Priest presents largest relics collection – with piece from Cross, Mary’s veil

CONVERSIONS, MIRACULOUS HEALINGS HAVE RESULTED FROM ENCOUNTERS WITH SACRED REMAINS

Father Carlos Martins, a Companions of the Cross priest, will be bringing the world’s largest collection of saints’ relics – outside those at the Vatican – to the 2020 Legatus Summit.

Father Martins has been running the Treasures of the Church ministry for more than 23 years, and presents 200 to 250 expositions each year around the world. Numerous conversions and healings have been reported from people who have encountered the relics of some of the Church’s greatest saints.

In an interview with Legatus magazine, Father Martins described his ministry and the spiritual value of relics. More information is available on his website, www. TreasuresOfTheChurch.com.

What will you be presenting at the 2020 Legatus Summit?

I bring a Vatican exhibit of approximately 150 relics, including those of St. Maria Goretti, St. Therese of Lisieux (the “Little Flower”), St. Francis of Assisi, St. Anthony of Padua, St. Thomas Aquinas, and St. Faustina Kowalska. The supreme highlight is one of the largest certified relics of the True Cross in the world, and a piece of the Veil of Our Lady. The Vatican grants for all in attendance a special plenary indulgence which it has attached to Treasures of the Church. I will be explaining that indulgence and how to obtain it as part of the event.

What is Treasures of the Church?

Treasures of the Church is a ministry of evangelization. Its purpose is to give people an experience of the living God through an encounter with relics of his saints in the form of an exposition. I begin each exposition with a presentation and teaching on relics which provide the catechetical and spiritual basis for, what I call, the Walk with the Saints that follows the presentation. The point of the teaching is to present the basic Gospel message of Jesus Christ: that God is here right now, and wants to be encountered; He touches us through the lives and the sacred remains of His saints.

What have been the responses to your ministry?

God never disappoints … He always “shows up.” There are healings at every exposition. Thousands have been reported to me over the decades. I have seen cancer, heart disease, tumors, osteoporosis, physical deformities, etc., disappear immediately and completely. Though a great number of miracles have been physical, the most spectacular are the healing of faith where a new and deeper relationship with God and His saints are formed in the faithful. It is a most wonderful thing to see a parish, school, or prison renewed after an exposition. That is the reason why I have this ministry.

How did you acquire your collection of saints’ relics?

I work with the Holy See, thus acquiring relics for the ministry is part of my job. The Vatican is “relic central.” The collection changes regularly. Relics are swapped in and swapped out, depending upon such things as where in the world the ministry will be. If certain saints are particularly beloved in a certain part of the world, I will try to include their relics on that particular tour.

What spiritual value do relics have for Catholics?

The veneration of relics is a communion with the heroes of our Christian faith, asking for their powerful intercession. As St. Paul tells us, they are members of the Body of Christ. One day, the very remains that we are looking at within a particular reliquary will be resurrected and re-united with the soul of its saint. Nevertheless, that soul, who is even now beholding God face to face, is just as present to their mortal remains here and now. In some sense, one can say that the closest you can get to a saint is through their relics. And people are very touched by that reality.

Any other thoughts?

Attendees are encouraged to bring their articles of devotion (such as rosaries, holy cards, etc.) and pictures of ill friends/family members which may be touched to the reliquaries as a means of intercessory prayer.