Camillus de Lellis Heart Relic Visits CTK
The incorrupt heart relic of Camillus de Lellis, patron saint of the sick, doctors, nurses, and hospitals, visited Christ the King Parish Greenmeadows last February 23, one of the stops in its two month journey throughout the Philippines. The relic arrived by a special van escorted by armed soldiers at 9:45 am and greeted warmly by several parishioners, including most of the Lectors and Commentators who had just finished their General Assembly.
At the 10 am Welcome Mass, Fr. Steve Zabala officiated, with Camillian Fathers Dan Cancino and John Paul Alvarado concelebrating. Fr. Steve, himself a Camillian seminarian for seven years before transferring to the San Jose Seminary of the Society of Jesus, spoke during his welcome remarks about how his Camillian upbringing had molded him into what he is now. He also gave a short biography of St. Camillus. After the mass, Fr. John Paul also spoke. Then the entire chapel was open for public veneration.
The heart relic was later transferred to the main church at 4:45 pm in time for the 6 pm and 7:30 anticipated masses. Devotees were given a brief period between masses for their veneration and a significant amount of time after the 7:30 pm mass for the Public Veneration. The relic was finally taken away at 10 pm, after the Closing Rite, and headed for the St. Camillus Provincialate. As with the Veneration of the sacred relics of Padre Pio last September 7, 2018, people lined up to venerate the relic, with a large percentage of elderly, noticeably frail or handicapped among them.
The parishioners joined in the prayer to St. Camillus:
O St. Camillus, you have said that ‘the poor and the sick are the heart of God’ and that in serving them, we serve Jesus the Christ. When I serve the sick, help me to see in them the image of Jesus. Give me a heart that loves, eyes that understand, words that comfort, and a faith that inspires them. When I am sick, enable me to transform my suffering into healing, my fears into trust, my discouragement into prayer, and to treasure each gift and moment God gives me. I ask this in Christ’s name. Amen.
The relic, last brought to the Philippines three years ago in 2016, arrived last February 2 and the first stop was Terminal 3’s VIP Lounge, where arrival rites and a two-hour long veneration was held, primarily for the employees of the Manila International Airport Authority. From NAIA, the relic was then brought to Our Lady of La Paz in Makati City to start the tour of Philippine hospitals and churches. The relic departs on March 31.
Among the hospitals to be visited during its two-month tour are – Philippine Heart Center, Lung Center of the Philippines, National Kidney & Transplant Institute, PGH, San Lazaro Hospital, Cardinal Santos Medical Center, and Pangasinan Medical Center.
Going outside of the National Capital Region, the relic proceeds to Malolos (Minor Basilica of Our Lady of Immaculate Conception), Pampanga (San Fernando Metropolitan Cathedral), Dagupan (St. John Evangelist Cathedral), Baguio (Our Lady of Atonement Cathedral), then on to Southern Luzon (San Gregorio Magno Cathedral in Legaspi) Eastern Visayas via Calbayog, Samar (St. Peter and Paul Cathedral) and Palo, Leyte (Metropolitan Cathedral of Our Lord’s Transfiguration). From there, the relic moves westward to Cebu, Bohol, Iloilo, and Bacolod before moving to Mindanao – Cagayan de Oro Davao Oriental, and Davao. Its last stop before it is brought back to Rome, Italy will be the Minor Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Batangas City by the end of March.
The Diocese of Cubao, under Bishop Honesto F. Ongtioco DD was quite blessed that during the actual World Day of the Sick last February 11, the heart relic was at the Immaculate Conception Cathedral of Cubao, the seat of the Cubao Diocese.
The heart relic will have spent the most time in St. Camillus locations – St. Camillus Provincialate, St. Camillus Hospital of Mati, Daughters of St. Camillus in Cebu, St. Camillus Medical Center, St. Camillus College Seminary, Camillus Medhaven Home for the Elderly, and Camillian Sisters Kingsville.
Rev. Fr. Jose Eloja, provincial superior of the Camillians Philippines said, ‘The visit of the incorrupt heart of Saint Camillus is a huge privilege and blessing. The patron saint of the sick, nurses, doctors, and hospitals is with us as an instrument for us to serve the Lord and the sick. The visit of his heart relic will also help strengthen the faith of devotees and the Filipinos.’ On the other hand, Rev. Fr. Dan Cancino said, ‘The Heart relic of St. Camillus is a symbol of God’s compassion and mercy, especially for those who are sick, who are looking for comfort, in these times of suffering.’
The preserved heart relic, which first visited the country in 2013 as part of a pilgrim tour in celebration of his 400th death anniversary, arrived from its major shrine, the Church of Saint Mary Magdalene in Rome.
A dedicated priest, confessor, and miracle worker, St. Camillus founded the Clerks Regular Ministers to the Sick, known as the Camillians, and his followers cared and treated the sick as ‘living images of Christ’ and considered serving the sick as serving God. He was bestowed with the gifts of healing and prophecy. Born in 1550 in Chietti, Italy, he died in 1614, and was canonized by Pope Benedict XIV in 1746. The religious congregation is still dedicated almost exclusively to caring for the sick.
