QUINCY — Under the watchful eyes of Bishop Thomas John Paprocki of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois and Auxiliary Bishop Joseph Perry of the Archdiocese of Chicago, the remains of Servant of God Father Augustus Tolton were unearthed on Dec. 10 in St. Peter Cemetery in Quincy. It was the most recent development in the process that began in 2010 for Father Tolton’s beatification and canonization.

In his homily at the prayer service preceding the exhumation, Bishop Paprocki related how he prayed for the intercession of Father Tolton some years ago that resulted in the total recovery of a once comatose seminarian the bishop knew. Bishop Paprocki said that his prayer took place at the gravesite of Father Tolton in St. Peter Cemetery.

“I truly believe that was a miracle, and I hope Rome will agree,” said Bishop Paprocki. “For me it was a very profound experience of the intercession of a very holy person, someone we believe to be a saint and hope will be recognized as such.”

The details of what was done and found at the gravesite will not be divulged pending the official report to be submitted to the Vatican by diocesan chancellor Father Christopher House with the assistance of Father Daren Zehnle, chief master of ceremonies to the bishop who served as the notary of the proceedings.

Suffice it to say that the exhumation was carried out for specific historical reasons to comply with ancient traditions of the church: not the least of which is to be absolutely certain that “Father Tolton lived and died, and is not simply the creation of someone’s imagination.” The evidence exhumed Dec. 10 in Quincy proved that Father Tolton did indeed live and die.

Once the team of scientists and technicians completed their work, Father Tolton’s remains were transferred to a new casket, which was then placed inside a vault and lowered into the original grave. Workers and church officials on site concluded their day with the prayer for the canonization of Father Tolton.

The late Cardinal Francis George of Chicago formally closed the investigation into the life and virtues of Father Tolton on Sept. 29, 2014. A prayer service marked the binding and sealing of the dossier local research aimed at making Father Tolton, the first African-American diocesan priest, a saint.

Cardinal George opened the cause in 2010.

Contributing were Father Daren Zehnle and Catholic New World, the newspaper of the Archdiocese of Chicago.