This mystical act, called "the miracle of the blood of St. Januarius", has been taking place at the same time for more than one and a half thousand years in a row. According to legend, the Christian Januarius, the first bishop of the Italian city of Benevento, did not want to renounce his faith, for which he was executed in 305 by the Roman emperor Diocletian. Januarius and other martyrs were thrown into the fire, but remained unharmed. Then they were given to be eaten by animals in the circus, but the animals did not touch them. Finally, the martyrs were beheaded. Januarius was about 30 years old at the time of his death. Subsequently, he was recognized as a saint and canonized by both the Catholic and Orthodox churches.
Living blood
It so happened that one woman who was present at the execution of Januarius collected the blood of a martyr in a glass bottle and hid it as a relic. The blood was secretly kept by different people for many years, and with the establishment of Christianity it was transferred to the Cathedral of Naples, where it is still located. In a special chapel inside the cathedral, two tightly sealed flasks from the 4th century with precious blood in clots are kept under constant supervision.
And the most amazing thing is that on certain days the blood of St. Januarius "comes to life", becomes liquid, and sometimes it seems to boil, forming bubbles and foam. The first mention of this miracle dates back to August 17, 1389.
Spectral analysis established the authenticity of the blood and the absence of any foreign matter in it. It was also determined that, despite the age of the substance (1700 years!), It is the blood of a living person. During liquefaction, the density of the liquid and its volume change, as well as the color - from dark, almost rusty, to bright red. All this does not correspond to the unshakable laws of physics and physiology. After all, everyone knows that already clotted blood cannot become liquid again, let alone "live". In addition, any doctor will tell you that blood taken from donors is stored at a relatively low temperature for only 42 days, after which it “disappears” …
No miracle - wait for trouble
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The process of liquefying the blood of Saint Januarius can be carried out almost instantly, but sometimes it takes several hours. The "awakening" of blood begins when it is taken out of a secret place and shaken.
The miracle of liquefaction and revitalization occurs three times a year: September 19 - the date of the martyrdom of Januarius, December 16 - in memory of the miraculous salvation of Naples from the eruption of Vesuvius and on Saturday before the first Sunday in May - on the day of the first transfer of the relics of Januarius from Pozzuoli to Naples (V century).
Revitalization of blood takes place right in front of numerous parishioners and curious tourists, when the flask with the relic is removed from the store. The process is not influenced by weather conditions, air temperature, or any other physical parameters. The blood remains liquid for eight days, and then turns back into a clot.
However, there were cases when the blood remained in a caked state, despite vigorous shaking - this was always considered a bad omen and was associated with any global tragic events. So, for example, blood thinning did not happen when in 1527 an epidemic of plague broke out in Italy, which killed 40 thousand citizens. In the XX century, the miracle did not happen three times: in 1939 - before the start of World War II, 1944 - before the eruption of Vesuvius, in 1980 - before a strong earthquake.
Science explains
The truth of the phenomenon is confirmed by numerous studies of scientists, and they completely exclude fraud. But if believers consider the “miracle of blood” to be a miracle that does not have a materialistic explanation, then skeptics are perplexed, because they cannot give any rational explanation of the phenomenon. For example, the Italian physiologist Gastone Lambertini, who for many years studied the miracle of the blood of St. Januarius, came to the conclusion that it contradicts the known laws of nature and testifies to only one thing - the possibility of eternal life and resurrection.
From the standpoint of modern eniology (the science of riddles that do not fit into the framework of traditional science), the liquefaction of the blood of St. Januarius, however, like other Christian miracles (the miracle of the Holy Fire in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the properties of holy water, the myrrh streaming of icons, etc.), are explained by two thousand years of action Christian egregor (the soul of a thing, "mental condensate" generated by the thoughts and emotions of people and acquiring an independent existence), which has a materializing effect.
Magazine: Secrets of the 20th century №46