Out of the mouths of babes; also, into their eyes.
At least, that was the case, it seems, a good number of years ago at St. John the Evangelist School in Jackson, Michigan.
It was a First Friday, February 4, 2011, and as per custom, the children—from pre-kindergarten to sixth grade—filed into the chapel of the middle school for Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
It was right off the bat that the children, in the first class, began expressing to staff that they “saw” Jesus in the Host.
“This was relayed to the principal, Mrs. Kathy Tarnacki, and her response was, ‘Oh, that’s nice,'” recounted Sister Margaret Mary Schissler in the Voice of Providence, which is the publication of the Servants of Charity. “When it came time for the principal to make a visit to the Blessed Sacrament, she entered the chapel, gave Jesus her reverence, and as she looked up at the monstrance her breath was taken away; she was shocked! The principal actually saw what her children were referring to, an image that resembled a pencil sketch of the face and Hair of Jesus.”
The pastor was immediately informed via a voice-mail message on his cell phone (he was away). The phenomena apparently occurred throughout the time of Adoration. “When the second-to-the-last class of the day made their visit to the chapel, the children saw color beginning to appear on the image, as if a ‘hue’ of pink, to some, and orange, to others, was observed around the shoulders of Jesus’ image,” continued Sister Schissler. “Some even say that they recognized the Sacred Heart of Jesus on the Host [see photo, top left, taken by a parent].
“As Father Bob Pienta, the associate pastor, came to pick up the monstrance, as he usually does at the end of the school day on First Fridays, he himself saw the image.
“He called the pastor, Father James Shaver, and, connecting with him, he asked him to come to the chapel immediately.
“Father Shaver observed an image on the Host in the monstrance and called the diocese of Lansing to relay the occurrence. He was directed to continue Adoration until 8:00 p.m., ending with benediction and the repose of the Blessed Sacrament back to the church tabernacle.”
Before that was done, however, hundreds from the community — particularly parents — had filed in front of the Host and saw for themselves that Jesus was truly present!
At times the line of people stretched from the altar of the chapel, out the door, and into the gym.
Before it was placed in the tabernacle, lights were turned and the image was no longer visible. Not seeing anything, another priest nonetheless snapped photos and when he uploaded them to his computer saw an image of Jesus, but one entirely different than the one he himself had seen in the chapel. This time, it was like the image from the Shroud of Turin.
Here’s another from three years ago (2023) in Brentwood, California.
And so it goes: these happenings have occurred in a goodly number of places across North America. We are being shown something! It is not an idle faith, Catholicism. It is not just a ritual, Adoration. It is Presence — and it is everywhere a Host is consecrated, visible or not. They tell us something. They tell us especially as the Month of the Sacred Heart has melded into the month of July, Month of the Precious Blood.
[see also: