The relics with the mortal remains of Saint Francis of Borja (Gandía, October 28, 1510 – Italy, September 30, 1572) They will arrive this Friday at the Archdiocese of Valencia, where they will remain until November 4, a historic event with the aim of promoting and increasing the knowledge and dedication of who was the IV Duke of Gandía and the third general of the Society of Jesus.
After months of work, the relics will now return to the diocese with the approval and authorization of the Archbishop of Valencia, Monsignor Enrique Benavent and the support of the Society of Jesus. They will depart from Madrid, specifically from the parish of San Francisco de Borja located in the famous Salamanca neighborhood, a place where these relics are usually found in a silver ark.
The saint’s mortal remains will remain in the parish of San Francisco de Borja in Valencia but will also visit the city of Gandia (from September 13 to October 1) and the city of Turismo (October 18, 19 and 20), with the first stop upon arrival being the Basilica of the Virgin of the Desamparados tomorrow, Friday, at 6 p.m.
So, after receiving the reliquary tomorrow in the Basilica, at 6:30 p.m. Holy Mass will be celebrated, presided over by the Rector, Melchor Segui. Afterwards, the relics will be transported to the Camarín de la Virgen and will be exposed for public veneration until Saturday noon.
On the afternoon of Saturday, September 7, at 6:30 p.m., the relics will be transferred to the parish of San Francisco de Borja in Valencia. And at 7:00 p.m. the family mass will be celebrated, which will be presided over by the priest Pedro Miret.
Second visit in 452 years
“This is a historic event. Our archdiocese, for the second time in four hundred and fifty-two years, is preparing to receive the skeletal remains of Saint Francis of Borja, and all this, after having lived a jubilee year convened by the Holy See, on the occasion of the 450th anniversary of his death and the 350th anniversary of his canonization,” he assures. Pierre Miret.
It was on March 31, 1973, “that our parish received the relics of its titular saint. And on April 7 of the aforementioned year 1973, for the first time since his death, the mortal remains of the saint returned to his hometown, Gandía. In the Plaza Elíptica of the ducal city, they were received by Monsignor García-Lahiguera, then Archbishop of Valencia.
Visit to the relics in Gandía
For a fortnight, including the celebration of the novena and the feast of the Saint Duke, the faithful and neighbors will be able to venerate the mortal remains of the Patron Saint of the capital of Safor.
In Gandia, the relics will arrive on September 13 and will be received at the Palacio del Santo Duque by the abbot of the Collegiate Church of Gandia, Angel Saneugenio.
The festival in honor of San Francisco de Borja will take place this year on Monday, September 30 in the city of Gandia, so the relics of Saint Borgia will leave for Valencia on October 1, and in the parish of San Francisco de Borja they will be exposed until Monday, November 4.
Likewise, the parish of San Francisco de Borja in Valencia will celebrate the liturgical feast of its titular saint, on Sunday, October 6 at noon, in a Eucharist presided over by Archbishop Enrique Benavent and concelebrated by his parish priest, Pedro Miret, the priests of the archpriesthood and the priests linked to the parish.
