22/04/2026 – 16:00 – Lecture by Father Robert Godding – ‘Good Friday 1370: An inconvenient miracle. Bloody hosts in Brussels… and elsewhere in Europe’ (FR)

Wednesday 22/04/2026 (in French)

From the 13th century onwards, two devotions enjoyed great success in Europe: devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and devotion to the humanity of Christ, particularly to the suffering Christ. These devotions developed during the 14th and 15th centuries. At the same time, Europe experienced a wave of anti-Semitism: this period, afflicted by wars, plagues and famines, saw Jewish communities, minorities always under suspicion, repeatedly fall victim to violence. It was in this context that a series of Eucharistic miracles involving Jews occurred, particularly in Germanic countries. They were accused of having stolen consecrated hosts and stabbed them, after which the hosts allegedly began to bleed. The miracle that allegedly occurred in Brussels in 1370, the memory of which is preserved in our cathedral, is part of this context.

In 1968, the diocesan authorities, having taken note of the latest scientific research, recognised the biased nature of the accusations and the legendary nature of the miracle, as recorded on a modest bronze plaque affixed to the west portal of the cathedral in 1977.

The pastoral authorities of the Catholic Church intend, because of the anti-Semitism that characterises it and which it may encourage, to discourage any devotion that may remain to the so-called miracle sacrament.

The conference will be followed by a pastoral communication on this subject and the unveiling by Catholic and Jewish leaders of a new commemorative plaque, more explicit than the previous one.

Free admission