Relic of Mary Magdalene tours seven states
By Fabvienen Taylor
JACKSON — The noon daily Mass at the Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle drew a larger than normal crowd on Thursday, Oct. 29, a number of the visitors were from out-of-town.
Many had learned a relic of St. Mary Magdalene would be on display for prayer and veneration from an Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN) program as well as from stories in Mississippi Catholic, the diocesan newspaper.
“I felt praying before St. Mary Magdalene would strengthen my faith,” said Margie Landry, who came from Hattiesburg with her husband, Alcide.
“My faith is strong but anything I can do to make it stronger is important to me and this is such a blessing,” she said. “It was a blessing to learn about this on EWTN, which we watch faithfully.”
Another EWTN viewer, Bill Farrior, drove from Raymond. “I wanted to venerate the relic and say some special prayers, some special intentions for my family. I felt Mary Magdalene can help,” he said.
Vicksburg St. Mary parishioner Joe Zelasko wanted to be near a relic of the saint he prays to twice a day.
“I wanted to get up close and ask her to pray for all the petitions I have for my family,” he said.
Tour organizers began traveling with the relic in mid-October to over 30 churches in Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Florida, Minnesota and New York. The tour ends Nov. 30.
The event is co-organized by the Emmanuel Community, an international evangelization organization, and the John Paul II Training Center in Gainsville, Ga.
Interest in the United States tour was sparked after the relic visited Brazil two years ago.
Dominican Father Thomas Michelet is a priest from the Diocese of Frejus-Toulon, France, where the relic has been located for centuries.
“What relics show us is saints were made of bones and flesh,” said Father Michelet. “They were living persons. They tell us sanctity is not only about your soul, but about your whole person. And on the day of resurrection, not only your soul but your body will come to life.”
France has many relics of saints, he said. “We have quite a large number there, we have hundreds of relics and here you have so few. So it is good to share.”
For Zelasko, the saint who the New Testament says was the first witness to the resurrection of Jesus Christ, isn’t the only one who hears his prayers and petitions on a daily basis.
“I pray to St. Magdalene, St. Philomena, who my wife is named for, and to a lot of others. You’ve got to get all the help you can.”
