Bones Under Altar in Rome’s Church of St. Paul

Tests support belief that St. Paul’s tomb has been discovered, Pope reveals
http://www.catholicculture.org/news/headlines/index.cfm?storyid=3371
As he presided at ceremonies closing the Pauline Year, Pope Benedict XVI made the dramatic announcement that new scientific tests have strengthened the traditional belief that human remains buried beneath the altar of the Roman basilica of St. Paul-outside-the-Walls are those of St. Paul himself.

My Video Showing the end of St. Paul’s Life and the Place of his Bones which I Made Last October in Rome. Enjoy!

From the Pope’s words June 28, 2009: “Vatican City (AsiaNews) – With “great emotion” Benedict XVI announced that a recent scientific probe confirmed what Catholic tradition has always held, namely that the body of the Apostle Paul is located under the papal altar in the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls. The announcement was made today in the basilica itself during the homily of the First Vespers of the Feast Day of Saints Peter and Paul, which brings the Pauline Year to a close, a year that was held to celebrate 2,000 years since the birth of the Apostle of Tarsus.

The Pontiff said that recently the tomb was “subject to a scientific investigation. A small hole was drilled in the sarcophagus, unopened for centuries, and a probe was introduced. It found traces of a valuable purple fabric, in linen and gold layer-laminated, and a blue fabric with linen threads. Red incense grains and substances containing proteins and limestone were also discovered. Small fragments of bone were found and radiocarbon dated by experts who did not know their place of origin. Results indicate that they belong to someone who lived between the 1st and 2nd century A.D. This seems to confirm the unanimous and undisputed tradition according to which these are the mortal remains of the Apostle Paul. All this fills our soul with deep emotion.”