‘St. Francis Xavier was a major influence in my life’
Relic draws Newfoundlanders and Labradorians to Basilica to see saint’s preserved arm
People of faith lined up in droves Friday at the Basilica Cathedral of St. John the Baptist to witness a relic of the Catholic Church.
The forearm and hand of St. Francis Xavier made a stop in St. John’s as part of a 14-city St. Francis Xavier Relic Pilgrimage.
The cross-section of those who lined up front to back of the main aisle in the Basilica was vast, with young and old alike and was never-ending throughout the day on Friday as the oddity of the relic and the deep belief in the church and the teachings of St. Francis Xavier were the draw.
It is estimated St. Francis Xavier baptized more than 100,000 people with this arm, and he is widely considered to be the greatest evangelizer since St. Paul for his missionary work.
“I feel this is a wonderful opportunity, a great experience for the people of Newfoundland and Labrador,” said Sheila Brockerville, from Lawn on the Burin Peninsula.
“There are a lot of people who can’t travel to Rome to see something like this, so to have it here is great. It lets you be part of something that is more powerful than all of us.”
Brockerville said Francis is a saint a lot of Newfoundlanders pray to, so to have the relic on display in this province brings a familiarity and personal touch to who and what St. Francis is and was.
The relic is kept in a reliquary in Rome at the Jesuit mother church, the Church of the Gesù. The remainder of his body is entombed in Goa, India.
The arm, called incorrupt by saints due to lack of decay, is intact 465 years after St. Francis Xavier’s death. His desire was to inspire people, especially young people, to give themselves to the church’s mission to save souls and bring the message of Jesus to all corners of the globe.
“I am a graduate of St. F.X. and have been involved with the university for a long time. St. Francis Xavier was a major influence in my life,” Austin Hawley said while showing off his signatory X ring from the class of 1967.
“I think this is fantastic to get up close and personal with a relic. St. Francis Xavier was such a great missionary. His aim in life was to baptize and Christianize people. I come from a small community in Cape Breton (Ingonish Beach) and to see this and the impact it has on people is amazing,” Hawley said.
The relic pilgrimage is a gift for the church in Canada at the close of its 150th anniversary year, bringing the famous relic of St. Francis Xavier to North America for the first time in generations. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to venerate the relic of one of the greatest missionaries and evangelists since St. Paul the Apostle.
The Catholic Christian Outreach is hoping for three extraordinary graces as an outcome from this pilgrimage, including the conversion of souls, raising up of missionary disciples who are abandoned to God’s will and healing.
The church hopes those who attend each relic stop will have the unique opportunity to personally encounter Jesus.
The day’s activities started with mass at noon, and were followed by the public veneration from 12:30-10 p.m.
In the evening, a Relic Talk: Life of St. Francis Xavier and the Three Graves was held at 7 p.m.; confessions were heard from 8-10 p.m. and a closing prayer was held at 10 p.m. featuring the Litany of St. Francis Xavier.
The arm has 13 more stops across the country and will be publicly shown in Québec City, Halifax, Antigonish, Kingston, Toronto/mississauga, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Regina, Calgary, Vancouver, Victoria, Montréal and Ottawa.
All events are free and open to the public.