AMERICANALMANAC (Charles McAdams) - Cardinal Parolin kisses 1,700-year-old skull in ancient Catholic ceremony marking 900th anniversary
The Vatican's top diplomat bowed and kissed the skull of a third-century Christian martyr during an elaborate ceremony in Sicily, a moment of reverence that quickly drew accusations of idolatry from critics online. Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican's Secretary of State and Pope Leo XIV's official representative, leaned forward and pressed his lips to the […] The post Cardinal Parolin kisses 1,700-year-old skull in ancient Catholic ceremony marking 900th anniversary appeared first on American Almanac .
The Vatican's top diplomat bowed and kissed the skull of a third-century Christian martyr during an elaborate ceremony in Sicily, a moment of reverence that quickly drew accusations of idolatry from critics online. Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican's Secretary of State and Pope Leo XIV's official representative, leaned forward and pressed his lips to the ancient relic of Saint Agatha during a ceremony at Catania Cathedral on August 17. He then placed a crown atop the saint's 14th-century gold reliquary bust as church bells rang across the archdiocese. The ceremony marked 900 years since Agatha's remains were returned to her birthplace from Constantinople in 1126. The skull, roughly 1,700 years old, had been temporarily removed from…Open
