Holy Relics of the Catholic Church Online Quiz | Religion

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Let's start with one of my favorite saints: This French saint was the "Visionary of Lourdes" and was portrayed by Jennifer Jones in a very popular movie in 1943.

Answer: St. Bernadette Soubirous

Following her death in 1879, the body of St. Bernadette was exhumed on April 3, 1919. Witnesses present stated that although the face was very slightly discolored, overall the body showed no signs of corruption after 40 years in the grave. The body of St. Bernadette now rests in a casket of gold and glass in the convent where she lived and died.

2. The patroness of musicians, poets, singers and organ builders, this Roman noblewoman was martyred around 177 A.D.

Answer: St. Cecilia

When her husband and brother-in-law were beheaded for refusing to renounce Christianity, Cecilia gave them burial, and for this she was arrested and condemned. When suffocation failed to kill her, she was partially decapitated and left to bleed to death over a period of three days. Early Christians placed her body in a cypress coffin and buried it in the Catacomb of St. Callistus.

In 822 A.D., the coffin was moved to a place of honor in the cathedral bearing her name. On October 20, 1599, approximately 1,422 years after her death, the coffin was opened and the body of St. Cecilia was found to be remarkably well-preserved and even remained in the same position in which she had died.

Her body is now interred beneath the altar of the Basilica of St. Cecilia in Rome.

3. The patron saint of kings, separated spouses and difficult marriages, this king of England earned his nickname because of his devotion to the Church.

Answer: St. Edward the Confessor

During his reign, Edward restored the Church of St. Peter in London and enlarged the abbey for the use of the Benedictine monks who served there; this was the beginning of the famous Westminster Abbey. He died in 1066 and was buried in the Abbey. Thirty-six years after his death, his body was exhumed and eyewitnesses reported that it was completely incorrupt. St. Edward was returned to his resting place and remains there to this day, the only saint presently enshrined at Westminster Abbey.

4. She is the patroness of desperate situations. This saint is noted to have received a permanent wound on her forehead after listening to a sermon about the crown of thorns.

Answer: St. Rita of Cascia

St. Rita passed away in 1457. She was beatified 170 years later and her body exhumed. Despite the fact that it had never been properly entombed, witnesses at that time stated that the body was in near-perfect condition and the flesh was still of a natural color.

5. This Franciscan nun was favored with wonderful visions throughout her life. She wrote the treatise, "The Seven Spiritual Weapons" and is the patron saint of artists.

Answer: St. Catherine of Bologna

St. Catherine's body, still perfectly preserved since her death on March 9, 1463, is enshrined in an upright seated position in the Monastero del Corpus Domini in Bologna. The exposed skin has become blackened due to the many votive candles which were allowed to be burned close to the body until 1953.

6. A poor Spanish farmer and the patron saint of farmers and laborers, a story persists that, while he stopped to pray every morning at church, an angel with a team of snow-white oxen plowed the fields in his stead.

Answer: St. Isidore

St. Isidore the Farmer died on May 15, 1172. Over the centuries, his body was transferred to different locations six times. In May 1969, when it was being moved for the last time, the body was found to be darkened but otherwise perfectly preserved - 797 years after his death! St. Isidore's wife, a virtuous person in her own right, is venerated as Santa Maria de la Cabeza because her head (cabeza, in Spanish) is taken in procession during times of drought.

7. This 13th century Italian saint lived as a household servant for 48 years until her death at the age of 60. No wonder, then, that she is the patroness of maids, servants and single laywomen.

Answer: St. Zita

A pious and charitable woman, St. Zita died in 1278 and was buried in simple fashion at the Church of St. Fediano in Lucca. In 1652 her body was exhumed for reburial and found to be in extraordinary condition. She now rests in a glass-sided casket in the same church, her body visible and, though darkened with age, incorrupt after more than 700 years.

8. A 14th century saint and Doctor of the Church, she died of a seizure at the age of 33. Her body showed no signs of decay when exhumed in 1430, fifty years after her death.

Answer: St. Catherine of Siena

Having cared for plague victims in Italy during an outbreak in 1372-1373, Catherine is considered to be the patron saint of nurses. She is also well-noted for her tireless efforts to heal the Schism in the Church, and is credited with persuading Pope Gregory XI to return the Papacy from Avignon to Rome.

9. Born in Portugal, this future saint spent many years in the Spanish army, opened a bookstore, and cared for indigent sick people in his own home. He is the patron of booksellers, heart patients, hospital workers and printers.

Answer: St. John of God

St. John died while kneeling in prayer in his own sickroom and was buried. Twenty years later, his body was found to be unchanged except for the tip of the nose, and for many more years those who visited the room where he had died testified to a wonderful sweet fragrance which persisted there. St. John of God is the founder of the religious community known as the Brothers Hospitallers.

10. The author of many mystical writings, including "The Dark Night of the Soul" and "The Ascent of Mount Carmel", this Spanish saint and Doctor of the Church was the confessor to St. Teresa of Avila.

Answer: St. John of the Cross

In 1926, 335 years after his death, the body of St. John of the Cross was exhumed in order to be interred in a shrine built in his honor. It was found to be slightly discolored but otherwise normal and even flexible.

Source: Author soobeehunny

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor thejazzkickazz before going online.
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Holy Relics of the Catholic Church Quiz

This quiz is about those Catholic saints whose bodies were found to be untouched (or relatively so) by the ravages of the grave, even years after their deaths. All multiple-choice questions.

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