Relics and Mummies
My daughter has pointed out to me that the incorrupt bodies of Saints are not unlike
mummies or the unembalmed remains of certain Indians and other native peoples that are
many years old. The embalmed mummies can be explained. But why do we argue that incorrupt
relics are a sign of sanctity? I have seen relics that were in a state of near total
incorruption—something not observed in other remains—, but this does not answer
the questions of those without such experience. (Dr. E.Z., CA)
The bodies of the dead can be preserved by embalming, by certain chemicals in the soil,
and by the effects of extremely cold or arid conditions. No one denies this. And such rare
instances—and we must emphasize that bodies which do not dissolve after death are
a rare exception—present no challenge to our veneration of the relics
of Saints. The Christian veneration of relics, whether these be in the form of bone
fragments or whole bodies, stems from our belief that Grace not only changes and
transforms the soul, but the physical substance of the human body as well. Thus, many
Saints’ relics exude a special fragrance which evokes a sense of spiritual
beauty—a fragrance sometimes strong and at other times weak. Other relics elicit a
sense of awe and spiritual peace. These qualities attest to the eternal and encompassing
effects of holiness and to a spiritual presence that survives death and manifests itself
even in the remnants of a Saint’s physical body.
Now, whereas we may or may not know why the mummified bodies that archaeologists study
have not disintegrated, we certainly do know why the incorrupt relics of the Saints have
not. We can draw a parallel between the sanctity of these Saints and the incorruptibility
of their bodies; indeed, we Orthodox believe that there is a direct correlation
between the sanctity of the Saints’ lives and the state of their bones or bodies
after death. Other incorrupt remains are of no interest to us, just as Christianity is
ultimately unconcerned with the adventitious virtue that one sometimes sees in worldly
people, but with the specific virtue formed by the Christian life in those who have
overcome and cured sin by spiritual exercise and submission to the Will of God.
For centuries, and in monasteries especially, it has been observed by the Church that
often only one or two bodies, among many buried in the same place, remain incorrupt. This
would have no meaning, were it not for the
fact that, through such long-term empirical observation, it has also been ascertained that
these incorrupt bodies, as well as skeletal remains bearing a certain color or fragrance,
are almost always those of individuals who lived exceedingly and exceptionally virtuous
lives. The supernatural phenomenon which
we acknowledge, then, is not the incorruptibility or exceptional quality of remains as
such, but the virtuous lives to which these attributes attest. Likewise, when we venerate
relics, we are not venerating the miracle of bodies that do not decay (indeed, there are
instances in Church history where the bodies of corrupt people have remained whole after
death); rather, we approach relics, whatever their state of incorruption, out of awe for
the virtues that once adorned these precious remnants of the human body. Relics, like
Icons, are, of course, Grace-bestowing; but ultimately they serve to lift us up and beyond their material form to the Saints who
bequeathed them to the Church. Their final
reality is understood only by those who attain to this communion with the Saints, which is
ultimately communion with Christ Himself, to Whom the Saints have been joined and Whose
majesty and power they reflect.
From Orthodox Tradition, Vol. XII, No. 4, pp. 35-36.
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