Province of Utrecht — A small piece of the rib of the real St. Nicholas was unveiled today at the St. Nicholas Church in Odijk. It took Bert Staal a year to get the bone here. “I’ve certainly had my hands full lately.”
TV segment (RTV Utrecht), photos and text by Ulrike Nagel.
At 9:00 a.m., the bone fragment is still locked away in a small box. No one except Bert has been allowed to see it all these weeks. “No, no one else has been there,” says Bert. “Look, it’s still standing between a small statue of Saint Nicholas and next to the Dom, because I was born under the Dom, and that’s why Utrecht is so important to me.” He’s retired, but he’s still very active in pastoral work and was the one who took the initiative to bring the bone fragment to Odijk.
Bert picks up the small box from its spot and walks down the stairs with it, toward his car. Why is a small piece of bone so important to Odijk? “Because it’s nearly 1,700 years old. Egmond Abbey has agreed to let us have this fragment, and I’m very happy about that. ‘Exciting’ might be an overstatement, but it’s certainly special.”
Saint Nicholas, the Miracle-Worker
According to Bert, Saint Nicholas was a miracle worker. “He’s the patron saint of sailors, lawyers, bankers, bakers, sex workers, and female students—this man did so much good in his life that he was canonized. And even now, we still exchange gifts thanks to this saint. Here at the church, we even have a giveaway cabinet in the spirit of Saint Nicholas, where anyone in need can take something.”
At St. Nicholas Church, yellow-and-white banners are being hung especially for today; the kitchen is a hive of activity; and 450 booklets with today’s songs have been printed. “We’ve gotten so much media attention, so I do expect the church to be completely full,” says Bert.
A Solemn Ceremony
A short while later, the auxiliary bishop of Utrecht, Herman Woorts, arrives. He will be the one to remove the bone from the casket and place it in a permanent spot behind the altar. A solemn ceremony, he says. “We assume that this piece of rib belongs to Saint Nicholas. We all keep little things at home that are priceless. Because they remind us of someone dear to us. And this is a small relic of a saint who has meant so much to people over the centuries.”
Woorts senses the excitement and anticipation in the church. “It’s their patron saint’s feast day, which is always special, but the arrival of such a relic—that doesn’t happen every day. It’s a special historical moment for their faith community.”
The piece of rib ‘comes home’
Bert places the small casket on a special altar in the corner of the church. In his view, the bone belongs here. “Because this piece of St. Nicholas’s rib will rest here and remain in St. Nicholas Church in Odijk for all eternity. That’s why it’s at home. It’s a place of devotion for us, and perhaps it will even become a pilgrimage site.”
Then the Mass begins. Auxiliary Bishop Woorts is given a key and opens the casket. The moment has arrived: the small monstrance containing the bone is taken out. It’s shown briefly to the cameras, and then it disappears into a niche above the altar.
What will Bert do now that the bone is home? “My wife asked me that, too. I’m going to babysit the grandchildren and continue my volunteer work here for the parish. I’ve done enough for now, and I can’t think of a new project to take on just yet.”
