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DIAKONIA -- Exhumations of the Dead—Why? What is that all about?

Catholic Chicago

Join Deacons Richard Hudzik and Dave Brencic as they explore what some might find to be a strange, even macabre, topic. However, this show’s guest, Chicago Deacon David Keene, PhD, fills us in on the purpose of exhumations, why it is done in connection with persons who are being investigated for sainthood and what it means to have a body that is “incorrupt.” Deacon Keene brings his academic training in historical archaeology to bear on making sense of this topic. Deacon Keene also addresses the spiritual dimensions of what it means to participate in an exhumation. There is a connection with the dead, with their history and their dignity that moves all who participate and observe what is actually a prayerful experience.