“Home to 5,000 Catholic relics” is not something you hear every day about Saint Anthony’s Chapel. This chapel in Pittsburgh holds the largest collection of Catholic relics outside of Rome.
Saint Anthony’s Chapel was founded by Father Suitbert Godfrey Mollinger. He was born in Belgium in 1828. Father Mollinger came to America in the 1850s. He settled in the Pittsburgh area.
Little is known about his life outside of collecting relics and ministering to the church. Father Mollinger died in 1892. Today, Saint Anthony’s Chapel has over 5,000 relics. They are presented in over 800 cases.
The chapel has verification for nearly every relic. Relics are parts of the body of a saint. They are the Temple of the Holy Spirit. Relics are a link of love between the person who venerates and the Saint. God performs miracles through the communion of Saints. This brings us closer to Our Lord.
Saint Anthony is one of the few known people to have had the Infant Jesus appear in his arms. This happened at the Poor Clare Monastery in Arcella, Italy. He is very close to Our Lord in heaven. Saint Anthony resurrected and is very much alive in Christ. He brings Catholics closer to Our Lord.