A Tale Of Two Popes And The Sainthood

LAST week, history was once more made in the Catholic Church following Pope Francis approval of the miracle needed to canonize Pope John Paul II and waiving Vatican rules to honour Pope John XXIII. The candidates have rightly been described as two of the 20th century’s most influential Popes; having closely identified with the Second Vatican Council, the 1962-65 meetings that brought the Catholic Church into modern times.

Pope Francis approved a decree that a Costa Rican woman’s inexplicable cure of a deadly brain aneurism was the ‘miracle’ needed to canonize John Paul. More significantly, he decided that John XXIII, who convened Vatican II, could be declared a saint even without a second miracle attributed to his intercession. Pope John XXIII would go down in history as the Pope, who declared open the Vatican II, a year before his death in 1963, and also opened the church to people of other faiths and allowed for Mass to be celebrated in the languages of the faithful, rather than Latin.

Saints are those, who follow Jesus Christ and live their lives according to his teaching. The news of the Pope’s decision to canonize Pope John Paul 11, threw the Catholic world into a frenzy of joy. Here was a Pope (John Paul 11), who is well loved and whose influence throughout his 27 year pontificate has continued unabated to move the world towards the path of religious peace, tolerance and ecumenism. He revolutionised the papacy, traveling the world and inspiring a generation of young Catholics to be excited about their faith. He was the first Polish pope and the first non-Italian in 455 years — a legacy that continued with the German-born Benedict XVI and Argentine Francis.

Benedict put John Paul on the fast track for possible sainthood, when he dispensed with the traditional five-year waiting period and allowed the beatification process to begin weeks after his John Paul’s death. Benedict was responding to chants of Santo Subito or ‘Sainthood Immediately,’ which erupted during John Paul’s funeral.

All things being equal, before the end of the year, the two men would be canonized, presumably December 8, which falls on the feast of the Immaculate Conception, a major feast day for the church that honours Mary, to whom both saintly popes were particularly devoted. It is instructive to remember that Pope John Paul II, who first visited Nigerian in1982, came once more in the year 2008 and carried out the beatification of our own Fr. Cyprian Iwene Tansi in Onitsha.

Basically, there are four steps leading to the Catholic sainthood. The person must have died for five years (Pope John Paul II waived this requirement in Mother Teresa’s case.) When the subject arises that a person should be considered for Sainthood, a Bishop is placed in charge of the initial investigation of the person’s life. If it is determined that the candidate is deemed worthy of further consideration, the Vatican grants a Nihil Obstat. This is a Latin phrase that means ‘nothing hinders.’ Henceforth, the candidate is called a ‘Servant of God.’

Secondly, the Church Official, a Postulator, who coordinates the process and serves as an advocate, must prove that the candidate lived heroic virtues. This is achieved through the collection of documents and testimonies that are collected and presented to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints in Rome. When a candidate is approved, he/she earns the title of ‘Venerable.’

Thirdly, to be beatified and recognized as a ‘Blessed,’ one miracle acquired through the candidate’s intercession is required in addition to recognition of heroic virtue (or martyrdom in the case of a martyr).

Finally, canonization requires a second miracle after beatification, though a Pope may waive these requirements. (A miracle is not required prior to a martyr’s beatification, but one is required before his/her canonization.) Once this second miracle has been received through the candidate’s intercession, the Pope declares the person a ‘Saint.’

2 comments:

  1. WE NOMINATE ALL THE PRIME MINISTERS OF MALAYA FROM 1957 TO 2013 FOR JOINT SAINTHOOD....

    THEY CAN CLAIM THE MIRACLE OF MAKING SABAH AND SARAWAK THE POOREST VASSAL STATES OF MALAYA!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Need to solve this case.

    ReplyDelete