ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - The Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis this afternoon will display a relic of the patron saint of priests - St. John Vianney.
The relic will be only on display, Friday from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Cathedral Basilica on Lindell.
The Knights of Columbus is sponsoring this nationwide tour -- called the "Heart of a Priest."
St. John Vianney's heart -- deemed the incorrupt heart -- is considered a major, first-class relic. Catholics claim the heart has resisted decay for more than 150 years, following the priest's death in 1859.
The saint is famous for hearing confessions for up to 18 hours a day as people from across Europe came to see him. He is still revered by priests today.
After its appearance at the Cathedral Basilica in the Central West End, the relic will travel to Jefferson City where it will be on display Saturday at St. Joseph Cathedral. This relic normally resides at the Shrine named for St. John Vianney in France.
In Catholic tradition, a relic is a personal object associated with a saint that may be offered to the faithful for veneration. According to the St. Louis Archdiocese, a major or first-class relic is defined as a part of the saint's body, as opposed to something that the saint touched or wore.
The term incorrupt, the Archdiocese says, refers to a human body that has avoided the normal process of decomposition after death.
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