The Shrine of Relics

Our Catholic devotion to the Saints has three characteristics. First, it manifests: The saints are clear and compelling witnesses to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They are "the great cloud of witnesses" (Hebrews 12:1), profoundly respecting God and striving heroically to be His faithful servants, building up the Body of Christ. Second, there is exemplarity: The saints are real examples from which we can learn. The lives and words of the Saints are a tremendous form of spiritual reading, revealing what the grace of God accomplished in them and can accomplish in us. The Saints are not passive, archaic models: they are living people to whom we can turn, older brothers and sisters in the eye of the Church who can show us, uniquely and effectively, how to live our faith. Finally, there is assistance: we turn to our patrons and ask them to help us be living witnesses to the grace and mercy of God. They are interested in us, invested in us, and want to help us. They want us to be Saints, to be with them forever in the heavenly kingdom of God.
Here at St Matthew, we have a wonderful collection of relics of Saints from the earliest Christianity to modern times. What started as three relics in our vault became fifty in the reliquary today, including a relic of the Holy Cross of Our Lord. While Pastor Fr. Peter Arteaga, MSpS, began to request relics from churches and individuals in Italy, many of them being gifts from the church of St. Zenone in Castano Primo, Italy, near Milan. In 2015, while Fr. Hugo Maese was Pastor, parishioner Ron Kunkel designed and built the relic shrine.
The shrine is next to the statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe on the south side of the Church. Attached to the far right side of the case is a tray with a document of basic information about the Saints in our collection: who they were, when they lived, and if canonized, whom they are Patrons of. You will recognize many names, some of which will be new to you. Come and see. Spend time in gratitude, meditating upon their unique lives and asking for their assistance. These Saints, and many more, are here for you today.