On Beatification and Bones

A part of the process connected with the upcoming beatification of Pope John Paul II is starting to make waves.

An AP story carried on Yahoo news talks about relics connected to JP2, whether first class (parts of his body - or, as you can read, his blood) or second class (items used by the late Pontiff - clothing, etc.).

Part of the procedures leading up to Beatification involves exhumation and examination of the deceased's body, as well as the collection of 1st class relics (10 pounds, I once read) to be sent to Rome. Since Pope John Paul is obviously already in Rome, this will be a much simpler process.

This will give the media a chance to poke more fun at the Church, calling us ridiculous for such devotion to clothing and body parts. The thing is, these are the same people who were awfully quiet when the clothing belonged to Princess Diana or Jacqueline Onassis, or the hair belonged to Elvis or Michael Jackson.