Bone fragments said to belong to St. Peter, the first pope, and previously exhibited solely for the pope were on public display for the first time at a Vatican mass Sunday.
Pope Francis prayed before the bones, which were revealed in a bronze case near the alter at a mass celebrating the end of the Year of Faith in St. Peter’s Square, the Associated Press reports.
The remains were discovered in a monument unearthed during an excavation of St. Peter’s Basilica after the death Pope Pius XI in 1939. The divisive relics have long been a source of debate, with some archeologists and theologians vehemently denying their legitimacy.
[AP]