Recently tourists have rushed to the monastery in Gower. The remains of a Missouri nun who passed away in 2019 are on exhibit showing that her body has scarcely decomposed since her death.
In order to reinter her in a church that honors St. Joseph, Sister Wilhelmina Lancaster, the founder of the Catholic order of the Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles, was exhumed in April.
The nun passed away four years ago at age 95, and was buried in the “very moist clay of Missouri” without being embalmed. When the burial was opened, church officials discovered Lancaster’s remains almost intact rather than the bones they had anticipated, something many folks are calling a miracle.
Photo by: Samuel Dawson
The Missouri abbey, which is located roughly 40 miles north of Kansas City, has now seen thousands of visitors arrive in hopes of observing and touching the body.
The Benedictine order stated in a statement that the leak of a private email “added an unexpected twist to our plans” for a dedication with just the sisters
“We had no intent to make the discovery so public, but unfortunately, a private email was posted publicly, and the news began to spread like wildfire. However, God works in mysterious ways, and we embrace His new plan for us.”
They continued, saying this had allowed them “to contemplate the great gifts God gives us every day, especially the ones that are literally hidden from our eyes.”
The sisters believe Lancaster is the first Black woman whose remains are “incorrupt,” meaning they have not decomposed.
Their founder will be reinterred in the church’s glass St. James Shrine. Visitors will still be able to view her but not touch her during their visits or take dirt from her tomb.
And although exhumation is frequently the first step toward sainthood, this does not mean they are trying to have her named a saint.
Bishop James V. Johnston, Jr. of the Kansas City-St. Joseph Diocese said, “The condition of the remains of Sister Wilhelmina Lancaster has understandably generated widespread interest and raised important questions… At the same time, it is important to protect the integrity of the mortal remains of Sister Wilhelmina to allow for a thorough investigation.”
