Saint John Paul II died on April 2, 2005.
However, the late pope survived two assassination attempts, one of which provided the faithful with a shirt relic the Church preserves and venerates today.
The Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul preserve this important relic in Rome. The shirt contains blood stains from the assassination attempt on May 13, 1981.
People without resources, single mothers, and immigrants go to the Roman Province of the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent for help.
However, the house is also a pilgrimage site for preserving Saint John Paul II’s shirt.
“You can still see the pope’s blood stains on the relic and you can make out three distinct holes,” Sister Maria Rosario of the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul told Rome Reports.
“They are holes caused by bullets. Not because there were three bullets, but since the shirt was folded over itself, because of how he was standing.”
Sister Maria also explained how the relic came to them: through nurse Anna Stanghellini, who preserved the undershirt in her closet for many years.
“In the operating room, they cut his shirt into two pieces and threw it on the floor because they had to operate on the Pope,” Sister Rosario explained. “When they finished, she realized that the shirt was still there and would probably end up in the garbage. So she decided to pick it up.”
Stanghellini felt close to the Daughters of Charity, so she donated the shirt to their community. The relic’s display attracts many visitors for veneration.
The sisters say many share stories of Saint John Paul II’s miraculous intercession.
Miracle After Venerating the Shirt Relic
Sister Rosario said a woman wanted a child, but could not become pregnant. When she eventually became pregnant, the doctors said "she and her child were in great danger."
"She came here to pray almost every day. Finally, she became pregnant, but the doctors told her that she and her child were in great danger.
“She and her husband asked Saint John Paul II for a miracle. In the end, the child was born and is in good health. So is she. They named him John Paul.”