A Eucharistic Miracle: Incredible but True!

Contributed by Nora V. Clemente-Arnaldo

I want to share this documented Eucharistic Miracle taken from the book “Miracles of the Eucharist” by Bob and Penny Lord. I hope and pray that this miracle will enlighten us more on the reception of the Body and Blood of the Lord. We should not take It for granted; Holy Communion should instead firm up our belief in the Real Presence of the Lord in the Mass and in the Eucharist.

It is said that Zaragoza, from the earliest days of our Church, is a city especially blessed by our Lord Jesus through His Holy Mother Mary and St. James the Apostle. Miraculous events of the most unique kind have been attributed to Zaragoza like the miracle of Our Lady of Pilar in A.D. 40 and the Eucharistic Miracle in 1427.

Zaragoza, being an important Christian place, has been attacked by Romans, Arians and Arab Moslems. The Moors and Arab Moslems have constantly invaded Europe ever since the Roman Empire fell. The Arabs in particular ruled some parts of Spain for 700 years which explains the strong Arab influence in areas like Zaragoza. At the time of the Eucharistic miracle in 1427, Moslems no longer held power although their continued living in Spain was tolerated by Christian leaders. The Arab Moslems in Zaragoza felt extreme hatred towards the Christians because they had been unseated from power.

There was a couple in Zaragoza whose marriage was turbulent. The wife complained bitterly to her friends about the nasty treatment she would receive from her husband. One day, one of her friends suggested she go to a Moslem sorcerer in the town who could make a potion that will make her husband return to his former amorous ways. The wife’s Catholic upbringing made her hesitant at first but human weakness eventually prevailed.

She went to the Moslem sorcerer and explained to him her predicament. The sorcerer saw a good opportunity to desecrate and blaspheme the very heart of Christianity, the Eucharist. He was cunning and the woman was gullible. He told her that if she could give him a Consecrated Host from the church, he would make her potion. Fear struck her heart for she knew this was wrong and sacrilegious. However, the following day, she went to St. Michael Church where she received Communion. After receiving the Host, she withdrew to a dark corner of the church as if in prayer, then removed the Host from her mouth. She placed it in a sack and left for the sorcerer’s house.

Upon arrival she opened the sack and to her great surprise found, not the Host, but a perfectly formed, beautiful, live little baby, with a bright aura surrounding his body. When she showed the baby to the Moslem, he was bewildered. But his hatred for Christ was stronger than his fear or confusion so he convinced her to take the baby home and burn it in a fire. She was instructed to bring the ashes back to the Moslem who would make a potion that could be mixed with her husband’s food or wine.

The wife brought the baby home and put it in the fire, tying it to a metal rod and turning it as you would when roasting a pig on a spit. The result was not as she expected for instead of burning, the child became brighter and brighter until it became brilliant with light!

The Lord manifested His power. The woman ran through the streets with the baby in her arms, tears of fear and repentance streaming down her cheeks. She went to the sorcerer’s house and when he saw the Baby in her arms, he fell to his knees in fear and begged forgiveness from the God he had so hated. The wife and the sorcerer changed their attitude and went to the Cathedral in Zaragoza; the wife to confess her sins to the priest and the Moslem to search for the Vicar General of the Diocese to ask how he could receive pardon for such a terrible sin.

The account of the Host’s miraculous transformation into a baby quickly went through the town. Archbishop Don Alonso Arbuello was made aware of the incident but remained wary. It sounded so incredible that an investigating committee was formed to look into the mystery. The fact that a Moslem was involved made him more suspicious. Eventually it dawned on him and the investigators that this was supernatural intervention. Imagine the baby had been put into the fire but was not burned; in fact, he even glowed! They believed that the Lord was working in their midst.

The Baby was taken from the house of the couple and that Saturday, in solemn procession, was transferred to the Cathedral along with the City’s dignitaries, nobility and most of the town commoners. At the end of the procession was the Bishop under a canopy, with the child on a golden plate.

The child was placed on the Altar of San Valero under heavy guard but where the entire congregation of Zaragoza could witness and venerate the miracle from heaven. All day Saturday, the Baby was kept there and Sunday morning, the Archbishop celebrated the Votive Mass of the Blessed Sacrament in honor of the Eucharistic Miracle in their midst. During the offertory, as the Archbishop offered the gifts of bread and wine to the Lord, the child ― gleaming more brightly than ever ― disappeared and its place appeared the Consecrated Host. The Bishop realized that he no longer needed to consecrate the Host for it had already been consecrated by a Power greater than himself. He consecrated the rest of the hosts and at Communion, consumed the miraculous one.

The results of the miracle were indeed overwhelming. The repentant woman reconciled with her husband and lived an exemplary life for the rest of her years. The Moslem was converted to Christianity; from a vicious enemy of Christ and all things Christian, he because a firm worshipper of our Lord and a staunch defender of the faith, particularly the presence of the Lord in the Holy Eucharist. Devotion to the Eucharist also became very strong in Zaragoza, so much so that the people have been recognized as staunch defenders of the Eucharist.

This Eucharistic Miracle in Saragossa, witnessed and documented by the Church and supported by papal bulls only proves that with God, nothing is impossible!

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