A summary from the exhibit of Eucharistic Miracles assembled by Saint Carlo Acutis:
Robert Prevost, who became the first US-born Ponntiff, spent more than two decades in Peru. From 2015 to 2023, he was bishop of the diocese of Chiclayo, a city nine miles from Eten on the northern coast, where, in 1649, worshippers reported seeing the Child Jesus in a consecrated Host displayed for adoration. Three small white hearts, joined together, appeared with Him. Each year a feast honoring the event opens with the Host being carried from its sanctuary to the church in the city of Eten.
The First Apparition
The first apparition took place during Vespers and the solemn exposition for the feast of Corpus Christi. As the service ended, the Franciscan friar Jerome de Silva Manrique was about to return the monstrance to the tabernacle when he stopped. In the Host appeared the radiant face of a child with thick brown curls falling to His shoulders. Everyone in the church shared the vision.
The Second Apparition
The second apparition came a few days later, during celebrations for St. Mary Magdalene, patroness of the city. According to Brother Marco Lopez, superior of the convent in Chiclayo, the Divine Child appeared again during the exposition. He wore a purple tunic with a shirt underneath that reached the middle of His chest, in the style of the native peoples of South America.
This was understood as a sign that He identified with the Mochican people of Eten and wished to show His love for them. Many also saw three small white hearts united in the Host, which were taken to symbolize the Holy Trinity: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
The Feast Today
The feast of the Divine Child of Eten still draws thousands of pilgrims every year.
Source: exhibit panel “Eucharistic Miracle of Eten,” Edizioni San Clemente (2006).
