Relic of Saint Camillus to visit PHL February 18-March 10

The relic of the heart of Saint Camillus de Lellis, patron of the sick and hospitals, will visit the Philippines from February 18 to March 10, the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) said on Friday. A series of pilgrimages during the visit of the relic starting with a 6:00 p.m. Mass on February 18 at the Our Lady of La Paz Parish in Makati City, the CBCP said. "On February 23, it will travel to San Fenando De Dilao Parish Church, in Paco for a mass for the sick at 8:30 a.m. On the same day at 5 p.m., the relic will be brought to St. Camilllus College Seminary Chapel in Marikina City," the CBCP said in a news article posted on its website. The pilgrimage will end with closing ceremonies on March 10 at 4:00 p.m. at the St. Camillus and San Lorenzo Ruiz Chapel in Quezon City. The Order of the Ministers of the Infirm or the Camillians, founded by St. Camillius, will arrange the relic’s visit to chapels and parishes in Cebu, Baguio, Pangasinan, Davao, Calbayog and Mati City. Worldwide pilgrimage The CBCP said the Philippine pilgrimage is one leg in the relic’s worldwide pilgrimage, as part of the Camillians’ preparation for the 400th death anniversary of its founder. St. Camillus had helped ignite a ministry for the poor and the sick that continued hundreds of years after his death in 1614. "The relic is protected by a crystal glass, in the shape of the heart. There are four Doric pillars at the base of the reliquary that support the dome, on top of which is a cross, the symbol of the Order of the Ministers of the Infirm," the CBCP said. It added the Camillians, who were established in the Philippines in 1974, are involved in community-based health care, HIV/AIDS ministry, hospital chaplaincy and pastoral formation of health care workers and providers in the country. - VVP, GMA News