Katherine Sidnell
Warning: This article contains graphic images which some readers may find distressing.
Every year, thousands of people flock to an abbey's church in Missouri to visit the body of a nun.
It may sound like a slightly strange holiday plan to go to the Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles' church in Gower, Missouri, to stare at a dead body, but there's a gob-smacking reason why so many pilgrims decide to make the trek to see the remains of Sister Mary Wilhelmina Lancaster in particular.
In 1995, at the age of 70, Sister Lancaster founded Benedictine order of nuns the Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles.
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Sadly, in 2019, Sister Lancaster passed away aged 95 and was buried at the monastery.
She lay there for four years, however, in 2023, plans arose to move her remains under the altar in the chapel to make way for a new shrine to St Joseph.
It was then - four years since the sister's burial - when the other nuns made a shocking discovery.
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Sister Scholastica, prioress of the abbey, told El Pais: "When we unearthed it, the coffin had a crack, through which the abbess and I could see one of the feet was still intact.
"Also surprising was the pristine state of the habit, when the lining of the coffin had disintegrated."
To the nuns' astonishment, they discovered Sister Lancaster's body showed little signs of decomposition despite not having been embalmed and having been lying in the ground in a simple for four years.
Sister Scholastica resolved: "We interpret it as a message from God: he wants Wilhelmina to continue with her religious work."
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The accidental discovery has triggered many tourists to flock to the tiny town of Gower to pay their respects to the late sister in the belief that her body remaining so in-tact is a sort of modern-day miracle.
Local law enforcement and a group of volunteers have been managing the crowds as people have come from across the United States pay their respects.
"It was pretty amazing," Samuel Dawson said, a Catholic who’d travelled from Kansas City with his son to visit Sister Lancaster. "It was very peaceful. Just very reverent"
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Dawson noted that during his visit tourists were also allowed to touch the Benedictine Sister because the nuns wanted to make Sister Lancaster ‘accessible to the public ... because in real life, she was always accessible to people’.
However, as a result of the intense attention on Sister Lancaster, the monastery ultimately resolved to place her in a glass shrine - meaning that the public will no longer be able to touch the former nun.
The Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph released a statement about the policy in 2023, stating: "The condition of the remains of Sister Wilhelmina Lancaster has understandably generated widespread interest and raised important questions.
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"At the same time, it is important to protect the integrity of the mortal remains of Sister Wilhelmina to allow for a thorough investigation.”
It continued: "Incorruptibility has been verified in the past, but it is very rare. There is a well-established process to pursue the cause for sainthood, but that has not been initiated in this case yet."
It's hoped once it's been five years since Sister Lancaster's passing - which would be sometime this year - that she can be considered for sainthood.