It will be a moment of joy, celebration and pride for the entire nation as sister Alphonsa gets canonised on October 12. With this, she would be the first woman from India to be declared a saint by his Holiness Benedict XVI in Rome.

On this occasion, the Blessed Alphonsa church in Kalewadi, Pune will be renamed as Saint Alphonsa church. According to father Benny T, parish priest, Alphonsa church, “This is a historic moment and we are proud that we are a part of it. We have got the remains of sister Alphonsa from Kerala and it has been instituted here by the bishop of Kalyan.”

Sister Alphonsa was born on August 19, 1910 in a poor family. Though she taught in a school for a short period, sister Alphonsa had to give up her job due to illness. She spent most of her life in the sick room of the convent and she became known as the suffering servant . The title was more of a tribute to her for the way she accepted all the sufferings in her life, saying that it was a gift for her from her loving Lord. She was buried in Bharananganam, Kerala on July 28, 1946. She was declared blessed on February 8, 1986 by his holiness John Paul on his visit to Kerala.

According to George Velloor, trusty, Alphonsa church, “The canonisation that will take place in Rome at 10 am in the morning will include holy mass presided over by the Pope and supported by hierarchy of priests from Kerala. Over 3000 devotees from Kerala are expected to attend the canonisation ceremony.”

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