Moncada

In 1392 in the town of Moncada near Valencia, Spain, a remarkable Eucharistic miracle occurred during one of the most tumultuous periods in Church history—the Western Schism (1378-1417). Father Mosén Jaime Carrós, the parish priest of Moncada, lived in constant anguish and spiritual torment. He had been ordained by a bishop who was appointed by the antipope Clement VII (who reigned in Avignon, France, as a rival to the legitimate Pope in Rome). Father Carrós feared deeply that his ordination might be invalid, which would mean that every Mass he celebrated was ineffective, every Host he consecrated remained ordinary bread, and he was deceiving the faithful who came to receive what they believed was the true Body of Christ.

About this miracle

This interior agony weighed on Father Carrós for years. Every time he celebrated Mass, he was filled with dread that he might be offering nothing but a theatrical performance rather than the Holy Sacrifice. On Christmas Day, 1392, Father Carrós celebrated Mass as usual, still burdened by these doubts. Among the congregation that day was an aristocratic woman named Angela Alpicat (or Angèla de Alpicato), who attended Mass with her five-year-old daughter, Inés (the future Saint Inés de Moncada).

At the end of Mass, little Inés refused to leave the church. She tugged at her mother's dress and implored her mother to let her remain in the church, explaining that she wanted to play with "the beautiful child" that the pastor had held in his arms during Mass. Her mother was confused—she had seen no child—but the little girl insisted. When the congregation heard what the child was saying, they realized something miraculous had occurred. The little girl had seen Baby Jesus in the Host held by Father Carrós during the Elevation at the Consecration.

Father Carrós, hearing of the child's vision, saw an opportunity to test whether this was truly a sign from God about the validity of his priestly orders. He devised a simple but profound experiment. He took two hosts from the tabernacle, but he consecrated only one of them, leaving the other unconsecrated. Then, holding the consecrated Host in his hand, he called little Inés to him and asked her what she could see in his hands. Without hesitation, she answered clearly: "I see Baby Jesus." Then Father Carrós held up the unconsecrated host and asked the same question. The child looked at it and replied simply: "I see a white little disc." She could distinguish perfectly between the consecrated Host containing the Real Presence of Christ and the unconsecrated wafer that was merely bread.