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St. Mary Magdalene has come to the Chicago area -- that is a relic of the saint often referred to as the apostle to the Apostles. On February 20, a reliquary carrying a portion of her tibia (leg bone) began a two-week tour to churches in the archdiocese. It then will then continue to other Illinois locations during March. "The purpose of the tour is to share the holiness of the relic and tell the story of the saint who is recorded as the first witness to the resurrection of Jesus Christ," said Paula Lawlor, coordinator of the Illinois tour. "It also reminds us that she was a real person," he said. "St. Mary Magdalene was told to go and tell the others." The first stop was St. Vincent Ferrer Church in River Forest. "St. Mary Magdalene is the patroness of our order," said Dominican Father Thomas McDermott, pastor. "Dominicans are the custodians of the relic. We are grateful and blessed for the opportunity to have her relic at our church." Tradition has it that some years after the Crucifixion, Mary Magdalene was imprisoned. Upon her release, she and other followers of Jesus were cast out to sea on the shores of Palestine without sails, oars or supplies. The boat miraculously came to shore on the coast of Gaul (France) in a town near Marseille. After preaching with her companions and converting the whole of Provence, Mary Magdalene retired to a mountain cave known as La Sainte-Baume, which means holy cave, and spent the last 30 years of her life in solitude.

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