On July 6, 2026, the postulator for the causes of beatification of the married couple Tomás Alvira Alvira (1906–1992) and Francisca Domínguez Susín (1912–1994) submitted the Positiones on their lives, virtues, and reputation for holiness to the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints.
The submission consists of two volumes, each approximately 800 pages, prepared under the supervision of the Relator appointed by the Dicastery, Msgr. Melchor Sánchez de Toca, who guided the work of the postulator, Fr. Francesco Russo. The volumes present the lives of the two Servants of God on the basis of the testimonies and documents gathered during their respective diocesan processes, both phases of which were concluded in 2014.
Although, following standard practice, the two Causes have proceeded separately, the Dicastery — given that the candidates are a married couple — has determined that the Positiones should be submitted and examined together. They will first be studied by the Theological Consultors and, if their judgment is favorable, by the Cardinal and Bishop members of the Dicastery. The results of these two phases will ultimately be submitted to the Pope, who will decide whether to authorize the promulgation of the decree on the heroic nature of their virtues, declaring them Venerable.
Who were Tomás and Paquita?
Tomás Alvira was born in Villanueva de Gállego (Zaragoza) in 1906 and died in Madrid in 1992. He held a doctorate in Chemical Sciences, worked as a researcher at the CSIC, and served as a secondary school professor. Paquita Domínguez was born in Borau (Huesca) in 1912 and died in Madrid in 1994. She was a schoolteacher. They married in Zaragoza in 1939 and had nine children, of whom the first, José María, died at the age of five. Both were supernumeraries of Opus Dei. Tomás was a man of science with a warm, approachable manner, combining intellectual rigor with great simplicity. Paquita was an elementary school teacher and a woman of steadfast fidelity who lived her marriage as a daily act of self-giving.