By Anthony Faiola / Stefano Pitrelli contributed to this report.
NAPLES, Italy — The faithful here are still talking about Pope Francis and the holy blood.
On an official trip to this ancient city in the shadow of Mount Vesuvius, Pope Francis entered the local cathedral to pray to Januarius, the patron saint of Naples. Januarius’s 1,700-year-old dried blood is known to “spontaneously liquefy,” a phenomenon seen by true believers as a miraculous sign from above. Those gathered watched anxiously as Francis prayed before, then kissed, the ornate silver-and-glass reliquary containing the coagulated clot.
And lo and behold, the dark stain dissolved.
