The Miracle of the Blood of San Gennaro

I love miracles.  I mean I really LOVE them! I love learning about them, hearing about them, and on rare occasions, possibly witnessing one.
Today the congealed blood of San Gennaro (or St Januarius) liquified in response to the prayers of the faithful in the presence of Pope Francis.

San Gennaro was an early martyr of the church who was beheaded during the persecutions of the Emperor Diocletian around 350.  According to legend, a fellow Christian collected a bottle of his spilled blood, and it is this same blood that we see today in a sealed glass reliquary.  Every year on the first weekend of May, the blood is carried in procession to the cathedral of Naples and prayers are said for the intercession of St Gennaro.  In response his blood changes from a congealed black mass to to liquid red blood.  It typically happens every year and failure to do so is said to portend a misfortune for the city, for example,  the blood remained congealed in 1980

and an earthquake happened soon after, killing over 2000 people.

This antique medal is part of my personal collection and has a great detailed portrayal of St Gennaro.  I thought today was a perfect day to share it!

I enjoyed this article from The Vatican Insider about today's miracle, "The Blood of St Gennaro Liquifies in Francis' Presence" and thought this was an interesting article the The Catholic Herald about a priest's personal account of witnessing the miracle, The Day I Saw A Saint's Blood Become Liquid.