Please subscribe to Fox News to access this content
Plus, with your account you get exclusive access to handpicked articles and other premium content for free.
By entering your email address and pressing “Continue”, you agree to Fox News' Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, including the Financial Incentive Notice.
Please enter a valid email address.
Having problems? Click here.
A team of experts has been unable to determine why a Missouri nun who died in 2019 was not incorrupt, the bishop of Kansas City St. Joseph's Diocese announced Thursday.
“Based on what has been observed during this time period, the remains of Sister Wilhelmina Lancaster do not appear to have undergone any decomposition in the manner that would normally be expected under the circumstances of her prior burial,” Bishop James V. Johnston of St. Joseph Parish, Kansas City, said in a statement posted on the diocese's website.
Lancaster, who gave the religious name “Sister Wilhelmine of the Most Holy Rosary,” was the founder of the Catholic religious order, the Benedictine Congregation of Mary Queen of the Apostles. She died on May 29, 2019, at the age of 95.
'Modern-day miracle': Catholics gather in rural Missouri to see 'incorrupt' nun
Nearly four years later, on April 28, 2023, her body was exhumed for reburial in a new altar the nuns were building. After being exhumed, her body was found to be “remarkably well-preserved,” despite not being embalmed and having been buried in an unsealed wooden coffin, Fox News Digital reported at the time.
News of the discovery spread, and in May 2023, thousands of people flocked to the small town of Gower, Missouri, to worship and view the body of Queen Wilhelmina, which pilgrims at the time called a “modern miracle.”
Sister Wilhelmina Lancaster, founder of the Benedictine Congregation of Mary Queen of the Apostles, who died in 2019, “displayed no signs of decay, as would normally be expected in a prior burial situation,” Bishop James V. Johnston said. (Benedictines of Mary Queen of the Apostles)
“We have commissioned a team of local medical experts to examine and evaluate Sister Wilhelmina's body,” Johnston said in a statement, less than a month after it was discovered that her body was largely incorruptible four years after her death.
The team, Johnston said, was “led by a pathology physician and assisted by two other physicians and a former Missouri county medical examiner.”
Lancaster's habit and other clothing “showed no signs of damage.”
Besides examining her body, “the team also examined the coffin and interviewed witnesses to the events immediately prior to her burial in 2019 and immediately prior to her exhumation in April 2023,” he said.
Praying the Rosary: Understanding a Tradition That Helps Catholics Meditate on Jesus and Mary
“In their final report, the investigation team noted that the condition of Sister Wilhelmina's body during examination was remarkable in that it showed no signs of decomposition,” Johnston said.
Mr Johnston said the coffin lining was “completely deteriorated”, but Lancaster's robes and other clothing “showed no signs of deterioration”.
Nuns in Lancaster discovered in 2023 that her body had not decayed, even though she had died in 2019. A new report from the diocese confirmed the discovery. (Benedictines of the Congregation of Mary Queen of the Apostles)
“While the investigation team was only able to carry out limited testing, they nonetheless concluded that 'the condition of her body, nearly four years after her death, is highly unusual given the environmental conditions and the associated remains found,'” he said.
“The report also notes that the history of Sister Wilhelmine's death and burial does not describe circumstances that would be expected to prevent decay,” he continued.
Johnston said soil tests had also found no “unusual elements” that would prevent the decay of unembalmed bodies.
Missouri miracle? Nun whose body remained intact during exhumation draws tourists to small town
In both Catholic and Eastern Orthodox traditions, we know that some people don't decompose as expected after death.
According to the Catholic Answers website, this is called “incorruptibility.”
“Just as God the Father did not allow Jesus' body to decay in the tomb (see Acts 2:27), God will not allow the bodies of his faithful followers to decay,” the site states.
The Monastery of Our Lady of Ephesus in Gower, Missouri, was flooded with thousands of pilgrims after it was discovered that Lancaster had not been corrupted as expected. (Benedictines of Mary Queen of the Apostles)
In a statement, Johnston said Lancaster had not been declared “innocent” because the Catholic Church has no official procedure for certifying the dead.
Click here to sign up for our lifestyle newsletter
“Children's purity is not considered a mark of sainthood,” the bishop said, adding, “there are currently no plans to initiate a campaign to canonize Sister Wilhelmina.”
According to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' website, the Catholic Church typically requires that at least five years have passed since a person's death before the formal process for canonization can begin. Lancaster has been dead for just over five years.
“I pray that the story of Sister Wilhelmina will continue to open people's hearts to the love of the Lord and Our Lady.”
“The condition of Sister Wilhelmina Lancaster's body has understandably generated widespread interest and raised important questions,” Johnston said. “I pray that Sister Wilhelmina's story will continue to open hearts and deepen people's love for our Lord and Our Lady.”
Click here to get the FOX News app
Last year, following the discoveries about their founder and the subsequent media attention, the Benedictine Congregation of Mary Queen of the Apostles posted a lengthy statement on its website about her legacy before and after her death.
“The apparent miraculous preservation of Sister's body gives us an opportunity to reflect on the great gifts God gives us every day, especially those gifts that are literally hidden from our eyes,” the statement said.
A visitor collects soil from the grave of Sister Wilhelmina Lancaster. The convent is open to visitors daily, and people can venerate her body in the church. (Thomas Phippen/Fox News)
“We believe that just as Sister Wilhelmina's life and death were miracles that pointed the way to Almighty God, her legacy continues to point to God's resurrection and the glorious life that awaits us.”
Lancaster's body is kept in a glass case in the abbey's chapel and is open to view daily, according to the abbey's website.
For more lifestyle stories, visit www.foxnews.com/lifestyle
In a statement provided to Fox News Digital by the Benedictine Congregation of Mary Queen of the Apostles, the nuns said they have been “deeply enlightened to witness the continued interest in our founder, Sister Wilhelmina, and the passion she inspires in bringing souls closer to Christ.”
The nuns added that they “look forward to starting the canonization process when the time is right.”
“In the meantime, we are pleased to continue to welcome guests each day who seek her intercession,” the statement said, noting that there are numerous “testimonials of healing and great benefits” resulting from Lancaster's intercession.
“We are so grateful to God for the witness (Lancaster) continues to give to our community, our church and the world,” they said.
