Miracle of the Eucharist of Daroca
Excerpt from Miracles of the Eucharist book 1
Daroca is one of the oldest cities in Spain. It is protected by walls on all sides, as well as over a hundred towers. The towers were used to position soldiers in times of battle.
This city is located about 50 miles from Zaragoza. It was chosen by Our Lord Jesus, not to be the site of a Eucharistic Miracle, but to be the home of a Eucharistic Miracle. Against great odds and much opposition, the Lord chose this place, and would have His way. There was a great battle being waged at the end of 1238, and the beginning of 1239, between the Spanish and their dreaded invaders, the Moors. Valencia had already fallen to the Moslems, but a group of armies from the area of the Aragon had joined forces to take control of this kingdom back from their hated enemies.
THE MIRACLE
The Spaniards had their camp on the outskirts of a village called Luchente, and were preparing to capture the castle of Chio in Luchente. There were six commanders present, Don Ximenes Perez, Don Fernando Sanchez, Don Pedro, Don Raimondo, Don Guillermo, and Don Simone Carroz. They also had their priest present, Fr. Mateo Martinez, from the Church of St. Christopher in Daroca.
As was the custom of the time, the commanders went to Confession, and attended a Mass performed at the camp. After the Consecration, but before the commanders were able to receive Our Lord Jesus in the Eucharist, word came to them that the Moors had launched a sneak attack. The commanders returned to the field of battle immediately. the priest wrapped the Consecrated Hosts in the Corporal, and hid them under a rock some 10 yards away. The Spaniards were victorious in the battle against the Moors. They took many of the enemy prisoner.
When the commanders returned to the camp, they were exhilarated. They asked the priest to give them Communion in thanksgiving to the Lord for the victory over the infidels. Fr. Mateo ran to the spot where the Hosts had been buried. He took the Corporal from under the rock, and unfolded it. He gasped at the sight before his eyes. THE HOSTS HAD BEGUN TO BLEED. They stuck to the Corporal, making spots of blood appear on the Cloth. The commanders rejoiced at the sight. They took this as a sign from Jesus that they were to be victorious. They had the priest raise the blood stained Corporal on a standard, as a banner. They marched back into battle against the Moors, and the castle of Chio was recaptured. Credit for the triumphant battle was given to the Eucharistic Miracle that the Lord had graciously bestowed on them. Now the problem began. The six commanders were all from various regions of Spain. Each of them believed the Sacred Corporal should go to their town, to be revered in the Cathedral. What began as a discussion as to the disposition of the Corporal became an argument. They put the question to a draw. In three different draws, the city of Daroca was chosen to be the home of the Eucharistic Miracle. But two of the commanders, from Teruel and Calatayud, disagreed with the procedure of the draw, and its results.
They seemed to be in a deadlock. The head general Berenguer of Entenza, proposed a compromise solution. They would place the Corporal on the back of a Moorish mule, taken in conquest. The mule had never set foot on Christian soil prior to the Arab attack on Spain. The plan was to let the mule wander as he willed, until he found a place to stop. Wherever he stopped was where the Lord wanted the Corporal to remain. The plan was put into effect. The date was February 24, 1239. The mule left the hill of Codol, and began his journey. He was followed in close attendance by priests with lit candles, and soldiers. The first road the mule took was towards Valencia, but he never entered that city. He continued on, crossing a ravine that goes from Catarroja to Manizes, touching Segorbe, Jerica and Teruel. But he did not enter any of those cities.
The mule traveled for 12 days, and a distance of over 200 miles before he stopped in front of the hospital of Saint Mark, in the city of Daroca. At that point, he dropped to the ground in a faint. The date was March 7, the future feast day of St. Thomas Aquinas, great defender of the Eucharist. (At the time of the Miracle, 1239, St. Thomas was 14 years old. He was later named protector of the Eucharistic Miracle of Daroca after his death, in the middle of the Fourteenth Century.) There are traditions or legends attached to the donkey ís trip, which many consider embellishments. It is said that during the 12 days many miraculous things happened, like angelic music and singing; fury of demons abandoning possessed souls as the mule with the Eucharistic Miracle passed by; many conversions of sinners. But there is no documentation of this. These are local stories which have developed over the years. There is, however, documentation on the Eucharistic Miracle of Luchente, the Pilgrimage of the mule, and the heavenly choice of Daroca as the chosen city for the Corporal to be venerated. A beautiful Church was built to be the home of this special Gift to the people of Daroca. A majestic reliquary was created in 1385. Sculptures depicting the events leading up to the Miracle, i.e., the Battle of Luchente, Fr. Don Martinez raising the Corporal as a Battle Banner, the trip of the mule, and the arrival in Daroca, were also placed in the church A contingency from Daroca went to Rome in 1261 to inform Pope Urban IV of the Eucharistic Miracle of Daroca. Pope Urban IV, born James Pantaleon, was a contemporary of Blessed Juliana of Liege, the nun who spent her life trying to institute a Feast Day for the Blessed Sacrament. Pope Urban IV was the pope who declared the Eucharistic Miracle of Bolsena authentic, and a year later, instituted the Feast of Corpus Christi. It is believed that Pope Urban IV accepted the news of the Eucharistic Miracle of Daroca as one more sign from the Lord that He wanted this feast day instituted. In 1444, Pope Eugene IV granted a year of Jubilee for Daroca every 10 years.
This was the same pope who authenticated the Eucharistic Miracle of Walldurn, Germany, and the Eucharistic Miracle of Ferrara, Italy. It was at this time that the town took St. Thomas Aquinas to be the Protector of the Eucharistic Miracle. Pope Sixtus IV also granted a Jubilee to the Miracle of Daroca, but changed it to occur every 6 years. The blood on the Corporal has been analyzed, and has been determined to be of human origin. There is no data as to the Blood Type.
During an investigation of the Blood in the Eucharistic Miracle of Lanciano Italy, it was determined that the Blood Type was AB Positive. T
he recent findings of the NASA group from Santa Barbara, California, who investigated the Shroud of Turin determined that the Blood Type on the Shroud was AB Positive also. We really believe that if the Blood Type of the Corporal of Daroca had been investigated, It would been AB Positive. What do you think?