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Religious Relic Returns Home

DALTON — Parishioners of a Catholic church in Lackawanna County have been waiting two years for a religious relic to return home. This weekend they’...

DALTON -- Parishioners of a Catholic church in Lackawanna County have been waiting two years for a religious relic to return home. This weekend they'll officially welcome it back and also thank the police officers who found it.

Our Lady of the Abingtons parish in Dalton was a victim in a bizarre string of church burglaries in 2013 and 2014. Religious items were stolen and many of them were sold on eBay. Their priest was hoping one item in particular would return, and two years later, his prayers were answered.

For Catholics, the Feast of the Assumption falls on Saturday and for parishioners at Our Lady of the Abingtons in Dalton, it will be a very special one.

"We properly celebrate, life over death, good over evil, generosity over greed," said the church's pastor Fr. Thomas Petro.

This group has thought a lot about triumphing over evil and greed after one of the parish properties was burglarized two years ago.

The accused, Brian Rush of Scranton, is set to stand trial for robbing at least two churches in Lackawanna County and selling the stolen religious items on eBay.

Fortunately, one item was never sold: a relic believed to be a piece of St. Joseph's clothing.

St. Pio Chapel, down the road from the church, was burglarized in June 2013. Dozens of items were stolen. And almost two years to the day, Brian Rush returned the St. Joseph's relic to Dalton police.

"Immediately upon discovery of the theft, I asked the parishioners to pray, not only of the relic but the other objects -- some of them religious, some personal -- to be returned, and our prayers were answered two years later," Fr. Petro added.

"Thankfully, nobody was hurt and that's the important thing," said parishioner Mary Jane Peters. "And thanks to the Dalton Police Department we got, I think, everything back."

It took Dalton police officers more than a year to track down all of items stolen from the church in Dalton. That's why when the parish celebrates the feast of the assumption, they'll give officers a statue of St. Michael, the patron saint of police.

"We hope that they are able to display it for many years in their police station as a way to remember that they have both earthly support and heavenly protection," said Fr. Petro.

Dalton police told us that nearly all of the items stolen from St. Pio Chapel and another church in Elmhurst have been tracked down and returned. Many of the people who purchased the items on eBay returned them after learning they were stolen.

At the mass on Saturday, Our Lady of the Abingtons will display the St. Joseph's relic and also bless a new bell for the church.

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