Spirituality

'Miracle' as exhumed nun's body shows no sign of decomposition

By T.K. Randall
September 2, 2024

Image: AI-generated (Bing AI / Dall-E 3) According to reports, Sister Wilhelmina Lancaster - a nun from rural Missouri who founded the Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles - died at the age of 95 and was buried in a simple, unsealed casket on the grounds of her order's monastery in Gower in mid 2019.

To everyone's surprise, however, when she was later exhumed in 2023 for the purpose of moving her body inside the Abbey church, her remains were found to be completely intact and with surprisingly little evidence of decomposition, despite spending four years buried in the ground.

No embalming or other preservation methods had reportedly been used on her body prior to her burial.

The discovery went on to generate quite a stir, with churchgoers hailing her "incorruption" (referring to the religious belief that a lack of decomposition is a reflection of holiness) as a miracle.Now long after she was exhumed, a team of medical experts was commissioned to examine Sister Wilhelmina's body and investigate what could account for the unusual state of her remains.

In their final report, the team confirmed that the body had not decomposed as expected, even though the lining of the casket itself had rotted away. Even her clothing seemed to be remarkably intact.

"The condition of her body is highly atypical for the interval of nearly four years since her death, especially given the environmental conditions and the findings in associated objects," they wrote.

Despite their best efforts, the medical experts were unable to find any explanation for this.

As things stand, the case remains a complete mystery and Sister Wilhelmina - whose body has been on display in a glass shrine inside the abbey - continues to attract visitors from far and wide.

Source: kcsjcatholic.org

Tags: Nun, Body