A visit at the Bl. Ivan Merz Reliquarium

Today is Holy Monday and a blessed day to visit the Bl. Ivan Merz Reliquarium Home of Sacred Relics in Marikina City. A small home turned into a mini-museum of sacred relics from all over the world.

You will be required to take off your foot wear when entering the Reliquarium to maintain the cleanliness and sanctity of the place. Take a glimpse of the relics or say a little prayer of your special intentions.

There are more than 1,000 relics found inside the Reliquarium, the third most in the Philippines. And the relics are coming from the bodies, vestments, place of birth, missions and my favorite section, from the Holy Land. It also includes relics from the apostles, and early Christians recognized for their holiness.

Relics are arranged according to the date of saints' feast days from January 1 to December 31. I learned that St. Rita of Cascia's feast day is also my birthday.

Relics of St. Rita of Cascia - Feast Day - May 22

You can also recognize some relics coming from famous saints like these from St. Pio de Pietrelcina, St. John Paul II, St. Teresa of Calcutta, St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Valentine, St. Therese of the Child Jesus, St. Ignatius of Loyola, and St. Faustina Kowalska.

Relics of St. Pio de Pietrelcina and St. John Paul II

Relics of St. Therese of the Child Jesus

  
But the center of the Reliquarium is the relics from the cross of the Crucifixion and there are secondary relics on the nails and thorns used in the passion of Christ.

Relic of the Holy Cross

Bl. Ivan Merz

Bl. Ivan Merz is of Bosnian descent, born December 16, 1896. He fought during World War 1 and decided to be a layman. He took the perpetual vow of chastity and devoted his free time to the Church. A young missionary and taught about Christianity to young Croatians until he died on May 10, 1928 (feast day).

He was beatified by Pope John Paul II on June 22 2003 and declared him as Apostle of the Youth. He was then recognized by Pope Benedict XVI for his holiness by mentioning his name in the Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation: "Sacramentum Caritatis."

Bl. Ivan Merz is the perfect patron saint for young people, youth ministers, military personnel, philosophers, philologists, students, educators, liturgists, theologians, devotees of the Holy Eucharist, and lay faithful engaged in Christian apostolate.

He is also a powerful and compassionate intercessor when it comes to academic or professional examinations, dental and lung illnesses, couples who seek for a child and HIV/AIDS victims.

Bl. Ivan Merz Center and Reliquarium is open every Tuesday to Sunday, 10am - 7pm. There is also no entrance fee. They've open it for Holy Week 2018 that's why we are lucky to visit it today. Here is the schedule for this week:

Holy Tuesday - Pabasa, 7am onwards
Maundy Thursday - 7am - 11pm
Good Friday and Black Saturday - 7am to 7pm
Easter Sunday (April 1 and 2) - CLOSED

* Office and Reliquarium resumes operation on Tuesday, April 3.

A visitor gets a certificate, a scapular and a stampita with the prayer to Bl. Ivan Merz. You can leave a letter where your prayer intentions will be included in every day masses for the whole year.

Visit the Bl. Ivan Merz Center and Reliquarium at SE Narra cor Champagnat St, Marikina Heights, Marikina City. Near St. Scholastica's Academy and C&B Mall.

For more information about the Reliquarium, prayer requests, religious items and souvenirs, you can contact them via:
Phone: +63 2 6212230, +63 956-1253804
Emal: vp.ivanmerz@gmail.com
Facebook Page: ivanmerzcenter

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