December 13, 1294: The Abdication of Pope Saint Celestine V

The artifact is a 1st  class relic, meaning it is the physical remains of a saint (bone, a hair, skull, a limb, etc.).

Traditionally, a martyr’s relics are often more prized than the relics of other saints.

This relic  is contained in a bronze reliquary  enclosed on the front by a crystal.  Inside the holy relic, written in Latin, is “S.Petri Celestine Pp.”

Pope Celestine V, who abdicated after only serving for five months as pope, was a very holy man who was canonized in 1313 by Pope Clement V.

In back a very important red wax seal (of Bishop Colonna ) insures the integrity the relic.  

The silky threads that seal the reliquary are intact.

Until Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation on February 11, 2013, Celestine was the last pope to have resigned from his office.

Size reliquary mm 73 x 33 x 15

It really is quite phenomenal that this Collection includes both   1st  &  2nd class relics of Pope Saint Celestine when you look at the date of his abdication: 1294.  And the connection between him and Pope Benedict XVI is an historical event of unusual proportion.

December 13, 1294: The Abdication of Pope Saint Celestine V:

“So it was Saint Celestine V. He knew how to act according to his conscience, in obedience to God, and therefore without fear and with great courage. Even in difficult moments, as the ones from his brief pontificate, he never feared losing his dignity, knowing that it was full of truth.”

These are the comments of Pope Benedict XVI upon his visit to Sulmona in 2010 to venerate the relics of Pope St. Celestine V who reigned for five months in 1294. At that time, Benedict laid his pallium upon the tomb of St. Celestine.

The Pope also highlighted St. Celestine’s silent attitude in search of God’s help to find his voice. In February 2013,  Benedict XVI followed his example and resigned as pope.

The artifact is a second class relic, meaning it is an article of clothing belonging to the pope. It is contained in an ornate reliquary with the symbol of the papacy: the cross-keys and tiara. A cross adorns the top of the reliquary.

Pope Celestine V, who abdicated after only serving for five months as pope, was a very holy man who was canonized in 1313 by Pope Clement V.

Until Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation on February 11, 2013, Celestine was the last pope to have resigned from his office.

The word, relic is from the Latin reliquiae, meaning remains.

Biography:

Bitter wrangling and infighting and the influence of monarchies from both eastern and western Europe often marked the conclaves of the early church. Such was the case in 1292 when Pope Nicholas IV died, and the next conclave failed to elect a pope for two years. Not only was the church left without a successor to Saint Peter for that time, but also, the venue was changed four times as the interests of the cardinals caused them not to reach an agreement. In the end, a very saintly man, a hermit named Peter of Murrone even wrote a sorrowful letter urging them to decide. One of the cardinals (Orsini) told the conclave that this holy monk had warned him that God revealed they would be punished if they did not elect a pope. As a result, the conclave elected this saintly hermit who had chosen a life contrary to the one to which he now was called. In 1294, after refusing to accept the nomination, he reluctantly considered it to be an act of obedience to God, and he became Pope Celestine V.

The son of poor parents, Peter was born early in the century, the eleventh of twelve children. His sanctity was apparent early in his life and very soon he became a hermit on Mount Murrone. To avoid the crowds of people who sought his advice he withdrew to Mount Majella, an even more remote location. Austerity filled his life. Prayer, fasting, hair shirts and iron chains were the stuff of his life. Since crowds continued to pursue him, he formed a branch of the Benedictine order, later called the Celestines. Eventually he founded the third order for laity.

How could a man so totally dedicated to prayer, fasting and asceticism, a simple man who was eighty-five years old upon his election and who had lived his life in the mountains cope with the complexities faced by medieval popes? In this case the answer was, “not well.” Even the monks of his order had supported the decision of the conclave and urged him to accept. Celestine may also have been motivated by the hope of being able to reform and renew the Church in an evangelical direction. He was crowned at L’Aquila on August 29th, 1294, and made Naples the seat of the papacy soon after.

His immediate decision was to create several new cardinals who were all French or Neapolitan. He became a puppet of both civil and curial authorities. The curial officials were soon selling blank bulls. The projects dreamed of by this saintly man were systematically opposed and frustrated by the ecclesiastical hierarchy that ought to have put them in place. Celestine, old and sincerely pious, was no ruler. His decision, based on an election decree of Pope Gregory X, was to resign. He announced this decision in a papal bull where he affirmed he had this right. Dressed in full papal regalia, he read the decree, stepped down and stripped himself of all papal insignia. Dante called it, the great refusal. It is not known for sure if he was forced into this decision or freely made it, but the end result was his resignation and continued suffering.

Boniface VIII was soon elected in his place and Celestine, the last pope to resign the papacy was then locked up as a prisoner in the castle of Fumone under very harsh conditions. The isolation imposed on Celestine by Pope Boniface VIII may have been to keep his many disciples away.

Within a year and a half, the saintly man died on May 19, 1296. Pope Clement V canonized him in 1313. He is also referred to by his own name, Saint Peter Murrone.

Until the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI on February 11, 2013, Celestine was the last pope to resign from office.

His remains are in the Church of Collemaggio at L’Aquila.

Papal Artifacts honors the gift of his life to our Church.  Pope St. Celestine, pray for us!