Wilsnack

In 1383, a violent quarrel erupted between Heinrich von Bülow, a knight of the Prignitz region, and the Bishop of Havelberg. In an act of military aggression and revenge, von Bülow raided the village of Wilsnack and burned it to the ground, destroying homes, buildings, and the parish church in a catastrophic fire. The entire village was reduced to ruins, and it appeared that nothing of value could have survived such devastation.

About this miracle

Several days after the fire, the parish priest entered the charred ruins of his church to assess the destruction. To his astonishment, he discovered three consecrated Hosts in the Sacrarium (the place near the altar where consecrated Hosts are reserved) that were not only untouched by the intense fire but were stained with what appeared to be fresh blood. Although the church had been burned and the spot had been subsequently soaked with rain, the Hosts were found to be intact and completely dry—a double miracle of preservation from both fire and water. Each of the three Hosts bore a drop of Christ's blood at its center.

The Bishop of Havelberg, Dietrich, came to investigate and acted to consecrate the Hosts formally. However, at the moment before he could pronounce the Words of Consecration, the central Host miraculously overflowed with blood in the presence of witnesses. This supernatural sign confirmed the miraculous nature of the event. The three bleeding Hosts quickly became objects of intense veneration, and numerous miracles and healings began to be attributed to them, drawing pilgrims from across Europe.

The veneration was officially approved by two bulls of Pope Eugene IV in 1447, giving the highest level of Church recognition to the miracle. In the fifteenth century, Wilsnack became one of the most important pilgrimage sites in all of Europe, surpassed only by Rome and Santiago de Compostela. Revenue from the countless pilgrims enabled the town to build the large St. Nicholas Church at the site of the miracle, a magnificent structure that still stands today.

However, the miracle was not without controversy. Prominent theologians including Jan Hus and Nicholas of Cusa questioned its authenticity, with Cardinal Nicholas of Cusa even attempting to forbid pilgrimages to Wilsnack. Pope Eugene IV compromised by requiring that a freshly-consecrated Host be displayed alongside the original bleeding Hosts, addressing some theological concerns while maintaining permission for veneration. Despite these controversies, the pilgrimage continued to flourish for nearly two centuries. The three bleeding Hosts were tragically destroyed in 1552 (some sources say 1558) during the violence of the Protestant Reformation, ending the physical presence of the relics but not the memory of the miracle.