Minnesota diocese to open beatification cause for young nun who died from mysterious disease

This fall, the Diocese of Crookston, Minnesota, will open the beatification cause of Sister Annella Zervas, a Minnesota-born, Benedictine nun. 

The diocese confirmed the Vatican has granted permission to move forward, The Tablet reported Aug. 21.

Sr. Annella, who died in 1926 at age 26, is now recognized as a Servant of God. Her cause will enter the diocesan phase Oct. 9 with a Mass at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Crookston, followed by an official canonical investigation. The process that could lead to her sainthood will involve gathering testimony, reviewing her writings, and examining any reported healings linked to her intercession.

Bishop Andrew Cozzens, who announced the opening of the cause, said Sr. Annella’s life continues to speak powerfully to the Church today. 

“[Sister Annella] offers all of us an extraordinary example of deeply lived Catholic faith and deep trust in God,” he said, The Tablet reported.

Sr. Annella entered the Benedictine convent in St. Joseph, Minnesota, at age 15. After taking final vows, she taught music and served as an organist in North Dakota. Not long into her ministry, she began to suffer from a mysterious and painful skin condition that worsened rapidly. Her parents brought her home in 1924, where she lived in near-constant agony for the next two years.

“Despite her severe physical suffering, which included violent chills, high temperatures, and painful attacks of itching, scratching, and weeping, her mental faculties always remained intact,” according to a biography cited by The Tablet. “The pus-like discharge from the skin disease had a sharp, biting, and decayed odor. Her frail body exfoliated between a pint and a quart a day of skin. At one point, she existed on almost no food.”

In the midst of that suffering, she continued to pray. 

“Yes, Lord, send me more pain, but give me strength to bear it,” she reportedly said.

After her death on Aug. 14, 1926 — the eve of the Feast of the Assumption — her story began to circulate among the faithful, and accounts of healing and spiritual encouragement attributed to her emerged. 

While local devotion declined mid-century, it was rekindled in recent years, including through a reported vision by a Minnesota painter in 2010 and ongoing testimony from others who believe she has interceded for them.

“Sister Annella is a true teacher of our Catholic faith,” Bishop Cozzens said, “witnessing that each person, regardless of their struggle, has great dignity and is created for intimacy with God. And she teaches us that God is our truest friend, and our vocations are good even when they take a different path than we might expect.”

Canon lawyer Amanda Zurface is serving as postulator for the cause, with Monsignor David Baumgartner coordinating efforts through the Sister Annella Guild. If the Vatican eventually recognizes her heroic virtue, she will be declared Venerable. Beatification, the next step, requires a confirmed posthumous miracle.

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