THE remains of the late Archbishop Teofilo Camomot didn’t emit any foul odor when it was exhumed last Wednesday, a forensic expert said Thursday.
Dr. Erwin Erfe admitted it was the first time that he encountered such a case in his 15 years as a forensic doctor.
Even a skeleton releases a distinct smell, but that was not the case with Camomot, he said.
Erfe and his medical team were present during the capping of the exhumation process at the Daughters of St. Therese (DST) Mother House in Barangay Valladolid, Carcar City on Thursday.
Erfe and his team also noticed that Camomot’s vestments showed no signs of decay.
These are still in “pristine condition” and “uncorrupted by any form of infestation and insect activity,” he said in his report.
“Hindi ako magdedeny (I will not deny it). It was a different experience for me and the team,” Erfe said.
Based on their assessment on Camomot’s skeleton, they found multiple bilateral rib fractures, a fracture on his left clavicle, and extensive cranial and bilateral facial fractures.
Camomot was killed in a vehicular accident.
Erfe and his team also helped postulators of the late archbishop’s cause for Camomot’s sainthood collect relics, which included a rib bone nearest to the heart.
Gratitude
The relics are now in the safekeeping of Fr. Samson Selloriquez, OAR, the main postulator of Camomot’s sainthood cause.
Before Erfe’s testimony, Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma led a mass at the back of the Domus Teofilo inside the compound of the DST Mother House with over 5,000 people attending.
In his homily, Palma thanked the devotees for showing their faith and their continuous support for Camomot’s cause for sainthood.
Palma urged the faithful to continue spreading Camomot’s story and to show gratitude for favors received through the late bishop’s intercession.
He said that while the diocesan process has been approved by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints in the Vatican City, it’s still a long way before Camomot will be beatified and canonized.
Palma said that Selloriquez and vice postulator Fr. Mhar Vincent Balili are preparing the “positio,” or thesis, on Camomot’s holy life and heroic virtues.
If the Pope approves the “positio,” Camomot will be given the title of “venerable.”
Palma reminded the faithful to remember how Camomot served his flock, especially the poor, when he was still alive.
After the mass, the coffin containing Camomot’s effigy and remains was sealed and placed inside a special tomb at the Domus Teofilo.