Eucharistic Miracle of Patierno (Napoli) Italy (1772)
On August 29, 1774, the Curia of the Archbishop expressed itself favorably regarding the miraculous finding and unexplainable preservation of the Hosts stolen from the Church of St. Peter's in Patiemo on February 24, 1772. In 1971 the Eucharistic Year of the diocese has been established in order to allow the community to capture the essence of the Eucharistic miracle. Unfortunately in 1978 some unknown thieveswere able to even steal the relic with the miraculous Hosts of 1772.
In 1772, unknown thieves stole a certain number of consecrated Hosts that were found in the lands of Duke Delle Grottolelle, a month later, underneath manure. However they were completely intact. The appearance of mysterious lights and a dove made it possible to see where the Hosts were buried. Saint Alphonsus Liguori described in detail this miracle and took the opportunity to reawake the faith and devotion of the people towards the Eucharist.
The Vicar General, Monsignor Onorati drew up the minutes of the diocesan trial which lasted two years from 1772 to 1774. In the minutes it was stated that the appearance of the lights and the intact preservation of the consecrated Hosts “has been and is an authentic miracle operated by God to illustrate more and more the truth of the Catholic dogma and increase the worship towards the Real Presence of Christ in the Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist.” Among the various testimonies there were also those of three renowned scientists of the time among which was Dr. Domenico Cotugno of the Royal University of Naples and they all agreed in saying: “That the intact preservation of the Hosts cannot be explained with physical principles and they surpass the power of natural agents. Therefore, they must be considered as miraculous.” In 1972 Professor Pietro De Franciscis, teacher of human physiology at the University of Naples confirmed the above sentence. In 1967, Cardinal Corrado Ursi, on the occasion of the elevation of the Church of St. Peter to a diocesan Eucharistic Sanctuary said, “The prodigious event of St. Peter is a gift and a divine warning for the whole archdiocese. Its voice must never weaken but must urge the faithful of all times to consider the message regarding the ‘Bread of Life for the salvation of the world’ launched by Christ at Cafarnas.”
