed from her gravesite in Kalaupapa in January 2005 for transport to the motherhouse of her Sisters of St. Francis in Syracuse. The fragments were rechecked for their authenticity by a forensic anthropologist in Utica, N.Y., Blessed Marianne's hometown.

The schedule of the relic's visit to the neighbor islands and Oahu are:

-- May 6: 7 p.m., St. Damien Church, Kaunakakai, Molokai

-- May 7: 10:30 a.m., St. Francis Church, Kalaupapa, Molokai

-- May 8: 2 p.m., Sacred Hearts Church, Lanai City, Lanai

-- May 9: 6:30 p.m., Christ the King Church, Kahului, Maui

-- May 10: 7 p.m., St. Joseph Church, Hilo, Big Island

-- May 11: 6 p.m., Annunciation Church, Kamuela, Big Island

-- May 12: 7 p.m., Immaculate Conception Church, Lihue, Kauai

-- May 13: 6 p.m., Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace, Honolulu

6 comments:

  1. Anonymous11:48 AM

    Hi Father Daren-I'm from Blessed Marianne Cope's hometown of Utica, NY! In fact, the parish she attended has a Perpetual Adoration Chapel! When her remains came back from Hawaii in 2005, I went to venerate them at the same church following the Mass. I placed my hands on the coffin, and simply murmured two words: 'Welcome home!'

    I've also been to the Museum that the Franciscan Sisters have at their Mother House in Syracuse. That was also in 2005. Since then her relics are housed in a beautiful wooden reliquary-I think it might be in the main chapel.

    Maybe some day you'll be able to come to either Utica or Syracuse and see our relics of Blessed Marianne! May she join St. Damian soon in the ranks of the Saints!

    [her baptismal name is the same as mine-seems it's very popular among Germans. I'm German on my mother's side. Mom came to the US in 1923, when she was 7 seven years old]

    Barb in 'Upstate NY'

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  2. I'd be very happy to pay a visit there sometime, Barb. Especially because I know there are also items there related to Father Damian.

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  3. Anonymous9:19 AM

    Yes, there are [at least] two items related to St. Damien in the Museum in Syracuse: a carved walking stick and a chasuble. I saw both of these when I visited in 2005.

    Have you read the 'official' biography of Blessed Marianne, 'Song of Pilgrimage and Exile'? It was co-authored by Sister Mary Laurence Hanley [one of the Vice-Postulators, I believe] and a history professor from Hawaii whose name escapes me at present. If I had the money to purchase the newest edition of it, I would gladly send it on to you.

    And I forgot to mention yesterday-there is a shrine to Blessed Marianne in the front yard of her home parish in Utica! It was built in 2005 by a parishioner who is a Perpetual Adorer [as I am] and a builder by profession. He donated all the materials, and did all the building without pay!

    Barb in 'Upstate NY'

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  4. No, I haven't read it yet; I'm not sure I've seen it.

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  5. No, I haven't read it yet; I'm not sure I've seen it.

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  6. Anonymous10:58 AM

    Happy Feast day of St. Damien, Father Zehnle!

    Barb in NY

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