Saint of the Church? I’m often asked whether or not Thomas is a Saint of the Roman Catholic Church. In short, he is not. There are several reasons for this, some based upon the tenants of the Church. Others are speculation. But keep in mind that the Church’s requirements for Sainthood have matured over the centuries.
Buried Alive? One speculation is over the manner of Thomas’ death. According to the Chronicles of the Canons Regular, Thomas died on the Feast of St. James the Less on May 3rd, on the current calendar, at the age of 92. However, that date may instead be July the 25th. The Chronicles don’t give the date, only the Feast Day, which was typical of those writings.
Some two hundred years later, as his cause for sainthood was taken up, Thomas’ coffin was supposedly exhumed. Exhumation is done to determine the state of the body, looking for signs of incorruptibility. The story is that scratch marks were discovered on the inside lid of the coffin and wood splinters under the fingernails of the cadaver. The supposition was that Thomas was buried alive.
This is in direct contravention to the writings of the Chronicles, which states that “… as age grew upon him Thomas was vexed with dropsy in the legs, and so fell asleep in the Lord and was buried in the eastern cloister by the side of Brother Peter Herbort.”
And at 92, had he succumbed to such an illness, he likely would have suffocated in the coffin had he been in some deep coma that replicated death. If he had died in that manner, the theory goes, the Church could not deem him worthy of canonization because there’s no evidence that he received death without denial of his faith. Dying in a coffin, with no witnesses, in a state of frenzied anxiety puts enough doubt into the mix of naming someone to sainthood to withhold such a distinct honor.
I could not find any documentation of this “buried alive” theory, other than a Snopes article that makes the assertion with no sources.
With further research, I found one treatise on Thomas that details the exhumation without mention of this “buried alive” assertion. (see, e.g. Samuel Kettlewell’s Thomas A’Kempis and the Brothers of the Common Life, Ch 15 at p. 381 and following).
Gone but not Forgotten. Lastly, in researching for this post, I found the following commentary regarding the elevation of the cause of Thomas’ Sainthood. Mysteriously, I found no follow-up on any other measures to make this man a Saint. The reference is from the Catholic Encyclopedia:
Two centuries after the Reformation, during which the priory was destroyed, the holy remains [of Thomas] were transferred to Zwolle and enclosed in a handsome reliquary by Maximilian Hendrik, Prince-Bishop of Cologne. At present they are enshrined in St. Michael’s Church, Zwolle, in a magnificent monument erected in 1897 by subscriptions from all over the world and inscribed: “Honori, non memoriae Thomae Kempensis, cujus nomen perennius quam monumentum” (To the memory of Thomas à Kempis, whose name is more enduring than any monument).
Maximilian Hendrik, who showed such determination to preserve and honor Thomas’s relics worked toward Thomas’s beatification. He introduced his cause for sainthood and began to collect the documents required by the Church: “but little more than a beginning was made when [Hendrick] died in 1688.” Since that date, no further steps have been taken to see Thomas canonized.
Conclusion – Worthy of Emulation. Thomas a’Kempis may not be an “official” Saint of the Church. But through his writings and recorded life, he is definitely worthy of emulation for his love of Christ and humble living.
Indeed, I find it a bit ironic that this humble man “cheated” the Church out of making him a Saint. When you read his writings, you will know that this humble saint worked tirelessly to keep his vanity in check. Accordingly, it would not surprise me if Thomas, finding himself buried alive, intentionally scuttled his chances of being canonized by making such marks on his coffin in order to avoid being honored as a saint in years to come.
Thomas’s reliquary can be honored at The Church of the Assumption of Mary, Zwolle, NL.
Saint Thomas a’Kempis, Feast Day, May 3rd, or July 25, or July 26…, pray for us!
Tim,
Thank you so much for this article. You don’t know how long I have been looking for a reasonable answer to the “buried alive” theory.
I love The Imitation very much and was troubled by learning about this “scratching coffin” nonsense as I would like to call it. Your article is my final stopping point in my research. Now I and Thomas can rest in peace. 🙂
Elisabeth,
Thank you for your comment. As an interesting aside, my mother showed me a picture of one of her high school teachers whose name was Sister Thomas a’Kempis. I find that interesting in light of the fact that he’s not an official Saint of the Church. Further, an Anglican priest friend said that Thomas is a Saint in their tradition. Blogging through The Imitation has been a blessing. My trip to Zwolle to see the sites where Thomas walked was inspiring.
Elizabeth, I was taught by a Sister Thomas a Kempis in the 8th grade on Long Island, NY. She was a Kentucky Dominican and probably the best teacher I ever had, bar none. How many could there have been?
i heard that buried alive theory and scratching coffin nonsense too. I couldn’t believe it. For heavens sake, wasn’t postmortem existing at that time to determine if one was in a coma, death or still alive? Well, to me, the evil one is capable of anything. The Devil know such people are torment to him, so to the last moment he could do everything to bring that soul down. What if the devil had decided to physically attack him while he was in the coffin? Anyways, Thomas Kempis IS A SAINT!
Thank you for your comment, Domitilla-marie. I don’t believe they did post-mortems back then. And often tried to get folks buried as soon as possible. I like to think that our Lord took him quietly in the night. The archives of his congregation simply say that he passed after an illness. He was 92, so I think it was natural for them to assume that this was his end. And even if he had been buried alive, he would not have survived long due to lack of oxygen. Finally, I like to think that if Thomas indeed was buried alive, that he was so humble that he felt unworthy of being a “saint” so squelched his chances of being elevated by scratching his coffin to make sure he did not become a declared saint. Thank you again for sharing.
tim
Who that’s not a saint could ever write even close as this humble man did if not clearly directed by the Holy Spirit?
In my mind, he s a saint to be reckon by mother Church sooner or later.
Hector, I completely agree. I had a recent discussion about this with a friend who is a priest and working on the cannonization of another holy man. He indicated that the modern ease of communication and documentation makes it easier for the Church to make its determinations. As you may see from an earlier reply to a comment, history seems confused on the manner and time of his death. Thanks for commenting on the blog.