As soon as Sr. Alphonsa passed away with an odor of sanctity on July 28, 1946, and was interred, her reputation as a saint began to spread rapidly. People of all persuasions and denominations came to visit her tomb seeking intercession. Each supplicant was struck by the luminous aura and the numinous aroma that permeated the air, and each prayer was answered.

The main structure of the Church, which became known as the St. Alphonsa Shrine Church following Alphonsa’s canonization on October 12, 2008, had originally been built as a cemetery chapel of the Bharananganam Forane Church in 1945. Sr. Alphonsa was the first nun to be buried there. Her tomb now stands at the exact spot where her mortal remains were interred on July 29, 1946.