Dublin's Sacred Heart Stolen

Over the weekend a priceless religious relic, the preserved heart of Dublin's patron saint, was stolen from the Irish cathedral in which it was kept. The heart originally belonged to Saint Lawrence O'Toole. who was archbishop of Dublin in the twelfth century. So far no motive has emerged for the theft, but it naturally has me wondering what sort of magick whoever took it might be looking to work with the heart of a Christian saint.

The 884-year-old heart of St. Laurence O'Toole was stolen over the weekend from the iron cage where it is kept in Christ Church Cathedral, police and the cathedral said.

"All I ask is that whoever took it would return it with no questions asked. It's valueless to anyone but the Cathedral and our community and the community of Dublin. We are grieving over this and are still horrified that someone should deprive us of such a special link to our past and to our Christian founder," the dean of Christ Church Cathedral and the diocese of Dublin and Glendalough, the Very Rev. Dermot Dunne, said in a statement.

Police in Ireland are following leads from security camera footage with the hope of being able to identify those responsible for the theft, which occurred between 9:30 and 11 a.m. Saturday, the cathedral said. The relic was last seen at 10:30 a.m.

Of course, the thief might only be looking to ransom the artifact or something similar rather than cast spells with it. From a magical perspective, though, a genuine relic of this sort would provide a contagion link back to the original saint. After 884 years it's possible that entanglement sudden death might have set in, rendering the link less strong, but its symbolic power, especially to a devout Catholic, would nonetheless remain. Police have noted that there was no sign of forced entry, so the theft could possibly be an inside job.

Here's hoping that however the theft happened, the heart is eventually found and returned to it's place. Clearly its presence is profoundly inspirational to many.