Display of St. Francis of Assisi's bones confirms enduring appeal of relics for Christians

The bones of St. Francis of Assisi have gone on public display for the first time

ASSISI, Italy -- The bones of St. Francis of Assisi went on public display for the first time Sunday, capping an 800-year saga over his bodily remains and confirming the enduring appeal to Christians of venerating a saint’s relics.

Nearly 400,000 people registered in advance to see the bone fragments, which are contained in a slim, bulletproof Plexiglas case in the lower Basilica of St. Francis in the hilltop Umbrian town the medieval friar made famous.

The Franciscans decided to exhibit the bones for one month, through March 22, to honor the 800th anniversary of St. Francis ’ death in 1226. The aim is to revive his message of peace and fraternity that made him one of the most beloved Christian saints and inspired Pope Francis to take his name, the first pope to do so.

The exposition of his bodily remains is particularly remarkable given the somewhat tortured history of the body of St. Francis, a wealthy merchant’s son born in 1182 who gave up all his possessions to live as a mendicant friar.

At the end of his life, St. Francis’ body was said to have acquired the stigmata, the first documented case of a saint acquiring the marks of Christ on the cross.