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Unexplainable Miracles in Catholicism 85
Miracles In Catholicism Jesus around the time of his crucifixion when it nine on her head evoking the crown of thorns,
was either wiped across his face or placed over wounds to her hands, and marks across her back
No One Can Explain it before his resurrection. as if from flogging. Neumann also had visions
Catholic media alleges there is no paint and went into trances. The marks on her body,
on the piece of silk, and the image of Jesus on 45 in all, were still present when she died in
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the veil supposedly matches the face on the 1962.
Shroud of Turin, which some consider
confirmation of the miraculous nature of both Neumann had also stopped eating food in 1922
The Shroud Of Turin items. and gave up most water from 1926 onward;
instead, she claimed to require Holy
The Shroud of Turin is supposedly the burial Miracles Of Levitation Communion on a daily basis to survive. In 1927,
cloth of Jesus Christ, imprinted with his face. she underwent 15 days of observation ordered
Centuries have passed since the Shroud was by an archbishop to corroborate her claims. A
Ordained as a priest in 1628 and seen as an
discovered and the Church sought to confirm it eccentric, Guiseppe Desa of Cupertino allegedly group of four nuns trained as nurses, psychiatrist
once held Jesus. Residing in the Cathedral of St. Dr. Ewald, and physician Dr. Seidl kept track of
levitated for the first time in 1630 during a
John the Baptist in Italy, the Shroud has
procession for St. Francis of Assisi. After his everything she ingested as well as weight
undergone carbon dating, textile examinations, measurements and found that Neumann did
inaugural flight, Desa began uncontrollably
identification of the material staining the cloth, indeed appear to subsist on her daily Eucharist.
levitating during Mass or while attempting to
and multiple other fields of scientific testing. As perform other actions. He also had visions and A study published in 2006 determined
of 2018, scientists assert the unlikelihood that that compresses allegedly soaked in Neumann's
gained the attention of the Catholic Church,
the Shroud of Turin ever held Jesus, while
which led to an inquisition. blood during a stigmata occurrence were
Catholic media claims it is real. legitimate, based on DNA matching with blood
The Church found nothing satanic about
In July 2009, the site Catholic Culture samples from Neumann's niece, though this did
Desa's floating exploits and recognized him as
claimed the phrase "king of the Jews" found on St. Joseph in 1767, more than 100 years after his not confirm the cause of Neumann's wounds.
the Shroud proves its authenticity. Jewish Several factors - including the diagnosis of
death. Several other individuals canonized as
scientist Barrie Schwortz - who served on the
saints supposedly levitated during their lives - hysteria from Neumann's doctor - led to a study
1978 Shroud of Turin Research Project - told the in 2008 that diagnosed the alleged mystic with a
St. Padre Pio, St. Francis, and St. Teresa of
Catholic News Agency in 2015 that "the only form of dissociative disorder. []
Avila, to name a few.
way [the image could be produced] is by some Desa was said to have a learning
interaction between cloth and body... it can’t be
disability in his early years; Father Dwight
projected."
Longnecker wrote about Desa, saying, "Even if
The same research panel released
he had never levitated, he flew. He was raised up
findings in 1979 arguing the liquid on the
because that's the gospel principle: God raises
Shroud was not blood. In addition, carbon dating up the lowly." Others who believe St. Joseph
of the cloth provided a timeline between 1260
truly did hover above the ground point to
and 1390 CE; Jesus is thought to have died
research that the Casimir effect allows two
between 29 and 36 CE. A study published in July
objects placed close together to create a small
2018 sought to re-create the body position
force of energy, leading to a reverse attraction
needed to mark the fabric as it exists and found that can look like levitation.
it was impossible. How the Shroud came to be is
still not clear.
The Prophecies Of St. Malachy
The Star Of Bethlehem
Born in 1094 in Ireland, St. Malachy was
Archbishop of Armagh. He received
The Star of Bethlehem, which led the magi to
canonization as a saint from Pope Clement III in
the newborn Christ in the Bible, is a miracle to
1190 - a first for an Irish person. During his life,
all sects of Christianity - not just Catholicism.
St. Malachy revealed multiple prophecies about
Debate remains concerning the exact source of the identity of future popes. According to his
the star, though. Some believe God created and
visions, Benedict XVI is the next-to-last pope
sent the star to guide the wise men to the manger
before the world ends, as determined via titles
where Mary gave birth, while others think it's
St. Malachy provided. For example, De Labore
nothing more than a symbolic representation of
Solis translates to "eclipse" or "labor of the
hope. Certain biblical theories suggest the star Sun," and scholars believe that fits Pope John
was an angel, whereas science hypothesizes it
Paul II in part because his birth coincided with
could have been a supernova or rare alignment
an eclipse.
of planets.
Some believe the books and writings
Astronomer Mark R. Kidger wrote The
outlining the visions of St. Malachy were altered
Star of Bethlehem: An Astronomer's View, when first published in 1559, and then again in
where he laid out his theory that it was an
1969 and 1973. Many others - including
exceedingly bright nova star. He dates the nova's
religious scholars - think the prophecies are
appearance to March in the year 5 BCE.
outright false. Regardless, the conclaves
Astronomer Frank J. Tipler also believes the star
responsible for choosing new popes often still
was a nova. According to Hayden Planetarium read St. Malachy's prophecies.
lecturer Joe Rao, Jesus Christ is thought to have
been born sometime after 4 BCE, and the star
Therese Neumann's Stigmata
appeared between 7 and 2 BCE.
Therese Neumann was a supposed mystic,
The Holy Face Of Manoppello
healer, and stigmatic who lived in Germany
from 1898 until her death in 1962. She
The Holy Face of Manoppello refers to a piece
experienced nervous shock, hysterical bouts of
of sea silk - considered impossible to paint on -
blindness and paralysis, and digestive problems
bearing the face of Jesus Christ. Also known as after an accident during a fire in 1918. In 1926,
the Veil of Veronica, the piece residing in
stigmata supposedly appeared on her body in
Manoppello, Italy, allegedly took on the face of
multiple places over several weeks, including