Under the spectacular blue sky of Alba de Tormes, the long-awaited confirmation has arrived: the body of Saint Teresa of Jesus remains incorrupt. This is the first conclusion reached by researchers after opening early Wednesday morning the tomb of the doctor from Avila, kept in the Basilica of the Annunciation, in the city of Alba de Tormes, where she died in 1582.
The wandering saint stirred up the peaceful municipality of Salamanca, where the media gathered to learn the first information about the state of her body and some relics. At the doors of the Basilica of the Annunciation, inside which the tomb is located, the general postulator of the Carmelite Order, Marco Chiesaand prior of Alba de Tormes, Miguel Angel Gonzalezdetailed the progress of the work throughout the morning to conclude that the state of conservation of the Saint is the same as that documented, through a photograph, in 1914.
The two brothers could not hide their joy at this first verification, which led Father Chiesa to emphasize that the aspect of the mysticism of Ávila “is the same” as it was more than a century ago. “Today the tomb of Saint Teresa has been opened and we have verified that it is in the same conditions as when it was last opened in 1914,” insisted the Italian Carmelite.
In the dressing room that houses the tomb, where thousands of pilgrims arrive every year, there is no longer the silver urn, nor the arm and the heart, which are also studied in a neighboring room, as well as the hand of Saint Teresa that arrived expressly from Ronda (Málaga).
The Barefoot Carmelite Order has detailed the process prior to the opening and study of the tomb and relics, initiated in August 2022 by the prior of Alba de Tormes, Miguel Angel Gonzalezand which has the approval of the Vatican and Pope Francis.
The action will consist of three phases. The first, which will last until the 31st of the same month, saw the arrival in Alba of a medical-scientific team led by the prestigious Professor Luigi Capasso with the participation of two of his collaborators.
The team, which will be accompanied by the Postulator General of the Discalced Carmelite Order, Marco Chiesaand the Salmanquin goldsmiths Ignacio Manzano and Constantino Martin For the preservation of precious objects, he will open the tomb and the reliquaries of the heart and the arm, as well as the hand that guards the Discalced Carmelite Mothers of Ronda (Málaga)which will also be the subject of a study.
Subsequently, visual reconnaissance work, taking photographs and X-rays will be carried out by a specialized and avant-garde team from Madrid, which will be led by the Dr. José Antonio Ruizof the SSMRX company. In addition, it will serve to properly clean the reliquaries. Once this first phase is completed, the reliquaries will be closed and the relic will be returned to the Carmel of Ronda from the hands of the Saint.
In the second phase, all the elements collected in the Italian laboratories will be studied by the team of participating doctors and scientists. The estimated duration is several months and, once completed, the results of the study and the scientific conclusions will be published.
Finally, in Alba de Tormes, some interventions will be proposed for a better conservation of the body and the relics, moving the relic from the hands of Saint Teresa to this municipality again. The tomb and the reliquaries will be closed and sealed with the help of the goldsmiths, ensuring the conservation of the relics, and the court appointed on August 1 by the Bishop of Salamanca will participate in the process. Jose Luis Retanaand which is composed of the episcopal delegate, Francisco Sanchez Orejaprior of Alba de Tormes, Miguel Angel Gonzalezand the superior of the Daughters of Charity of Alba de Tormes, Remigia Blazquez.
