Today’s announcement by Pope Francis of the canonization of Blessed John Paul II was not a surprise. From the time of his death in 2005, when crowds shouted “Santo Subito!” in St. Peter’s Square, to Pope Benedict XVI’s waiving of the normal five-year rule (the process of canonization normally doesn’t begin until five years after Read more
A day after the beatification of a Sicilian priest killed by the Mafia, Pope Francis called for “these gangsters” to convert to God. Father Giuseppe Puglisi, who was murdered by Sicilian Mafia in 1993, was beatified in Palermo on May 25. Shocked by his death and inspired by his example, many of Sicily’s priests began Read more
The election of a Latin American Pope has renewed speculation about the likelihood of beatification for Bishop Oscar Romero, the Archbishop of San Salvador who was murdered at the altar 33 years ago. The Congregation for the Causes of Saints has been examining Romero’s cause since 1996. Bishop Gregorio Rosa Chavez, Auxiliary Bishop of San Read more
The Congregation for the Causes of Saints has approved the beatification of Pope Paul VI, the pope who led the Church through most of the Second Vatican Council and the post-conciliar period, and who wrote the encyclical Humanae Vitae. Two steps are necessary before a date for his beatification is announced — a decree from Read more
Thirty-three years ago today Cardinal Karol Wojtyla was installed as Pope John Paul II. October 22, 2011 the Catholic Church around the world celebrated his feast day as Blessed John Paul II, just six and a half years after the end of his papacy. At the Vatican, a prayer vigil was scheduled for the afternoon Read more
Pope Benedict XVI has created three new saints for the Catholic Church during a Mass in St. Peter’s Square that was disrupted by a man who climbed up to the colonnade surrounding the square and burned a book.
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A new John Paul statue at Rome’s central Termini railway station has attracted criticism from experts and the Vatican. The unconventional statue shows the former pope as a giant hollowed out figure and was meant to round off celebrations marking the beatification of John Paul and mark the former pontiff’s 91st birthday. An outstretched arm Read more
President of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe told journalists on his return to Harare, that the late John Paul II’s beatification was “fabulous” and “absolutely heavenly”. “It was right that the spiritual honour be given to Pope John Paul II,” Mugabe said. The Vatican waded off a lot of criticism aimed at it for inviting the Zimbabwe Read more
Last Friday night we were forced to make agonizing choices – which TV programme? The netball, the rugby or The Wedding? Issues implied by one of the topics merit our serious attention. Any debate on the British Monarchy is like a debate on the Church – in many ways they are similar. Neither has democratic Read more
An estimated a crowd of 1.5 million people assembled for the the beatification of John Paul II. Many camped out during the night in the square, which was bedecked with posters of the late pope and one of his most famous sayings, “Do not be afraid!” St Peter’s Square was jam-packed and the crowd stretched as far Read more